Ed Royce

Mr. ROYCE

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 in the Record.

Mr. ROYCE

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I want to thank my good friends, the gentlewoman and gentleman from Florida, Ms. Ros-Lehtinen and Mr. Deutch, who are chair and ranking member of the Middle East and North Africa Subcommittee, for their hard work and leadership in bringing this important measure to the floor today. And I also thank the ranking member, Mr. Eliot Engel from New York, for his work on the resolution as well. