Ed Royce

Mr. ROYCE of California

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from California (Mr. Rohrabacher).

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, in response briefly, we did have a substitute from Mr. Price, and we looked at that substitute, but it did not once mention the United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334. Mr. Engel and I have worked hard together, in good faith and in a bipartisan manner, to develop a measure that rejects and repudiates this dangerous U.N. resolution that was passed; and also, ours warns the White House against taking additional measures in the last few weeks of the current administration. I think it is important to remind the body that this is very concerning, given the backdrop of the Paris conference on the 15th of this month and the very real concern that the President could take further steps at the U.N. Again, Mr. Price's amendment did not include this urgent warning. I want to say that I am happy to work with Mr. Price in a bipartisan manner once the Committee on Foreign Affairs organizes, but time is of the essence. We must act to reject United Nations Security Council Resolution 2334, not remain silent on it, and we have got to limit the damage that the administration has caused to prospects for a lasting peace. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen), chairman emeritus of the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I want to begin by thanking the ranking member, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel). I thank him for working with me in a bipartisan manner not just on this resolution but on the one that we worked on late last year--a unanimous vote by this body directing the administration not to take the steps that the administration has taken. I appreciate the leader and the Speaker as well working with us to ensure this resolution was brought quickly to the floor of this House. Today, we put Congress on record objecting to the recent U.N. Security Council resolution that hurt our ally, that hurt Israel, and I believe that puts an enduring peace further out of reach. Mr. Speaker, the United States has long recognized that a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict can only come about through direct bilateral negotiations between these two parties, and that is why it is longstanding U.S. policy to veto the many one-sided, the many anti- Israel resolutions at the United Nations Security Council that violate that principle. But just the other week, the Obama administration broke with this longstanding U.S. policy by failing to veto U.N. Security Council Resolution 2334. This dangerous resolution effectively states that the Jewish quarter of the Old City of Jerusalem and the Western Wall, Judaism's holiest site, are, in the words of the resolution, ``occupied territory.'' Why would we not veto that? It also lends legitimacy to efforts by the Palestinian Authority to put pressure on Israel through the U.N. rather than to go through the process of engaging in direct negotiations, and it puts wind in the sails of the shameful boycott divestment and sanctions movement. Unquestionably, this U.N. Security Council action damages the prospects for peace. The resolution and the bullying and harassment of Israel that it will spur only happened for one reason: the Obama administration let it happen--and that went against the distinct warnings from this body. Mr. Engel and I engaged in letters, in conversations with senior administration officials seeking their assurance that the United States would veto one-sided, anti-Israel resolutions. In November, the House unanimously, all of us, passed a resolution which warned the administration against taking such last-minute action. With that resolution, H. Con. Res. 165, the House unanimously stated that the United States Government should continue to oppose and veto United Nations Security Council resolutions that seek to impose solutions to final-status issues or are one-sided and anti-Israel. Yet the administration rejected the call from Congress and chose a course that will bring harm for years to come by failing to veto U.N. Security Council Resolution 2334. If the Palestinians want a lasting peace, they must accept that Israel, not the U.N., is their negotiating partner; and that means ending the incitement to violence against Israelis that goes on in so many of the mosques, that goes on in the schools, that goes on in the newspapers and on television there. It also means ending--and I think this is the most important fact, because leaving this out of the resolution at the U.N. is beyond me--their pay-to-slay scheme. You talk about a lack of balance. Here we have a situation where, since 2003, it has been Palestinian law to reward Palestinian terrorists--terrorists--to go out, and they are given this incitement, this stipend for life. The more mayhem they create, the more horrific the number of civilians they attack and, therefore, the longer the sentence, the more they know: Well, I can serve my time, and then when I get out, I can get this stipend for the rest of my life--and it is larger and larger, depending upon the amount of mayhem--and if I don't make it, or if I am a suicide bomber, my family gets the stipend. That, by law, is the way the Palestinian Authority has engineered this, costing the lives--and you can read about it every month of those civilians attacked on the streets. It is not just Israelis, of course. Taylor Force, a U.S. Marine, was killed simply because he was in Israel, but it was by someone responding to the incitement. So $300 million per year spent by the Palestinian Authority to do that. No mention of that, of course, by the United Nations. And that is why today's action is so important, to demonstrate our united opposition to U.N. Security Council Resolution 2334, call for its repeal, to head off any more moves the Obama administration might have in the next few days with respect to the Paris conference next week as well, and to provide the foundation for the next administration to move forcefully to counteract its dangerous impact. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), the longtime chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations.

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Wilson).

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Yoho).

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, I yield 1\1/2\ minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. DeSantis).

