SYRIA; Congressional Record Vol. 160, No. 33

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SYRIA

Mr. KAINE. Mr. President, I rise this morning to speak about the

widening dimensions of the slaughter in Syria. A country of 23 million

people, a proud country, is being transformed before our eyes into

skeletons, refugees, and ghosts.

Three million Syrians have fled to neighboring countries. That number

will likely exceed 4 million by the end of the year. Nearly 7 million

Syrians are refugees within their own country, driven from their homes

by the atrocities of the Assad regime. More than 130,000 innocent

people have lost their lives during the 3-year civil war. We are

witnessing one of the greatest humanitarian crises since World War II,

and it can be stopped.

Last summer my Committee on Armed Services colleague Senator Angus

King of Maine and I visited Turkey and Jordan to explore the dimension

of the refugee crisis in both of those nations. We visited refugee

camps and talked to government leaders and NGOs about the damaged lives

and the stressed communities that result from this unprecedented

displacement of Syrians.

Last week the Senator from Maine and I visited Lebanon to see the

scale of the Syrian crisis in that country. In a country of only

slightly more than 4 million people, there are already over 1 million

Syrian refugees who have fled into Lebanon over the last 3 years, one

in four. Think of the scale of that refugee crisis. If we were to

receive in the United States war refugees at that scale, it would be 75

to 80 million people, nearly one in four.

In Lebanon last week we met with government leaders, NGOs, and the

U.N. High Commissioner on Refugees. What we learned is staggering. The

Lebanese people have been unbelievably resilient and welcoming, almost

beyond the point of belief. The water and health infrastructure of that

Nation is strained to the breaking point.

The Lebanese economy, already fragile, is teetering. Schools in

Lebanon now operate on double shifts with Lebanese children in the

morning and refugee children in the afternoon, accommodating tens of

thousands of refugee children, with more coming every day.

The decision by the Lebanese terrorist militia Hezbollah to go all in

to support the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad has led to a wave of

extremist bombings against Hezbollah-connected sites and leaders within

Lebanon in which many civilians are casualties. Senator King and I

witnessed a bombing in downtown Beirut while we were there, seeing it

miles away. Many in our group saw the explosion, saw the smoke rise. We

felt certain that our meetings would be canceled that day, but one of

the most grim aspects of our trip is a bombing, a suicide bombing that

killed 5 people and injured nearly 100, caused no one to change their

daily routine. That is what life is in Lebanon largely because of the

Syrian civil war.

The crisis extends beyond Turkey, Jordan, and Lebanon. Refugees are

streaming into nearby Iraq by the thousands--30,000 in 1 day in

August--exacerbating the deterioration of that country's stability and

drawing it deeper into sectarian conflict.

This photo is on the Iraq border with Syria, and we see these

refugees stretching into the distance in the hills beyond. This is what

is happening with all of the neighboring countries to Syria.

The United States is the largest provider of assistance to the

refugees who have fled outside of Syria. We have provided $1.3 billion

in aid thus far, $340 million in Lebanon alone, but getting relief into

Syria is the next challenge.

The conditions in Syria are even worse than the conditions I

described in Lebanon. Nearly 7 million Syrians are displaced within

their own country, more than 9 million Syrians need humanitarian aid,

but they have not been able to receive basic humanitarian aid, food,

and medicine due to the actions of the Bashar al-Assad regime and also

due to the complicity of the regime's patron, Russia.

The denial of humanitarian aid is a war crime, pure and simple.

Thousands are dying of starvation. Cases of tuberculosis, polio,

typhoid, and other diseases are expanding at an exponential rate. None

of this is an accident. The Assad regime is using forced starvation and

forced sieges as a weapon to destroy the Syrian people.

Last month I met in the Senate with Syrians who had survived the

chemical weapons attacks carried out by the Assad regime in August of

2013. They described in gruesome detail what they and their families,

many young children, endured in August. But the most shocking moment of

the interview came when a 22-year-old survivor, who had fled Syria

through Lebanon, said if she had to pick, she would rather die a death

because of chemical weapons than be hit by a barrel bomb or starved to

death because death by chemical weapons would be quicker.

In recent weeks nothing has epitomized the brutality of the regime

more than the use of these barrel bombs. The bombs are crude weapons.

They are simple oil drums that are filled with shrapnel and explosives.

Helicopters often deliver the weapons, and helicopters often hover over

neighborhoods for minutes to just scare everyone who knows what is

coming. The barrel bombs drop. They explode shrapnel and level

neighborhoods.

