mr. chairman , i first want to thank the gentleman from california ( mr. lantos )  for his longstanding leadership on issues related to the united nations and human freedom .  no one has greater respect for him in this body than i do .  but in this case , mr. chairman , i think and i believe that the lantos substitute just falls a little short .  six decades ago , the united nations was formed to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war ; to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights , in the dignity and worth of the human person , in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small ; and to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained ; and to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom .  these words , from the preamble of the united nations ' historic charter , today hover over that institution not as a symbol of its founding mission , but as a reminder of its abject failure .  far from saving future generations from the scourge of war , the united nations ' history of hand-wringing , appeasement , and moral equivalence has exacerbated the scourge of war .  far from reaffirming faith and fundamental rights and the dignity of the human person , the united nations has overseen the degradation of human rights even of vulnerable human beings in its own care through routine abuses of power , corruption , and even horrific sexual exploitation of peoples at the hands of u.n .  peacekeepers .  far from reaffirming faith in the equal rights of nations large and small , the u.n .  has instead adopted an institutional posture favoring belligerent tyrannies at the expense of freedom-loving democracies , standing with palestinian terrorists against israeli families , standing with saddam hussein against the civilized world , and too often standing with anyone against the united states of america .  far from promoting justice and respect for international law , the united nations has become one of the world 's greatest apologists for tyranny and terror where justice is merely one point of view ; a place where sudan and syria and castro 's cuba are given a soap-box on which to lecture the free world on human rights ; a place where international lawyers scheme to haul american soldiers before a rogue court , irrespective of constitutional rights ; a place where an international humanitarian mission to feed and heal the iraqi people resulted in $ 10 billion in siphoned bribes and kickbacks .  and far from promoting social progress and the better standards of life in larger freedom , the united nations has become a hindrance to both progress and freedom .  just ask the besieged citizens of israel whose every gesture of goodwill has been returned by violence from their enemies and condemnation from the u.n .  diplomatic pretenses aside , mr. chairman , corruption has infected the united nations .  and yet given its organizational structure , how could it be otherwise ?  there is no independent financial oversight .  there are no standards of transparency .  most u.n .  divisions are exempt from democratic accountability .  and most u.n .  leaders are protected from the law by diplomatic immunity .  the rampant corruption that today infects the united nations is not a function of its personnel .  not really .  it is a function of its structure .  that is what we get , mr. chairman , from an organization driven by consensus instead of principle .  and as long as tyrants and terrorists get as much say in policymaking as democratically elected leaders , the u.n .  will continue to betray its charter and betray the billions of people on this planet who look to it for hope .  this substitute essentially agrees with that conclusion .  it just does not do enough about it .  but what more do we need to hear , mr. chairman ?  the u.n. 's corruption is so breathtaking in its scope as to be almost universal : peacekeepers raping women that they are sent to protect ; sexual exploitation of children at the hands of their humanitarian relief workers ; institutional anti-semitism so brazen that yasser arafat was considered a moderate ; $ 10 billion , what further evidence could we possibly need ?  the pervasive corruption at the u.n .  is not a problem ; it is a crisis .  no one denies this .  and in response to the overwhelming evidencing , the democrat substitute says the reforms in the underlying bill should happen .  but , mr. chairman , it is not enough to say that these reforms should happen .  they must happen .  and they must happen right now .  we should not be asking the u.n. 's leaders to make these reforms .  we need to tell them .  the philosophy of flexibility and appeasement create loopholes that diplomats drive huge trucks through .  and if they were serious about giving the administration flexibility , why did they not give it to the president instead of the secretary of state ?  the president leads foreign policy in this country , not the secretary of state .  the american people are today underwriting rampant corruption , 22 percent of it to be precise , and it needs to stop .  today the congress must take this stand and clearly voice not simply our frustration but our expectation of concrete reform .  we must act , mr. chairman .  and as he has so many times in his decades with us , the gentleman from illinois has shown us the way .  the gentleman from illinois ( mr. hyde )  has brought before this house a comprehensive , almost exhaustive , package of reform that , if enacted , will finally bring the united nations under some semblance of control .  if and when these reforms are enacted , mr. chairman , the world will be safer and stronger .  the american people will be assured their money is being well spent , and the united nations charter to prevent wars , protect human rights , and advance the cause of human freedom will be reaffirmed .  and every man , woman , and child on this planet will owe a great debt of gratitude to henry j. hyde .  i just ask my colleagues to vote `` no '' on the democratic substitute .  vote `` yes '' on the hyde reform bill , and let us put the united nations back on track to fulfill its promise to the human race .  