Ken Buck

Mr. BUCK

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Kentucky (Mr. Barr), chair of the Subcommittee on Monetary Policy and Trade.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Overlooking corruption and abuse is unacceptable in any governing body, particularly one funded by the United States. It is clear that serious reforms and oversight are needed at the World Bank. The International Development Association has strayed from its mission to help combat inequality around the world. The World Bank Accountability Act puts our international partners on notice that the United States is not simply going to stand by and allow abuses to continue. And while we stand up for the underprivileged around the world, we also must ensure that every American has equal access to our own financial institutions. The Home Mortgage Disclosure Adjustment Act ensures that CFPB regulations do not shut out certain groups of Americans. I thank Chairman Hensarling for putting these bills forward. I thank my colleagues on the Financial Services Committee, who have joined me on the floor today to make the case for these efforts. I thank Chairman Sessions for his leadership on the Rules Committee and for providing the debate on these issues today. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the rule and supporting the underlying bills. We must ensure that American taxpayer money is not spent on corrupt regimes and that all Americans have access to financing here in the U.S.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.

Mr. BUCK

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the important role Kazakhstan plays in ensuring regional and global security. Since declaring its independence from the former Soviet Union in 1991, Kazakhstan has shown its leadership in nuclear disarmament by working with the United States to eliminate regional nuclear weapons stockpiles. From the closure of the Semipalatinsk Test Site in 1991 to the opening of Kazakhstan's Nuclear Security Training Center in 2017, the country has demonstrated its leadership in strengthening international security through promoting non-proliferation in the region. Kazakhstan's commitment to nuclear security extends past non- proliferation, as the country also promotes safe nuclear power to support the needs of the international community. The U.S. recently supported Kazakhstan's offer to host the world's first low-enriched uranium bank, which will help to guarantee that all nations have an energy source for peaceful civilian nuclear power. Affordable energy is a prerequisite for modernization in Central Asia, and future access to safe energy sources will help promote stability, development, and prosperity in the region. Kazakhstan has also been a strong U.S. partner in our efforts to combat terrorism and extremism in the region--particularly in Afghanistan. Under the leadership of President Nazarbayev, Kazakhstan has continued to provide indispensable aid to U.S. troops in Afghanistan. They have not only helped assist the Afghan National Security Forces to promote security and stability, but have also contributed to the Northern Distribution Network. I look forward to President Nazarbayev's visit to the United States and a healthy exchange of ideas about how our government can work with Kazakhstan in promoting human rights and the rule of law. At a time when the world is increasingly unstable due to the rise of non-state actors and conflicts across the Middle East, Kazakhstan has proven itself as a reliable U.S. partner in the region--one we can count on to advance our shared goals. As Kazakhstan serves on the United Nations Security Council, it is my belief that there is a bright future ahead for our collaboration in advancing peace and security.

Mr. BUCK

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the heroism and bravery of Douglas County Sheriff's Deputy Zackari Parrish. I attended Deputy Parrish's funeral this past Friday and heard what a great husband, father, son, and law enforcement officer he was. He was a father of two young daughters; a husband to his wife, Gracie; a son to his loving parents; and a colleague to many of the Douglas County Sheriff's Office. Zackari lost his life 10 days ago, responding to a domestic disturbance call in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. Sergeant David Buyers spoke of Zackari's bravery that day, saying that he didn't flinch, he didn't back down, he didn't hesitate. But he also did everything in his power, according to the sheriff, to talk down the gunman. Sadly, we can't always win the battles against evil, and on that day, Zackari lost. But a lost battle is not a lost war. Zackari knew he fought in a war to defend the innocent and to stand up for good. It is an honor to speak about a hero. We have the chance to honor one of those people who devoted their life to others. People like Zackari remind us that our world is not lost, evil will not win the day, and we can give more to this world than we take from it. Zackari is a hero for the people of Douglas County, Colorado, his fellow sheriff's deputies, and the State of Colorado. I pray for his family, friends, and fellow deputies as they charge ahead in life without their loved one. I pray that God will give them peace in this time and that God will be glorified even in the midst of this horrible trial. I pray for the other law enforcement members, the other heroes wounded that day, as well: Michael Doyle, Taylor Davis, Jeff Pelle, and Thomas O'Donnell. We can never repay their sacrifices for our community. We can only commit ourselves to never forget the cost they willingly paid for us.

