U.S. Senate Rejects Funding the Fence, with 28 Republicans Voting "No"

Once again, the U.S. Senate has sold out on the immigration issue, voting 71 to 29 to reject funding to build 370 miles of new fencing along the border with Mexico.

The 29 who voted to provide the funding were: George Allen (R. VA), Sam Brownback (R-KS), Jim Bunning (R-KY), Conrad Burns (R-MT), Richard Burr (R-NC),Thomas Carper (D-DE), Saxby Chambliss (R-GA), Tom Coburn (R-OK), Larry Craig (R-ID), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Jim DeMint (R-SC), Mike DeWine (R-OH), Elizabeth Dole (R-NC), John Ensign (R-NV), Michael Enzi (R-WY), Charles Grassley (R-IA), Orrin Hatch (R-UT), James Inhofe (R-OK), Johnny Isakson (R-GA), Trent Lott (R-MS), Ben Nelson (D-NE), Pat Roberts (R-KS), Rick Santorum (R-PA), Jeff Sessions (R-AL), Richard Shelby (R-AL), Jim Talent (R-MO), Craig Thomas (R-WY), John Thune (R-SD), and David Vitter (R-LA). 28 Republicans opposed the funding and only 2 Democrats, Ben Nelson of Nebraska and Thomas Carper of Delaware supported funding the fence.

Republicans on the wrong side of the issue were: Lamar Alexander (R-TN), Wayne Allard (R-CO), Robert Bennett (R-UT), Christopher Bond (R-MO), Lincoln Chafee (R-RI), Thad Cochran (R-MS), Norm Coleman (R-MN), Susan Collins (R-ME), John Cornyn (R-TX), Pete Domenici (R-NM), Bill Frist (R-TN), Lindsey Graham (R-SC), Judd Gregg (R-NH), Chuck Hagel (R-NE), Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-TX), Jon Kyl (R-AZ), Richard Lugar (R-IN), Mel Martinez (R-FL), John McCain (R-AZ), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Gordon Smith (R-OR), Olympia Snowe (R-ME), Arlen Specter (R-PA), Ted Stevens (R-AK), John Sununu (R-NH), George Vionovich (R-OH), and John Warner (R-VA).

Senate Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) offered the amendment to authorize $1.8 billion to pay for the fencing which earlier the Senate had voted 83 to 16 to build, along high traffic areas of the border with Mexico. In the same vote on May 17, reports The Washington Times, the Senate also directed 500 miles of vehicle barriers to be built along the border.

"Voting Wrongs" Act Wrongly Extended for 25 Years

In another betrayal of Constitutional principles, House Republicans have joined with their liberal Democrat allies to extend the misnamed "Voting Rights Act" for another 25 years.

This outrageous piece of legislation denies equal protection of the law to persons residing in 16 states stigmatized by the legislation.

The legislation requires more than 450 counties and townships to provide voters with limited English proficiency assistance at all stages of the election process.

If they cannot speak or understand the English language, what qualifies them (a) for citizenship, and (b) for decision-making in our Republic?

The legislation also authorizes the U.S. Attorney General to send Federal examiners to monitor election in suspect jurisdictions.

It bans the use of literacy, understanding, or good character tests as a voting requirement, and it prohibits elections to be held solely in English in jurisdictions where more than 5% of the voting age population is in a language minority.

Congratulations to those 33 members of Congress who opposed renewal of the so-called "Voting Rights Act". They were: Richard Baker (R-LA), Gresham Barrett (R-SC), Roscoe Bartlett (R-MD), Joe Barton (R-TX), Jo Bonner (R-AL), Dan Burton (R-IN), John Campbell (R-CA), Mike Conaway (R-TX), Nathan Deal (R-GA), John Doolittle (R-CA), John Duncan (R-TN), Terry Everett (R-AL), Virginia Foxx (R-NC), Trent Franks (R-AZ), Scott Garrett (R-NJ), Phil Gingrey (R-GA), Joel Hefley (R-CO), Jeb Hensarling (R-TX), Wally Herger (R-CA), Sam Johnson (R-TX), Steve King (R-IA), John Linder (R-GA), Patrick McHenry (R-NC), Gary Miller (R-CA), Charles Norwood (R-GA), Ron Paul (R-TX), Tom Price (R-GA), Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), Ed Royce (R-CA), John Shadegg (R-AZ), Tom Tancredo (R-CO), William Thornberry (R-TX), and Lynn Westmoreland (R-GA).

The 25-year renewal of the Voting Rights Act came on a 390 to 33 roll call vote.

Congressman Steve King, Republican of Iowa, author of an amendment which would have eliminated bilingual ballots, argued that naturalized citizens would have had to prove English proficiency as part of their citizenship test.

His amendment, which would have allowed local voting officials to provide language assistance at the polls, was defeated 238 to 185.

As reported in The New York Times (7/14/06) Congressman Dana Rohrabacher said, "This is multiculturalism at its worst…When we come from various ethnic groups and races, what unites us? It’s our language, the English language. We’re hurting America by making it easier for people not to learn English".

The Voting Rights Act even makes it more difficult for states to require voters to have photo ID cards.

During the last week of April, my former Harvard College economics professor, John Kenneth Galbraith, died at the age of 97.

Although I disagreed with Professor Galbraith on virtually every economic postulate he put forward, and, because my disagreement was evident to him, I never got a grade higher than a “D” in his course.

Nonetheless, we shared the same barber in Harvard Square and he was always, on a personal level, humorous and polite.

Galbraith was best known for his book, The Affluent Society” and served as an advisor to a number of Democratic Presidential candidates, including Adlai Stevenson, Eugene McCarthy, John Kennedy, and Lyndon Johnson.

In 1979, General Al Knight and his colleague, Bud Redding, of the Defense Advance Research Projects Administration (DARPA) came to my office with a comprehensive description of what came to be known as "global ballistic missile defense".

I shared this information with Ed Feulner of the Heritage Foundation and John Fisher of the American Security Council.

Shortly thereafter, I began a 50-state educational tour promoting the concept of what ultimately came to be known as SDI or the Strategic Defense Initiative.

In the course of those 50 state briefings, I was able to recruit a number of luminaries in support of the concept, including Phyllis Schlafly and Lt. General Dan Graham, who went on to devote the balance of his life to promoting SDI as the founder and leader of an organization which he called "High Frontier".

On March 23, 1983, President Ronald Reagan rhetorically embraced the concept of SDI, but, tragically, he held back on full development and deployment, as did, for the most part, his successors.

Today, the need for SDI is evident as we ponder long-range missile threats from the government of North Korea and other regimes.

It is a shame that so much time has been wasted by those who opposed what they called "Star Wars" and denied the necessity for it.

Let’s pray that it is not too late.