1996 Congressional Debates

• Iran and Libya Sanctions Act of 1996
• Terrorism
• War on Drugs
• Whitehouse Security

Iran and Libya Sanctions Act of 1996

• H.R. 3107, the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act of 1996 was debated on June 18. Portions of the debate included:
  • Text of H.R. 3107, The Iran and Libya Sanctions Act of 1996.
  • Representatives Gilman, Hamilton, Soloman, and Gejdenson spoke in favor of H.R. 3107 and the proposed sanctions against Iran and Libya.
  • Representative Roth argued against the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act.
  • Congressman Berman clarified several misconceptions regarding H.R. 3107.
  • Representatives spoke in favor of the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act of 1996 as a means of ending terrorism.
  • Congressmen Gejdenson and Berman requested clarification of points contained within the amended H.R. 3107.
  • Representative Torricelli spoke out against the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act, arguing that more drastic measures are necessary.
  • Arguments in favor of H.R 3107 as a method of combatting terrorist activities.
  • Congresswoman Johnson argued that multilateral sanctions would be more effective than the proposed bilateral sanctions contained within H.R. 3107.

Terrorism

• Representative Traficant stated on March 14 that we need to discover the truth behind the destruction of Pan Am 103 in order to help stop terrorism.
• S.735 Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 FINAL VERSION PASSED BY BOTH HOUSES
• CONFERENCE REPORT ON S. 735, ANTITERRORISM AND EFFECTIVE DEATH PENALTY ACT OF 1996 -- HON. LOUIS STOKES (Extension of Remarks - April 19, 1996)
• Senate discussion of the Conference Report of the ended with a successful motion to recommit the bill to the Conference for more discussion on April 16:
  • To stop terrorism, Taggants should be used to trace the origins of explosives, and writers of publications such as the Terrorist Handbook must be prosecuted, argued Senator Feinstein.
  • Habeus Corpus laws must be reformed to cease the endless appeals process utilized by convicted murderers waiting on death row.
  • Future events similar to the bombing of Oklahoma City must be prevented through passage of the Terrorism Prevention Act.
  • Senator Faircloth rose in support of the antiterrorism conference report. Senator Biden expressed that he did not want the delay in the bill
  • Senator Faircloth called for a reform of Death Penalty legislation.
  • The Terrorism Prevention Act should be recommitted to the Conference Committee in order to present the strongest bill possible.
  • The military should be given the funding and authority to begin training police and law enforcement officials to deal with Chemical and Biological Weapons and a narrowly defined exception should be made to the Posse Comitatus Act to permit the military to deal with situations involving Chemical and Biological Weapons which ordinary law enforcement officials can not.
  • The flawed Habeus Corpus system must be reformed, argued Senator Gorton.
  • Senator Biden presented a motion to recommit the bill to the Conference Committee and a successful vote to lay the motion on the table took place.
  • Motion To Recommit
• Senate Discussion on the Terrorism Prevention Act continued on April 17, covering issues such as: the granting of political and religious asylum, the creation of a 5-year statute of limitations for making a bomb, a sawed-off shotgun, or a silencer, and the use of multipoint wiretaps.
  • The rights of persecuted individuals to seek Political and Religious Asylum in the United States should be preserved.
  • Motion to create a Five year Statute of Limitations within the National Firearms Act, which would extend the statute from the current 3 year limit.
  • This amendment would permit law enforcement officials to utilize Multipoint Wiretaps in order to catch suspected criminals.
• Senator Levin supported the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1998 because it required the examination of potential missile threats by terrorists (excerpt).

War on Drugs

• Senator Inhofe negatively commented on the Clinton administration's policy on the war on drugs, peacemaking and defending America on January 25.
• Representative Mica spoke on March 14 on how the Clinton administration has failed to place enough emphasis on fighting the war on drugs.
• Representative Mica commented on the Clinton administration's new policy relating to the national drug control strategy on April 30.

White House Security

• REMOVE THE BARRICADES, REOPEN PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE TO THE PEOPLE (Senate - April 29, 1996)
• SENATE RESOLUTION 254--RELATIVE TO PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE (Senate - May 14, 1996)
• THE CLOSURE OF PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE: A MATTER OF COMMON SENSE (Senate - May 23, 1996)
• SECURITY AT THE WHITE HOUSE (Senate - June 26, 1996)