Mr. BUCK

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend and colleague, Representative Jody Hice, for the opportunity to speak this evening on such an important issue. We are here today to discuss the recent revelations that the Obama administration, in their pursuit of the Iran deal, blocked important efforts by U.S. law enforcement officials to fight the terrorist organization Hezbollah. The past administration's treatment of Iran reveals an imprudent and negligent approach to American foreign policy that must never be repeated. We see in their actions, at best, an incompetence born of a lack of clarity and information and, at worst, an administration determined to create a false foreign policy legacy so that America's best interests were thrown to the wayside. In a recent report from Politico mentioned by some of my colleagues already, we have learned that the Obama administration allegedly blocked efforts by U.S. law enforcement officials to fight Hezbollah's transnational drug and weapons trafficking operations. Hezbollah, Iran's terrorist proxy organization, has also become one of the world's most powerful and dangerous criminal organizations, receiving over $1 billion every year from their illicit activities. We have learned that, through an expansive criminal trafficking network, they funnel cocaine throughout the Middle East, Europe, Africa, Latin America, and the United States. It has also come to light that Hezbollah launders millions of dollars through schemes involving used car purchases in the United States, and, ultimately, the money earned through these activities can be used for violent terrorist activities aimed at spreading fear and pain throughout the world. Politico quoted the following from a confidential DEA report on Hezbollah's criminal activities: Hezbollah ``has leveraged relationships with corrupt foreign government officials and transnational criminal actors . . . creating a network that can be utilized to move metric ton quantities of cocaine, launder drug proceeds on a global scale, and procure weapons and precursors for explosives.'' It ``has at its disposal one of the most capable networks of actors coalescing elements of transnational organized crime with terrorism in the world.'' The DEA's acting deputy administrator in 2016 stated that Hezbollah's criminal operations ``provide a revenue and weapons stream for an international terrorist organization responsible for devastating terror attacks around the world.'' Certainly, an organization like that deserves America's utmost scrutiny; and for years, the men and women of the Drug Enforcement Administration's Project Cassandra poured their lives into investigating Hezbollah's criminal activities. These agents tracked financial transactions, cultivated sources, and trailed operatives. But, in several cases, when the DEA asked for prosecutions, arrests, or sanctions, President Obama's Department of Justice delayed or denied their requests. The State Department also reportedly declined to demand the extradition of important suspects who could have aided the investigation and spearheaded the downfall of this international operation. Unfortunately, thanks to multiple sources involved in the matter now coming forward, we have learned that the Obama administration likely stalled the Hezbollah investigations and prosecutions in order to keep Iran happy and nuclear deal talks on the table. If the DEA rocked the boat by arresting and charging key members of Hezbollah's drug and weapons trafficking operations, then Iran might walk away from the negotiating table. This thinking reveals a fundamental blindness to reality. Hezbollah is funded by Iran. Hezbollah is Iran. While negotiating with Iran, the former administration turned a blind eye to Hezbollah's extensive criminal activities that were only worsening the drug crisis here in the United States and feeding weapons to terrorists in the Middle East region. American foreign policy can be pragmatic, but this was not pragmatism. This was foolishness. U.S. foreign policymakers traded an end to Iran's nuclear program for the protection of Iran's terrorist program. And even then, we can't even trust Iran to abide by the agreement meant to end their nuclear program. So we are left with a bad deal. I have said it many times before. But now we know the deal is even worse than we suspected. Aside from just delivering pallets of cash to Iran, aside from just freeing billions in frozen assets, aside from just lifting important sanctions, we are also giving a transnational criminal organization and terrorist network free rein over the world. We are here today to affirm to the world that Iran and its affiliated terrorist organization, Hezbollah, are enemies of the free world. We should never negotiate with terrorists. I urge President Trump and America's law enforcement community to once again turn its attention to Hezbollah. This terrorist organization has spread its evil influence throughout the world, and we have a duty to fight it. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend, the gentleman from Georgia, for this opportunity today, and I thank him for bringing this issue up and shining some light on this important subject.

