A Weekly e-Newsletter from
Senator Johnny Isakson (R-GA)

April 28, 2006

Dear Friends,

This week the Senate began debate on the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act.  Senator Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) offered an amendment to beef up funding for border security.  I co-sponsored the measure, which passed on Wednesday.  This amendment is, without question, the most significant component to the issue of illegal immigration and gaining control of our borders.  The only way to secure our borders is not with promises of authorizations but with the commitment of appropriations. The Senate is expected to return to the issue of immigration reform in May.

Senator Chambliss (R-GA) and I also offered a proposal as an amendment this week to the emergency supplemental bill , which would ensure that the U.S. Department of Defense takes action to improve the way fallen soldiers are cared for and how their survivors are notified and kept informed.  The measure would require the Secretary of Defense to conduct and submit to Congress a comprehensive review regarding its current mortuary affairs policies, specifically to review how it utilizes refrigeration in combat theaters in order to enhance preservation of remains, timelines for transferring remains from their combat units back to the United States, and the feasibility of locating autopsy and embalming operations in theater as opposed to in the U.S. We were inspired by the story of Sgt. Paul Saylor of Bremen, Georgia, who served as a member of the Georgia National Guard’s 48 th Brigade Combat Team and was killed in Iraq in 2005.  Because Sgt. Saylor’s body was in an advanced state of decomposition, his family was not able to have an open casket funeral, which would have helped provide closure to the Saylor family at a very sorrowful time.  All of our fallen heroes must be given the highest honors and respect for their great sacrifice. I am grateful to the Saylor family for bringing this to our attention, and I hope this measure will help ensure the treatment of a fallen soldier is the absolute best our nation can provide.

Next week, we celebrate an important part of our nation’s education system with National Charter School Week 2006.  I have been a long-time advocate of charter schools, which are tuition-free public schools that are open to all students. Educators, community leaders, business people and parents who start charter schools select the curriculum, philosophies and emphases of the schools, such as a back-to-basics foundation, technology focus or school-to-work approach. Parental involvement is key to student achievement , and charter schools rely very heavily on parental involvement.  I am proud to lend my support to the Georgia Charter Schools Association and National Charter Schools Week.  Georgia was one of the first states to pass a charter school law in 1993. Georgia now has over 20,000 students enrolled in 56 charter schools within 15 different school systems across the state.

During the Senate recess I went to India on a Congressional delegation trip with Senators Mike Enzi (R-WY), Lamar Alexander (R-TN) and U.S. Secretary of Education Margaret Spellings to learn more about foreign educational systems and the implications to U.S. competitiveness in the emerging world market.  We also stopped in Kuwait where I was able to visit with Georgia troops.  I also toured the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Glynco, Georgia, which plays a critical role in ensur ing our federal law enforcement agents are well trained . 

What’s on Tap for Next Week?

Next week, the Senate will continue debate on the Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act

Sincerely,
Johnny Isakson