Mr. ROYCE of California

Mr. ROYCE of California. Mr. Speaker, the problem with this U.N. resolution is not simply that it criticizes Israeli actions; it is that it is fundamentally one-sided. It is anti-Israel, and that is a departure from longstanding, bipartisan U.S. policy. U.N. Security Council Resolution 2334 does not address the Palestinian Authority's failure to end incitement of hatred. Frankly, they encourage it. The violence that we see against Israeli civilians comes from the encouragement of PA officials. It doesn't address the Palestinian Authority's continued payments. An incentive payment in their budget--over $300 million a year--is paid to those who would carry out attacks against Israeli civilians. The more mayhem you create, the longer the term you have in prison, the larger the stipend. That comes right out of the budget of the Palestinian Authority. The U.N. resolution did not call upon Palestinian leadership to fulfill their obligations towards negotiations. The Middle East Summit is planned next month. So, first, the administration abstains on this, and next month in France there is real concern that another damaging Security Council resolution should follow. That is why this dangerous policy must be rejected, hopefully unanimously, by this House.

Mr. ROYCE

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize and commemorate the tenure of Ban Ki-moon, the 8th Secretary General of the United Nations. His appointment and inauguration nearly ten years ago marked a historic achievement for the Republic of Korea. In his two terms in office, Secretary General Ban has advanced the cause of global peace through his work on economic, security, and human rights issues. He remains firmly and resolutely committed to the UN's long-term development goals and to helping those who suffer from international crises and humanitarian disasters. His leadership on global threats, such as the spread of infectious diseases, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, has contributed to international peace and security. And he has worked tirelessly to advance human rights around the world. Secretary General Ban has promoted women's empowerment and gender equality everywhere, and fought to improve human rights in North Korea. Under his tenure, the UN's Commission of Inquiry on Human Rights in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea put together the most comprehensive report to date on the horrific abuses carried out by the Kim regime. As this report found, these abuses ``shock the conscience of humanity,'' and demand that we hold the regime accountable. Before serving as Secretary General of the UN, Ban Ki-Moon served as South Korean Foreign Minister, where he worked towards denuclearizing the Korean peninsula. I hope that the next Secretary General will continue Secretary General Ban's work to advance the UN's mission of peace and prosperity around the world. As Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, I wish to recognize Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's service to the United Nations, to express my deep appreciation for his contributions to global peace and security, and to extend my sincere best wishes for his future endeavors. I urge my colleagues to do the same.

Mr. ROYCE

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record the following letters exchanged between myself and the gentleman from California, Mr. Nunes, Chairman of the Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, regarding S. 1632, an Act to require a regional strategy to address the threat posed by Boko Haram. House of Representatives, Committee on Foreign Affairs, Washington, DC, December 8, 2016. Hon. Devin Nunes, Chairman, Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, Washington, DC. Dear Mr. Chairman: Thank you for consulting with the Committee on Foreign Affairs on S. 1632, a bill to require a regional strategy to address the threat posed by Boko Haram, and for agreeing to be discharged from further consideration of that bill so that it may proceed expeditiously to the Floor. I concur in your understanding that the assessment required by section 1(b) shall be conducted and provided in a manner that protects intelligence sources and methods. I agree that your forgoing further action on this measure does not in any way diminish or alter the jurisdiction of your Committee, or prejudice its jurisdictional prerogatives on this measure or similar legislation in the future. I will seek to place our letters on S. 1632 into the Congressional Record during floor consideration of the bill. I appreciate your cooperation regarding this legislation and look forward to continuing to work with your Committee as this measure moves through the legislative process. Sincerely, Edward R. Royce, Chairman.

Mr. ROYCE

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, let me say in response that we should hire, in the State Department, people who do have some experience. We should have some people there with some experience with Muslim culture and Muslim countries, with that kind of a background. But that said, we want to work with the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gohmert) on implementation of this bill to make certain that these concerns are handled. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Frankel).

