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Senator Stevens. My problem is that the whole time I have been 

 here now — 20 years — I have not seen Congress renege on a commit- 

 ment that was made to a state. This is a commitment that was 

 made to Alaska on the basis of evidence that the representatives of 

 that state contested and to which they objected. 



I would hope the Senate is prepared — not only this committee, 

 but other members of the Senate to come to Southeast Alaska. We 

 have a few other issues I would like to have you look at and visit in 

 Alaska this year also, Mr. Chairman. As long as you are coming up 

 you probably could go to see the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, 

 for instance. 



Senator Bumpers. I am like Richard Nixon about the Arctic 

 Wildlife Refuge. When they asked Richard Nixon why he did not 

 go to church he said, I have done that; and that is the way I feel 

 about the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge: I have done that. 



Senator Stevens. Well, every time I do it it is a different experi- 

 ence. 



Senator Bumpers. I'm saying that, I do not mean to be flip. It is 

 obviously a magnificent area. 



Senator Stevens. You will be the leaders of this issue and prob- 

 ably the four of you here will be the actual leaders of this issue as 

 it comes to the floor, and I look forward to working with you. 



I want to invite you, if you have not taken the time, to go back 

 and read the testimony that was given before this committee in 

 1979 and 1980. Read the positions that were taken before this com- 

 mittee at the time. We had to find a way out of the conflict that 

 existed, and I think that you will see that it is being portrayed 

 here in a way that is very difficult now to understand. 



Above all, gentlemen, I urge you to adopt the attitude that 

 unless there is an absolute case made that the compromise is con- 

 trary to the National interest, that this compromise that was en- 

 tered into in the way of a commitment to my state, not be broken 

 by legislation that Senator Murkowski and Don Young and I 

 oppose. 



Thank you very much. 



Senator Bumpers. Senator Stevens, I do not see Congressman 

 Young in the audience. Is he here? 



Senator Murkowski. He will be here. 



Senator Bumpers. Let me ask you this question. I do not want to 

 prolong this. We have a whole host of witnesses and I am going to 

 have to leave and ask Senator Wirth to chair at some point this 

 morning. Let me just ask the question, and by asking the question 

 make a couple of prefacing remarks. 



The biggest case I ever tried before I got into politics, back when 

 I was a trial lawyer, was a case involving a contract that was ter- 

 minated at the convenience of the government. As you know, virtu- 

 ally every contract the Pentagon puts out has copious provisions in 

 there dealing with terminating the contract at the convenience of 

 the government with certain provisions to protect the other party. 

 The only difference here, of course, is you have a legislative con- 

 tract. 



There was a legislative contract, and I do not mind telling you 

 that is the thing that is most troublesome about this whole thing, 

 is that we contracted. I had a tough time voting for the 1986 tax 



