THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, October 14, 1994 TAG: 9410140518
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A4 EDITION: FINAL
DATELINE: WASHINGTON LENGTH: Long : 127 lines
Here is how area members of Congress were recorded on major roll call votes in the week ending Oct. 7.
Haiti: By a vote of 258-167, the House called upon President Clinton to withdraw U.S. forces from Haiti ``as soon as possible'' but set no deadline. Backed mainly by Democrats, the measure (HJ Res 416) criticized the president for not seeking congressional approval before sending in troops but praised his lifting of economic sanctions against Haiti.
Supporter Eliot Engel, D-N.Y., said, ``We do have vital interests in Haiti. Ask anybody in South Florida, ask anybody who has looked at our immigration policies that have fallen apart. . . . What goes on in Haiti certainly affects us here in the United States.''
Opponent Christopher Cox, R-Calif., objected to using U.S. forces for ``the kind of ill-fated nation-building that President Clinton was forced to abandon just a year ago in Somalia. . . . Aristide is a committed opponent of democracy and repeatedly subverted his own constitution during his tenure in power.''
A yes vote supported the resolution.
Herbert H. Bateman, R-Va.Yes
Owen B. Pickett, D-Va.Yes
Robert C. Scott, D-Va.Yes
Norman Sisisky, D-Va.Yes
Eva Clayton, D-N.C. Yes
H. Martin Lancaster, D-N.C. No
GOP deadline: The House rejected, 205-225, a Republican deadline for bringing U.S. troops home from Haiti. The measure (HJ Res 416) urged Clinton to complete the withdrawal during the first two months of 1995 so that United Nations forces can take over the mission.
Supporter Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, asked: ``Have we so soon forgotten the horrible lessons of Somalia? . . . How can we let ourselves be trapped in the same situation in Haiti all over again?''
Opponent Thomas Foglietta, D-Pa., said: ``It would be wrong to set an arbitrary deadline. . . . We must not place handcuffs on our troops when they are out to perform a perilous mission.''
A yes vote supported the Republican call for a troop withdrawal deadline.
Bateman Yes
Pickett No
Scott No
Sisisky No
Clayton No
Lancaster No
Entitlements: By a vote of 83 for and 339 against, the House refused to bring an entitlements measure to the floor. This killed a nonbinding resolution (H Res 563) that sought to focus attention on the mandatory spending that accounts for about half of federal outlays. Opponents were split almost evenly between Democrats and Republicans. They ranged from members who saw the resolution as toothless to those who feared it could be seen as a swipe at popular entitlements such as Social Security and Medicare.
Sponsor Bill Orton, D-Utah, asked: ``Is there a desire to talk about the public policy issues behind entitlements, all of the entitlements? . . . Should the very wealthy . . . be eligible for those entitlements?''
Opponent Porter Goss, R-Fla., called the measure ``at best a waste of time and at worst a thinly veiled attempt to allow members a freebie, feel-good, do-nothing vote less than five weeks from Election Day.''
A yes vote was to advance the resolution.
Bateman No
Pickett No
Scott No
Sisisky No
Clayton Did not vote
Lancaster No SENATE
Haiti: In a 91-8 vote, the Senate approved a measure (SJ Res 229) setting no deadline for the recall of American troops from Haiti but urging their ``prompt and orderly'' withdrawal. The resolution also criticized Clinton for not seeking prior congressional approval of the military mission, and praised his lifting of trade sanctions against Haiti.
A yes vote supported the resolution.
John W. Warner, R-Va.Yes
Charles S. Robb, D-Va.Yes
Jesse A. Helms, R-N.C.Yes
Lauch Faircloth, R-N.C.Yes
Gift and lobbying bill: By a vote of 52 for and 46 against, the Senate failed to get the supermajority needed to end a filibuster against a congressional reform measure (S 349). This apparently killed the House-passed legislation. The bill sought to increase regulation of lobbyists for the first time in half a century and, separately, prohibit most of the free meals, vacations and other financial benefits that special interests confer on members and staff.
Opposition was mounted by Republicans who contended the lobbying provisions, although aimed at the professional influence community, would impede grass-roots contacts with members of Congress. But supporters said that it placed no burden on grass-roots lobbyists, and that Republicans wanted to deny the Democratic-controlled Congress a legislative success story.
A yes was to advance the legislation.
Warner No
Robb Yes
Helms No
Faircloth No
Education bill: In a 77-20 vote, the Senate sent Clinton a bill (HR 6) extending the 1965 Elementary and Secondary Act through the 1999 fiscal year at a budget of $12.7 billion the first year and $60 billion over five years. More than half of the aid is targeted at the nation's least-advantaged school districts.
In part, the bill requires schools to work toward federally set achievement standards, provides money for upgrading buildings and curricula, sends money to colleges of education, combats drug abuse, promotes teacher training in areas such as ``gender sensitivity'' and earmarks money for computers in classrooms.
Supporter Claiborne Pell, R-R.I. said, ``This is a landmark piece of legislation. We all know the federal contribution to education is small, only six cents out of every dollar spent on education in America. That small amount, however, can make a huge difference.''
Opponent Slade Gorton, R-Wash., said the bill ``increases the federal involvement in the day-to-day operations of our schools. It says that we do not trust the people who are teaching in or administering or running those schools.''
A yes vote was to pass the bill.
Warner Yes
Robb Yes
Helms No
Faircloth No
Thomas Reports Inc. by CNB