This is an example of a neighborhood in Aleppo. At one point hundreds

were killed when barrel bombs were dropped on Aleppo earlier this

month. We see the size and scope of the devastation and see families

and their children fleeing the area in the aftermath of a barrel bomb,

and this is going on every day in Syria. Secretary Kerry has rightly

called these barrel bomb attacks unacceptable and barbaric.

The primary architect of these crimes is Bashar Assad, but he has a

patron who funds and supports what he does and who has the ability to

stop the atrocities. Russia is Assad's principal support, and since the

start of the Syrian civil war Russia has shown it is complicit in these

war crimes. But it is also capable of stopping them.

In the United Nations Russia has used its veto power and threat of

veto on the Security Council numerous times to block international

action to help the Syrian people. Three of these vetoes were used to

block basic humanitarian aid. What possible reason could any civilized

nation have to deny war victims food and medical supplies?

But Russia has shown it can be persuaded or shamed into taking action

to promote the basic safety of the Syrian citizens. In August, with the

threat of U.S. military action to punish the Assad regime for use of

chemical weapons against its own civilians, Russia realized it could no

longer be the sole global apologist for this atrocity. So it persuaded

Syria to admit to the crime, acknowledge the existence of a stockpile,

and commit to the complete destruction of these inhumane weapons. While

that process has been slow, the weaponry has not been used since Russia

realized the world would not tolerate such a clear violation of

international law.

Similarly, after repeatedly blocking U.N. action to deliver

humanitarian aid in Syria, Russia decided, in the midst of the Sochi

Olympics, it could

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no longer stand in the way of basic humanitarian aid. The eyes of the

world were on it and it knew it could no longer be seen as the sole

obstacle blocking people from receiving food and medicine. So it

finally agreed to U.N. Security Council Resolution 2139 calling for the

provision of humanitarian aid inside Syria.

When Russia could no longer comfortably block progress, when the eyes

of the world were on it in the middle of the Olympics last week, it

finally joined with the rest of the world in calling on Syria to allow

aid to its people. In the aftermath of that resolution, the real test

lies ahead, because those were words on paper and now we must see

whether the aid will be delivered.

This is the situation in Syria today. This is a recent photo from a

suburb of Damascus that has been under siege by the Assad regime

without access to food and basic medical care. Witness this photo. Look

at the destruction; look at the rubble; look at the throng of hungry

people stretching to oblivion in the distance. See the hunger in their

faces and bodies, and look at the questions in their eyes. It is

incumbent upon the Syrian regime to allow unhindered access of

humanitarian aid to all Syrians. Opposition groups have that same

obligation.

In conclusion, let me say a final word about Russian responsibility

to respond to these poor Syrian people. When the Russian Government and

its people see this picture, it should remind them of their own

history. During the siege of Leningrad during World War II, the Nazis

deliberately used these same techniques and tactics--forced starvation

and siege--as a tactic of war to cause horrible deprivation to the

Russian population of that city. Russians should look in the eyes of

these victims of intentional starvation and grapple with their

responsibility to them.

Russia can cause the Assad regime, just as it did in August, to open

access so these people can have food and medicine. Russia has finally

agreed to words on paper at the U.N., but the world will watch the

actions of this nation.

One final thought. When Senator King and I were traveling last week

in the Middle East, we went to other countries as well. In one country,

where we are engaged in a back-and-forth over the provision of U.S.

military assistance, where we are raising what we think are legitimate

questions about some democracy reforms this nation needs to undertake

if we are to be better and better partners, a leader of that nation

said to me: If the United States won't provide assistance, then we will

find a way to make Russia our partner.

Well, to anyone who thinks making Russia your partner is a good

thing, you ought to look at this photo too, because this is what has

become of Syria choosing Russia as its principal partner. Is this the

kind of partner you want?

We must keep the spotlight on these atrocities; we must keep the

spotlight on Assad's responsibility; we must keep the spotlight on

Russia's complicity to bring an end to these atrocities and work with

other nations to find a resolution to the Syrian civil war.

Mr. President, I yield the floor.

The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Booker). The Senator from Missouri.

Mr. BLUNT. Mr. President, first of all, I want to say I am glad

Senator Kaine has been here talking about this important issue today--

the tragedy of Syria, the tragedy of the barrel bombs, this hideous way

to kill people where you fly over with helicopters and first terrorize

people who are wondering where you are going to drop these weapons, and

then basically shove them out the side door of a helicopter, and the

Russian complicity in this.