Mr. BUCK

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 658 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Hastings), pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only. General Leave

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the rule and the underlying legislation. This rule provides for consideration of two bills dealing with Iran and its continued support of international terrorism. In addition, the rule makes in order all submitted amendments. These bills were the subject of hearings in the Financial Services Committee and were marked up and reported favorably to the House. Both bills received bipartisan support in the committee, and I would expect that we will see significant bipartisan support on the House floor. Mr. Speaker, it is no secret that Iran's leaders have a threat to our way of life. We don't have to look any further than Iranian support for lethal attacks on U.S. troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, particularly through IEDs, to witness Iran's hostility toward us. Going back several decades, Iran has routinely terrorized the Middle East and has sought to export terror worldwide. Iran's numerous threats to annihilate our friend and ally, Israel, are a steady drumbeat that should continuously remind us of Iran's threat. In 2001, the Ayatollah Khamenei is quoted as saying: ``It is the mission of the Islamic Republic of Iran to erase Israel from the map of the region.'' In 2002, a leader of Hezbollah, which is a known extension of the Iranian regime, said: ``If Jews all gather in Israel, it will save us the trouble of going after them worldwide.'' But lest we think these are the views of the past, the Ayatollah was quoted in 2014 saying that ``this . . . regime of Israel . . . has no cure but to be annihilated.'' And we could go on. The evidence of Iran's intent on the destruction of Israel is nearly endless. Just yesterday, the commander of Iran's revolutionary guards offered to support Palestinians if they choose to stage an armed uprising to take by force Israel's newly recognized capital: Jerusalem. Any country whose leaders actively support terrorism against Israel and whose leaders take an official position that the nation of Israel should be eliminated from the Earth are, and always must be, a sworn enemy of the United States. But it is not just Israel. Other Middle Eastern allies in the United States have been the target of Iran's hostility as well. Namely, Saudi Arabia has been increasingly threatened by the Iranian regime. In 2011, our FBI and DEA agents successfully disrupted a plot by Iran to assassinate the Saudi Arabian Ambassador to the U.S. here in Washington, D.C. The uncovered plot included bombing a restaurant in D.C. at which the Saudi Arabian Ambassador was planning to eat. The bombing would almost certainly have killed innocent Americans as well. The list could go on. Iran has fomented unrest in Iraq, has sought to subject Sunni Muslims to Shiite militias, has supplied the Syrian regime in its years-long civil war, has supported Hezbollah and Hamas, has flagrantly disregarded international law by building a nuclear program, and has taunted the United States. Who can forget the image of U.S. Navy sailors, hands behind their heads, forced to kneel under gunpoint on an Iranian military vessel? Or the thinly veiled attacks on U.S. troops in Iraq using proxy militant groups? Or the numerous incidents in the Persian Gulf involving harassment of the U.S. Navy? Yet, against this backdrop, the United States entered into an agreement with Iran. The agreement, commonly referred to as the ``Iran deal,'' was opposed by a bipartisan majority in the House. It relaxed sanctions on Iran, opened channels for business investment, and allowed Iran a pathway forward on a nuclear bomb. Further, while having the impact of a treaty between two nations, the Obama administration chose to call the agreement by another name and, in so doing, bypassed the United States Senate. This political commitment by President Obama to Iran is the reason for these two bills today. The first bill, H.R. 1638, the Iranian Leadership Asset Transparency Act, targets the finances of Iran's ruling class. Its goal is threefold: One, aid U.S. authorities in their efforts to eliminate money laundering by the Iranian regime; two, expose the sectors of the Iranian economy that are controlled by Iran's rulers; and three, show the Iranian people how their corrupt government accumulates wealth for itself at the expense of the people. The Iran deal removes sanctions on many of the known corrupt government entities. This bill will provide the transparency necessary to reveal the level of corruption within Iran and to inform Congress and others about how to combat the flow of money to terrorists. It further exposes the ruling class by publishing this information in the most common languages spoken within Iran. The second bill that will be considered under this rule is H.R. 4324, the Strengthening Oversight of Iran's Access to Finance Act. This bill will instruct the Treasury Department to report on transactions of financial institutions related to the export of aircraft to Iran. Under the Iran deal, President Obama removed restrictions on the sale of American aircraft to Iran. In 2016, the Treasury Department authorized the export of more than 200 aircraft to Iran Air, Iran's state-owned air carrier. Yet we know that Iran Air has been the transporter of choice for Iran's revolutionary guards as they have ferried weapons systems around the Middle East. The absurdity of this deal to increase the revolutionary guards' capacity to move weapons is self-evident. The bill before us today will require certification by financiers of the aircraft exportation deals that none of the aircraft exported will be used for terrorism or Iran's weapons of mass destruction program. Due to Iran Air's continued role in transporting materials used for terrorism, this is one step that we should take to help hold lending institutions accountable for their support of aircraft exports to Iran. Mr. Speaker, many of us in Congress know how bad the Iran deal was for our security and our allies' security. That is why there was bipartisan opposition to the deal last Congress. While in the end we were unsuccessful in prevailing upon the administration to abandon its bad idea, we should continue to stand in the gap against Iran's ongoing efforts to undermine peace in the Middle East and destroy our friends and, ultimately, the United States. Today, we have two bills that will help our ongoing efforts to thwart Iran's terrorist ambitions. I urge my colleagues to support this rule and these bills. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, we have two witnesses on their way. We started a little bit early. I reserve the balance of time.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, at this point, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I have two more speakers. I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Maine (Mr. Poliquin), a member of the Subcommittee on Terrorism and Illicit Finance.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen), the former chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield an additional 1 minute to the gentleman from Maine.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I would just ask, how much time is remaining?