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous material on this bill.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank the ranking member of this committee, Mr. Eliot Engel, for his work on this important piece of legislation to protect U.S. personnel overseas, to improve the oversight of the Department of State, and to modernize its workforce. And I would also like to thank the other members of the committee for their input as well on this legislation. The world is not getting any easier for the men and women serving overseas who represent this country at the Department of State. These men and women work with many other agencies, including the Defense Department. They have got a wide range of very important responsibilities. They try to broker peace agreements. And, of course, not everybody wants peace in these agreements. They have to fight human trafficking. In other words, they have got to stand up to the criminal syndicates in some of these countries. They have got to help our fellow Americans in distress. That is just to name a few of the dangerous tasks that they undertake. They work hard, often in very challenging, even life- threatening circumstances, so they deserve our support, which includes reforming a department that sorely needs to modernize. Mr. Speaker, the annual authorization of the Department of State is critical to maintaining congressional oversight and making these needed agency reforms. The House has passed an authorization bill in each of the last six Congresses, but, unfortunately, it has been 15 years since this legislation was signed into law. This year, we have an opportunity to break that unfortunate streak, which makes this legislation all the more important. First and foremost, the bill includes a number of critical embassy security reforms and improvements. For example, the Department will be authorized to use so-called best value criteria when contracting for local guards at U.S. facilities overseas. This is an important change. This authority has consistently been requested by the professionals overseeing the security at our embassies and has been a particular focus of two members of the committee. So I would like to thank Lois Frankel and Randy Weber for their work. The bill requires the State Department to designate a list of high- risk, high-threat posts, effectively prioritizing the resources and the security for these posts. Now, these are the posts most at risk. The State Department and Defense Department are directed to jointly develop enhanced contingency plans. Why? Because there are going to be surprises overseas. There are going to be emergency situations, including planning for the rapid deployment of military resources to keep our personnel safe in a time of crisis. It includes provisions that improve security for the children and the families of U.S. diplomats abroad. And it makes sure that security failures, due to misconduct or due to unsatisfactory performance, are identified and those responsible are held accountable, something that did not happen when it came to the Islamist terrorist attack in Benghazi. No one lost a day of pay as a consequence of the mistakes made there. The bill increases accountability also for sexual exploitation and abuse by U.N. peacekeepers, which the Foreign Affairs Committee has helped expose through the hearings by Chairman Chris Smith. It also increases transparency for how U.S. funds are spent at the United Nations and mandates that the Department work to increase the number of American citizens employed by the United Nations. This has been a focus of Mr. Mo Brooks. We have also included important provisions to bolster the State Department's inspector general, an office that the Foreign Affairs Committee successfully fought to have filled after it sat vacant for 5 years. And lastly, the bill increases flexibility in the Department's workforce, allowing civil servants more opportunities to serve overseas and authorizing a pilot program to acquire skilled workers from the private sector. The passage of this legislation, S. 1635, would strengthen the law. It is a bipartisan bill, it improves congressional oversight of the Department, and I think it deserves unanimous support. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith). He is the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gohmert).

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (S. 1635) to authorize the Department of State for fiscal year 2016, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, in reclaiming my time, I thank Chris Smith for his years of oversight and for his combating that type of abuse. I also thank him for our efforts to have this included now in what will become a new law. I reserve the balance of my time.

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

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I want to thank the gentlewoman from Florida for her contribution to this legislation. Mr. Speaker, as chairman, I also want to thank our ranking member, Mr. Engel. I want to thank all my committee colleagues for their contributions to this bill. I think we should take the opportunity to thank our counterparts, Senator Corker and Senator Cardin, in the Senate for working with us to bring the first State authorization bill to the President's desk in over 15 years. Today, the Department is considering how to deploy diplomats in high- threat, high-risk places like South Sudan, like the Central African Republic, Yemen, Libya. It is our responsibility to make sure that U.S. personnel at these posts have every available means of protection, and this bill authorizes the Department to make critical upgrades in Embassy security. This bill also mandates that the Department uses leverage at the United Nations to make improvements that have been ignored for too long. In just the last year, we have heard horrific stories of peacekeepers sexually abusing and exploiting those they are sent to protect. Sadly, these are not the first instances of such predatory behavior, but the United Nations has failed to take steps to stop it. Oversight is necessary at any agency. It took 5 years for the Department's inspector general position to be filled, and this bill makes sure that the Department's watchdog has all the tools it needs to perform its mandate. This bill deserves our support. The other body should move quickly so that these critical reforms can be signed into law by the President. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize the service of Owen Holmes on the eve of his retirement from California State University, Fullerton. Dedicating his life to education, Owen has received the Robert and Louise Lee Collaborative Teaching Award, served as an education policy fellow at the Institute for Educational Leadership, and Owen was the inaugural awardee of the Edwin Crawford Award for Innovation. I have had the pleasure of working with Owen on many issues for CSUF over the years--gerontology, childhood obesity, the Strategic Language Initiative, water hazard mitigation, the advancement of teaching and learning in mathematics and science--all to help enhance the university's education experience, and on the Cal State DC Scholars program and bringing students from the university here to our Nation's Capital, where he orchestrated that effort. Throughout his over 30 years of service, he has touched the lives of thousands of students and improved government relations and advocacy at Cal State Fullerton. I am pleased to have had the opportunity to work with Owen over the years to help make CSUF one of the Nation's largest and most inclusive institutions of higher education. Thank you, Owen, for dedicating your life to improving education. We wish you a happy retirement.