We are seeing even today that Russia is beginning to flex its muscles

as it relates to the people of Ukraine. I had the Prime Minister from

Georgia in to see me on Monday, and of course the day the Olympics were

over the Russians were there the next day, more aggressively,

partitioning off that part of Georgia they have seized in the last

couple of years, the same argument they could easily try to make in

Ukraine.

Ukraine, of the Soviet satellite states, is the one that has

potentially the most future positive impact on Russia, if they could

get it back. The countries of the West, the countries of the European

Union, and the United States should be aggressively uniting and trying

to reinforce the desire for people in Ukraine to want to have economic

freedom and want to have personal freedom, and sending the strongest

possible message against those who work against that, whether they are

in Russia or whether they were complicit in the activities of Ukraine.

With this sudden moving around of Russian troops today, unannounced

until just the last few hours that they would be maneuvering, it is

usually no coincidence the Russians are moving troops around at a time

of crisis on their borders. We should be very vigilant in sending the

message of freedom, the message of supporting people who want freedom.

My concern about Syria is that our policy hasn't worked there either

and, frankly, our policy hasn't worked in such a way that it makes it

hard for us now to say there will be consequences for Russia if

something happens in Ukraine. We need to be sure the world knows, when

the United States talks about consequences, that there will be

consequences, they will be meaningful, they will be certain, and that

things such as are happening in Syria can't be allowed to continue, and

worse things, such as those happening in Ukraine, can't be allowed to

happen.

Health Care

I came to the floor today to talk about health care again. I heard

the leader's comments over the weekend--Senator Reid's comments--where

he is referring to the President's health care plan. He said: There are

plenty of horror stories being told. Then Senator Reid said: They are,

all of them, untrue. All of them are untrue.

I don't think anybody has come to the floor more frequently than I

have in the last 2 months, 3 months, 10 weeks. I believe I have been

coming to the floor every week, the 10 weeks we were in session, with

stories from Missourians. We call them. We talk to them about it. We

say: Senator Blunt is going to the floor and he is going to talk about

what you have talked to us about. He would like to mention your first

name, where you are from, but if you don't want him to do that, he

won't do that. In virtually every case, they say: We told you these

stories because we want other people to know. We want people to know

how we are being affected by the President's health care bill.

They seem to have plenty of facts backing them up, way beyond Senator

Reid's assertion that all of them are untrue. They are not all untrue.

In fact, I have every reason to believe they are all true, and there

are many more stories out there to be told.

Today I wanted to talk about the changes in Medicare Advantage and I

had to have some discussion with our team, and they asked: Well, how

many of these stories are you not going to tell this week if you just

tell the stories about Medicare Advantage? If you are in agreement with

Senator Reid's view of the world, I guess you think the active

imagination of Missourians is running wild, because they are contacting

our office constantly telling us about higher premiums, higher

deductibles, insurance they used to have that worked and insurance that

doesn't work, and it doesn't work because the Federal Government,

without thinking through the goal of trying to be sure more people had

access to insurance, didn't think about all of the unintended

consequences.

The latest broken promise--I am afraid it won't be the last; I wish

it would be the last broken promise, but it won't be the last, I

suspect--relates to the 15 million people in America who have Medicare

Advantage--something they liked and something they are not going to be

able to have, in many cases, the way they used to have it. This is

another application of that promise of if you like your insurance, you

can keep it. Well, all the 15 million Americans who have Medicare

Advantage, many of them, are going to find they can't keep it. And

before this is over, all of them may find out they can't keep it.

The President's health care plan has already cut hundreds of billions

of dollars from Medicare--not to save Medicare but to fund the new

program. Everybody knows Medicare is one of the

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great challenges we have going forward. How are we going to maintain

Medicare? Only in Washington would you be able to get by with saying:

Medicare is in real trouble, so let's cut it to start another program.

This is the only place in America you wouldn't be laughed off the city

council dais or off the legislative floor if you said: We have this one

program that is in big trouble. We are not going to do anything to

reform it, we are just going to cut it so we can start another program.

Yet that is what has happened here.

We have already cut Medicare by $300 billion--that is Medicare

Advantage--and on top of this cut to Medicare Advantage we now see that

plans are being changed, and they are being changed in significant

ways.

Why did we have Medicare Advantage for States such as mine--the State

of Missouri--with lots of rural areas, lots of rural hospitals, without

always having competitive health care providers? Medicare Advantage

provided the competition. It was that competition that made Medicare

Advantage and Medicare Part D work and made them work at much less cost

than anybody had anticipated. The marketplace works if you focus on a

competitive marketplace rather than trying to run health care to be

sure there is competition out there. That is what Medicare Advantage

did. In our State, 1 out of 4 people on Medicare is on Medicare

Advantage--237,000 Missourians on Medicare Advantage.

