Gentlemen:

While in New York, students from the War College will be visiting your Missions to the United Nations. We appreciate the time and effort that personnel from your Missions will put forth to support our program.

As you know, the visits we have requested are aimed at strengthening certain academic objectives. In that light, and if agreeable to your Mission Chiefs, the following topics could be raised and discussed by your Mission staff during our visits:
    - Comprehend the interlocking organizational structure of the UN, the internal dynamics of country missions, and the impact on international security issues
    - Understand the role of the UN in collective security, conflict resolution, promotion of human rights
    - Understand how the UN has changed since the end of the Cold War
    - Be aware of the wide range of international views on key issues before the UN
    - Recognize international perspectives on the U.S. role in the UN

The above thoughts are not requirements, but suggestions of possible discussion topics. I would be grateful if you could make your Missions aware of these thoughts and proposals.

Please let me know if there is anything that I can do to help with the coordination for these visits.

Many thanks

David

Surasak Bandhasreth
Nam Bandhasreth
Rich Hamner
Lionel Balliram
Ruth Balliram
Kevin Kepler
Mary Kepler
John Straits
Jeannie Straits
Dan Grey
Joan Grey
Ross Ridge
Alice Ridge

Port Authority of NY & NJ
One World Trade Center 68 South
New York, NY 10048
Phone: 212-435-7000
Fax: 212-435-2822
Financially self-supporting bi-state transportation and trade agency. Responsible for more than 30 facilities and services, including a bus terminal, the PATH interstate rail transit system, and a regional system of four airports and one heliport.

Port Authority of NY & NJ
http://new-york.hyatt.com/nycgh/ First Ave. United Nations New York, NY 10017 212-963-7626

How the Senate Works
Save from: http://www.senate.gov/learning/learn_how_2.html

The Constitution assigns the Senate and House equal responsibility for declaring war, maintaining the armed forces, assessing taxes, borrowing money, minting currency, regulating commerce, and making all laws necessary for the operation of the government. The Senate holds exclusive authority to advise and consent on treaties and nominations

The Constitution prescribes that the Senate will be composed of two Senators from each State (therefore, the Senate currently has 100 Members) and that a Senator must be at least 30 years of age, have been a citizen of the United States for 9 years, and, when elected, be a resident of the State from which the he or she is chosen. A Senator's term of office is 6 years and approximately one-third of the total membership of the Senate is elected every second year.

Senate committees are appointed by resolution at the beginning of each Congress, with power to continue to act until their successors are appointed. All Senate committees are created by the Senate. At present, Senate committees include 16 standing committees, 3 select committees, and 2 special committees.

Who are all those people on the Senate Floor?

You will see several officials on the floor of the Senate when it convenes, including the Majority and Minority Leaders of the Senate, the Secretary and Assistant Secretary of the Senate, the Sergeant at Arms, the Legislative Clerk, the Journal Clerk, the Parliamentarian of the Senate, the Secretaries for the Majority and the Minority, the Official Reporters of Debate, and the Pages.
The Secretary of the Senate is the elected official of the Senate responsible for management of many legislative and administrative services. The Secretary is the disbursing officer for the Senate. The official seal of the Senate is in the custody of, and its use is prescribed by, the Secretary. In the absence of the Vice President, and pending the election of a President pro tempore, the Secretary performs the duties of the chair.

The Assistant Secretary is the chief assistant to the Secretary of the Senate. The Assistant Secretary performs the functions of the Secretary in the latter's absence, and in the event of the death or resignation of the Secretary would act as Secretary in all matters except those duties as disbursing officer of the Senate.

On the day after the first organization of the Senate, a Doorkeeper was chosen whose title was eventually changed to Sergeant at Arms. His duties are to execute the Senate's orders as to decorum on the floor and in the galleries. He is responsible for the enforcement of all rules made for the regulation of the Senate wing of the Capitol. He also is the custodian of all properties under the dominion of the Senate and supervises the messengers, pages and other workers who serve the Senate. If the Senate decides to issue warrants of arrest for its absent Members, it is the duty of the Sergeant of Arms to bring those Senators into custody.

Article 1, section 5, paragraph 3 of the Constitution provides that "Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and from time to time publish the same, excepting such Parts as may in their Judgment require Secrecy; and the Yeas and Nays of the Members of either House and any question shall, at the Desire of one-fifth of those Present be entered on the Journal." The Journal Clerk is charged with maintaining the Senate Journal under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate.

The Legislative Clerk is responsible for reporting all bills, messages from the House, conference reports, and amendments to the Senate. All record votes are taken by the Legislative Clerk and his assistants.

An appointed official of the Senate, the Parliamentarian functions under the direction of the Secretary of the Senate. The Parliamentarian's chief duty and responsibility is to advise the Presiding Officer on parliamentary aspects of Senate activity. The Parliamentarian advises Senators and senatorial committee staffs, and is called upon by other branches of Government, the press, and the public for information regarding procedural aspects of Senate activity.

The Official Reporters of Debates prepare the material concerning business of the Senate for inclusion in the Congressional Record. All proceedings in the Senate Chamber are reported verbatim by a staff of Official Reporters, who are under the supervision of the Editor in Chief. The Editor in Chief is the editor of all matter contained in the Senate proceedings. In addition to the verbatim proceedings in the Senate Chamber, the office of the Official Reporters processes for inclusion in the Congressional Record a description of the morning business conducted by the Senate (measures introduced, messages from the President and the House of Representatives, co-sponsors, communications received, and notices of hearings), and additional or unspoken statements of Senators. The Official Reporters of Debates are appointed by the Secretary of the Senate.

The Secretary for the Majority is an elected officer of the Senate who is responsible for providing many support services to the majority party leaders and members of the Senate. The floor-related duties of the Secretary include supervising the cloakroom, briefing Senators on votes and issues that are under consideration on the floor, obtaining pairs for Senators, and polling Senators when the Leadership so desires. Additionally, the Secretary is responsible for assigning Senate Chamber seats to the majority party Members; maintaining a file of committee assignment requests; staffing the committee which arranges majority party committee assignments; recommending to the Leadership majority party candidates for appointment to boards, commissions, and international conferences; maintaining records of such appointments; providing a repository for official minutes of majority party conferences and meetings of the Policy Committee, Steering Committee, and committee chairmen; monitoring the nominations on the Executive Calendar; and other duties as directed by the Leadership.

The Secretary for the Minority also is an elected officer of the Senate, and performs corresponding duties for the minority party leaders and other Senators.