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Williams), the vice chairman of the Subcommittee on Monetary Policy and Trade.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. Mr. Speaker, as my family and I sit around the dinner table, my wife, Perry, and my two children, we talk politics, not surprisingly, and there are times where we distinguish good from bad, and we know that Iran is an enemy of the good in this world. It terrorizes the Middle East. It seeks to eliminate Israel. It pursues the destruction of the United States. And yet, for some reason, the prior administration struck a deal with the Iranian regime, the same regime that has American blood on its hands. The two bills before us today begin the difficult work of once again ensuring Iran is stopped in its pursuit of weapons of mass destruction and in its support of terrorism. I thank Chairman Hensarling for bringing these bills forward and for my colleagues from the Financial Services Committee who have joined me on the floor today to make the case for this effort. I thank Chairman Sessions for his leadership on the Rules Committee and for providing the debate on this issue today. Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting the rule, supporting the underlying bills, and putting pressure on Iran to abandon terror and embrace peace.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.

Mr. BUCK

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 609 and ask for its immediate consideration.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Slaughter), my friend, pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only. General Leave

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in support of the rule and the underlying legislation. The rule provides 1 hour of debate and makes in order all amendments offered at the Rules Committee. I want to note that not one amendment to this rule or to this bill was offered by the Democrats. Mr. Speaker, the Micro Offering Safe Harbor Act is an important step toward helping small businesses grow across our country. Small businesses aren't just about selling a product or providing a service. Entrepreneurs take the risk for a chance to improve their community and their family's livelihood. These individuals employ our friends and families and improve our quality of life. Congress needs to do what we can to help entrepreneurs succeed. Young businesses need to use their limited capital, time, and resources to grow their business, not fill out bureaucratic paperwork. This problem has only grown worse since Congress passed the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act in 2010. When Dodd-Frank passed, Congress promised it would protect consumers. But it has only hurt community banks, small businesses, and the middle class. Dodd-Frank's burdensome regulatory regime has caused community banks to disappear across America, making access to capital more difficult for many small businesses. The House passed the Financial CHOICE Act to repeal and replace Dodd- Frank, but it currently sits untouched in the United States Senate. I hope they will quickly vote to repeal Dodd-Frank and make credit easier to access for Main Street. But there is more we can do in the people's House to help create new jobs and opportunities. All too often the Federal Government creates regulations that disproportionately hurt small businesses. While a large corporation may have a team of lawyers to comply with these rules, this is rarely the case for a young business. That is why I support this bill. This bill ends ambiguity in the law by clearly defining a nonpublic offering exemption under the Securities Act. Currently, companies just starting out risk unintentionally violating these laws, which might discourage them from seeking the capital they need to grow. It is common sense to ensure our country's laws are clear and to allow small businesses to operate without fear of accidentally violating the law. Our economy depends on small businesses and those who put everything on the line to pursue the American Dream. This bill will benefit all of us by helping those individuals grow their businesses and create jobs in their communities. In order to help our small businesses grow and create jobs, we need to pass this rule and pass the underlying bill. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Minnesota (Mr. Emmer).

Mr. BUCK. Mr. Speaker, I yield 5 minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Huizenga), chairman of the Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Securities, and Investments.