On February 14, I joined my colleagues in urging CMS not to make any

more cuts to Medicare Advantage. There were 40 of us who signed that

letter, and 19 of the 40 Senators who signed that letter were

Democrats, with 21 Republicans. So there is a pretty bipartisan sense

that something must be happening out there to hurt these programs. That

is true, not untrue.

Why would we continue to do that? I don't know. So I have joined the

Republican leaders in a letter this week calling on Secretary Sebelius

to stop moving forward with these misguided policies that do things

that impact people on Medicare Advantage; that do things that impact

people who had health insurance with a deductible they could afford but

now no longer have.

The administration's proposals continue once again to contradict the

promise that if you had health care you liked, you could keep your

health care policy; that if you had doctors you liked, you could keep

your doctors. More and more people are seeing that is not true.

These many stories I have heard I firmly believe to be true, not

untrue, no matter what the majority leader of the Senate might have

said. Let me share a few of those today as I move toward the conclusion

of what I want to talk about today.

Darcie from Kansas City, MO, is a registered nurse and works with

Medicare patients daily. She sees firsthand the effect the rising

expenses on Medicare Advantage are having on people she deals with.

This is a quote from her letter:

Our seniors and other Medicare Advantage members should

not, as they already do, have to make choices between paying

for medicines and other healthcare related expenses or food

or housing expenses.

I hope you are able to see the bigger picture, as I do, as

a 30-year-old professional nurse who is on the frontlines

each and every day taking care of these individuals and their

families.

This sounds truthful to me.

Edward and his wife, from Saint Peters, MO, live on a fixed income.

He said:

My wife and I are retired seniors living on a fixed income.

I have Medicare Advantage, which is provided by Mercy--a

Missouri based health insurance company. I am told I will

lose coverage next year due to ObamaCare cuts. Why must the

cost of ObamaCare--which Missourians did not want--be paid by

cuts to seniors? Please change the ObamaCare law to leave

Medicare Advantage alone.

Again, 19 Democrats and 21 Republicans signed a letter last week

asking the same question. This letter didn't even say: Go back and

reverse what you have done. Just stop making these cuts being made

right now.

Ronald from Raytown, MO, says his copay has increased as a result of

the administration's cuts to Medicare Advantage plans.

Please protect our Medicare Advantage plans. As you know,

Medicare is presently underfunded. I do not appreciate those

that permit Obama to willfully take \\\[hundreds of billions of\\\]

dollars that we seniors have paid into Medicare and use those

monies to fund ObamaCare. I am counting on you to protect our

Medicare Advantage plans and realize that the less government

involvement in our Medicare Advantage plans, the more

efficient the plan. As a result of ObamaCare, my copay has

increased.

My guess is Ronald knows whether or not his copay has increased. In

speaking with him, I am certainly persuaded that the facts he is

presenting--like the other people we are talking about today--are

absolutely true.

Jennifer from Blue Springs, MO, says:

My husband and I are both on Medicare already . . . the co-

pays for our \\\`\\\`Medicare Advantage'' plans have doubled and,

in some cases, tripled from 2013 to 2014 . . . \\\[and that is

why I'm responding with a nightmare story\\\].

The other thing Jennifer said is she and her husband are retired.

They are musicians, and they had a business where they would go to

nursing homes and play gospel music just for their expenses. She points

out that because of the increased health care costs, nursing homes no

longer have room in their budget for something that is entertaining,

such as live gospel music. The reverberations of what happens when the

government decides that the government is better prepared to manage not

just Medicare and Medicaid--as if we didn't have enough challenges

already--but 16 percent or 17 percent of the economy are seen out there

every day.

I certainly believe there have to be some people who are benefiting

from this, but the numbers don't suggest that the overall benefit is

nearly as good as the overall damage: people losing insurance at

greater numbers than people getting insurance; premiums going up more

than going down; deductibles rising.

It would be nice for those who supported this to convince people that

all these stories are untrue, but I think too many people have true

stories to tell for their neighbors and their friends not to realize

what is happening because of this government interference with a health

care system that was working instead of doing the handful of things we

could have done to make the best health care system in the world work

better. They were there. They were offered. The President knew they

were there. That is not the course we followed, and the course we are

following is not leading to a place where most Americans want to be.

Mr. President, I yield the floor.

The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Indiana.

Mr. COATS. Mr. President, may I inquire what the order is in morning

business relative to time?

The PRESIDING OFFICER. There is 15 minutes remaining on the

Republican side.

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