Speech #1000149111

Mr. President. I have been identified with the refugee needs of the world. and I have made that a very high priority in my own legislative record. As many of my colleagues know. we have fought battles here in the committee and on the floor on behalf of the Refugee Assistance Program. the Admissions Program. Even this year. we rewrote some of the program as it related to Southeast Asian refugees. The fiscal year 1987 carried a figure of $350 million to make our contribution to help feed and house and process some of the worlds 12 million refugees. This year. 1988. the administration came in with a $314million request. which would have severely reduced the capacity to assist many of these refugees all over the world. The House passed a bill of $319 million. to illustrate a higher level of compassion and concern. The Senate. in turn. increased the appropriations to $340.5 million. which is close to the fiscal year 1987 level. Mr. President. that means we are able to help many thousand more refugees in the world. some politically involved by our own foreign polity or some who were created in part by our own foreign policy. particularly those in Southeast Asia. None of this could have happened in the U.S. Senate without the leadership and the support. the enthusiastic support. of the Senator from Hawaii . I think that any credit I may have received for giving this kind of support to a people without a constituency. a people without advocates. a people without representation. would have to be shared in a major part with the Senator from Hawaii. I merely wanted to review the facts of the record. that in no way and under such circumstances that have occurred should there be any validity given to any challenge to the integrity of the Senator from Hawaii. and. second. that he should be given. in the context of the subject of refugees. the major credit in the Senate for the kind of compassion demonstrated and the kind of support exercised through the action of the Senate against. in effect. the lesser degreee of commitment that exists both in the administration and in the House of Representatives.