Howard Berman

Mr. BERMAN

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 15 seconds. The gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Hoekstra) just spoke in behalf of the Republican substitute, but he's a major cosponsor of the Reconstruction Opportunity Zones. Unlike the bill in front of us, the Republican substitute does not contain the ROZs, the reconstruction zones. I'm wondering how the gentleman squares that with his position. I now yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. Tierney), who has done remarkable work on the issue of how the $12 billion given to Pakistan over the past 7 years has been spent.

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Moran), very knowledgeable on issues affecting Pakistan and U.S.-Pakistan relations.

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 2 minutes on the Republican substitute to the Chair of the Pakistan Caucus, the gentlewoman from Texas, Sheila Jackson-Lee.

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BERMAN. I yield the gentlewoman 30 additional seconds.

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I claim the time in opposition to the amendment.

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Chairman, I am very pleased to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman who has made a significant contribution to this legislative effort, the gentlewoman from Wisconsin (Ms. Moore).

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, just a few points. There was reference here to the F- 16s. There is nothing in this bill that prohibits the Pakistanis from deciding to buy more F-16s. Two years ago they signed a contract indicating that that is what they were going to do. What this legislation does is say other than some specific adjustments particularly to deal with utilizing the F-16s they already have, in the counterinsurgency, we are not going to give our taxpayer dollars for a weapons system, an airplane, whose counterinsurgency interests are far less important than other equipment or training we could be providing. Secondly, Admiral Mullen came to see me about the problems of utilizing the traditional security assistance program for providing the kind of equipment that is needed for the counterinsurgency in Pakistan. As a result of the case he made, we have created and worked with the Armed Services Committee to create an entire fund that waives every provision of law in the foreign military financing program so that we can get this equipment and training to the Pakistanis. Pakistan is an urgent problem, but doing it right, not just doing it carelessly, is the way to go. I urge that this bill be supported.

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I would like to yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California, the author of her own legislation on security assistance and the question of the proliferation network in Pakistan.

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 3 minutes to the ranking member of the Terrorism Nonproliferation and Trade Subcommittee of the Foreign Affairs Committee, a cosponsor of the legislation and another member of the congressional delegation that went to Pakistan last month. In fact, everybody who went to Pakistan with me is supporting this bill. I should have taken more people. But I yield to the gentleman from California (Mr. Royce).

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to yield 2 minutes to the principal cosponsor of the legislation, the gentleman from Illinois (Mr. Kirk).

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield to someone who, like the previous speaker, the gentleman from Indiana, has spent a great deal of time in Pakistan looking at the situation. She chairs the Pakistan Caucus. She joined our congressional delegation in Pakistan in the month of April and speaks with great knowledge and experience on this subject, the gentlelady from Texas, Ms. Sheila Jackson-Lee, for 3 minutes.

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 2 minutes to the vice Chair of the Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nuclear Nonproliferation, and International Trade of the Foreign Affairs Committee, the gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Scott).

Mr. BERMAN. This isn't for a polemic. It's really just to take what you said. Number one, I agree completely with the urgency of it. If I didn't-- we don't have a lot of money--we would not be authorizing these sums. We share your sense of the urgency of the situation. Secondly, the letter you cite is correct. The letter is not correct, but the existence of the letter is correct. But it was addressed to a bill that had been introduced. Since the introduction of the bill, we have gone through elaborate negotiations with the House Armed Services Committee. To deal with some of the issues that letter was concerned about, we have worked through, both in the supplemental and in the authorizing committee----

Mr. BERMAN. Good things.

Mr. BERMAN. Will the gentleman yield?

Mr. BERMAN. Ensuring that the mission that we are equipping and training for is committed to a counterinsurgency, not an arms race in South Asia.

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Chairman, I am very pleased to yield 2 minutes to a member of the committee, my friend from California, the gentlewoman Barbara Lee.

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I am very pleased to yield 3 minutes to the chairman of the Middle East and South Asia Subcommittee, the gentleman with whom I just traveled to Pakistan, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Ackerman).

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from Missouri, the chairman of the committee, for his kind comments, and I yield myself 3 minutes. Mr. Speaker, the United States has an enormous stake in the security and stability of Pakistan. We can't allow al Qaeda or any other terrorist group that threatens our national security to operate with impunity in the tribal regions or any other part of Pakistan. Nor can we permit the Pakistani state and its nuclear arsenal to be taken over by the Taliban. To help prevent this nightmare scenario, we need to forge a true strategic partnership with Pakistan and its people, strengthen Pakistan's democrat government, and work to make Pakistan a source of stability in a volatile region. H.R. 1886 is designed to help achieve these critical goals. This legislation would significantly expand democratic, economic, and social development assistance to help lay the foundation for a stronger, more stable Pakistan. The bill provides funding to strengthen the capacity of Pakistan's democratic institutions including its Parliament, judicial system, and law enforcement agencies. It calls for increased assistance for Pakistan's public education system, emphasis on access for women and girls. To help ensure that U.S. assistance actually reaches the Pakistani people, it requires increased auditing, greater monitoring, and better evaluation. H.R. 1886 also provides critical security assistance to help the government of Pakistan in its fight against the extremists that threaten the national security of both Pakistan and the United States. To strengthen civilian control of the military, H.R. 1886 requires that all assistance flow through the Pakistan's elected civilian government. And to support the administration's request for additional flexibility to address Pakistan's urgent security needs, the bill authorizes funds for the Pakistan Counterinsurgency Capability Fund, or PCCF. The legislation includes some important accountability provisions to ensure that Pakistan is using our security assistance in a manner consistent with U.S. national security interests. An annual Presidential determination is required that determines whether or not Pakistan is cooperating with the United States on nonproliferation, is meeting its commitment to combat terrorist groups, and has made progress towards that end. Contrary to what some have suggested, these are not rigid or inflexible conditions that severely constrain the military. We appreciate the urgency of the situation in Pakistan and the need for appropriate flexibility. We are simply asking Pakistan to follow through with the commitments it has already made. If their President is unable to make these determinations, then we should be asking ourselves much deeper questions about what we really hope to achieve in Pakistan.

Mr. BERMAN. I yield myself 1 additional minute. If their President is unable to make these determinations, as I mentioned, we should be asking the deeper question of why are we doing this. By including these accountability provisions in this bill, we lay down an important marker that Congress will no longer provide a blank check. We've had extensive conversation with the administration, with the Armed Services Committee, as I mentioned earlier, and have made a number of changes to make this legislation and this effort work better. I want to re-enforce the notion this is not a partisan product. This is a bipartisan bill. We are honored to have two of the most thoughtful and experienced Members from the minority side, Mr. Royce and Mr. Kirk, as original cosponsors of this legislation, and we hope that their actions and this debate will persuade a majority of both parties that this is an effort worth supporting. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 1886.

Mr. BERMAN. Mr. Speaker, at this time I would like, for purposes of opening general debate, to yield to the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, whom we have worked very closely with in putting together a bill that we can now bring to the floor, a very good bill. His help and the help of his staff, working with our staff, has really been just indispensable to the progress of this effort. I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Skelton), the chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.

Mr. BERMAN. Will the gentleman yield? After yesterday, why wouldn't you?

Mr. BERMAN. I yield the gentlewoman 30 additional seconds.