Mr. ROYCE

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support here for the Filipino Veterans of World War II Congressional Gold Medal Act, and I am one of the proud cosponsors, along with my colleagues here, of this act. I have had an opportunity over the last couple of years to travel twice to the Philippines. One of them was right after the cyclone hit Tacloban, and we took a delegation there. As you travel across the islands of the Philippines, it is a constant reminder of the enormity of the sacrifice as you see those battle sites, the enormity of the sacrifice made by this unsung group of heroes who fought so courageously for the defense of our country, during what is really one of the most perilous moments of American history, and their valor and their patriotism is deserving of this recognition from Congress. I don't think many Americans understand how quickly the reaction across the Philippines, in terms of Pearl Harbor, more than 250,000 Filipino soldiers responded to President Roosevelt's call to arms to fit under the American flag. In addition to that, just in my State of California, we had 16,000 Filipino Americans that went forward and enlisted, where the U.S. Army then formed the 1st and 2nd Filipino American Infantry Regiments. That is where those regiments were organized. On December 8, 1941--and this was not 24 hours after the bombing of Pearl Harbor--it was at that moment in time that the Japanese Imperial forces attacked the U.S. bases in the Philippines. Filipinos and Filipino Americans fought valiantly in the push to regain the Philippines from Imperial Japanese forces. Mr. Speaker, 57,000 Filipinos in uniform died in the war effort. More than that, among the casualties of those who struggled against Japan, but 50,000 Filipinos in uniform, and they gave their lives in battles such as Bataan and Corregidor; and their sacrifice was absolutely instrumental in disrupting the enemy's advancement in the Pacific. As President Harry Truman made clear: ``They fought as American nationals under the American flag and under the direction of our military leaders. They fought with gallantry and courage under the most difficult conditions. . . .'' So I am honored to rise today in support of recognizing these great heroes. The contributions of the Filipino World War II veterans are a very important part of American military history, and their accomplishments deserve the recognition of the Congressional Gold Medal.

Mr. ROYCE

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 165) expressing the sense of Congress and reaffirming longstanding United States policy in support of a direct bilaterally negotiated settlement of the Israeli- Palestinian conflict and opposition to United Nations Security Council resolutions imposing a solution to the conflict.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include extraneous materials in the Record.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I thank the ranking member, the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel), and thank Mr. Brad Sherman of California as well for working with me in a bipartisan manner to bring this important resolution to the floor today. There is a growing concern in Congress--it is a concern felt on both sides of the aisle--that despite established, bipartisan United States policy, the Obama administration may end the practice of vetoing resolutions in the Security Council that strayed from the principle that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict can only be resolved through direct negotiations between the parties. This administration could also end the related practice of vetoing Security Council resolutions that are one-sided or anti-Israel. This is a real concern. Press reports-- including one today--suggest that such a one-sided resolution could be submitted in days. Worse, the Obama administration could support a resolution at the U.N. Security Council setting parameters for a final settlement between Israel and the Palestinians. U.S. policy has long and wisely been that only Israelis and Palestinians can work out a peace agreement between themselves and that efforts to impose one would be counterproductive. Whatever parameters the U.N. established would be unacceptable to any Israeli Government--a government to the left or a government to the right--making it impossible to see any future peace. What on Earth today, at this point in time, suggests that Israel has a willing partner in peace? Not at this moment. Our committee has held hearings to expose the current Palestinian Authority's complicity in inciting violence against the State of Israel as well as against Israelis. Mr. Speaker, Israel is contending with a deep-seated hatred. It is a deep-seated hatred nurtured, unfortunately, by Palestinian leaders over radio and also in direct communication with the population many, many years, whether it was in the mosques or the schools or the newspapers or on television. As one witness told the committee: ``Incitement'' is the term we usually use, but that is not really what we mean. Hatred is what we mean, teaching generations of Palestinians to hate Jews by demonizing and dehumanizing them. That is the nature of the problem. Unfortunately, some Palestinians are lured to terrorism with more than just words. Since 2003, it has been Palestinian law to reward Palestinian terrorists in Israeli jails with a monthly paycheck. The Palestinian Authority and the Palestinian Liberation Organization use a so-called martyrs' fund to pay the families of Palestinian prisoners and to pay suicide bombers. This pay-to-play scheme has got to stop, period. In the face of such hatred, the United States must stand firm. The Israel-Palestinian conflict can only be resolved through direct negotiations between the parties. I again thank the gentleman from New York (Mr. Engel) and the gentleman from California (Mr. Sherman), as well, for their work on this resolution. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from New Jersey (Mr. Smith), chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations.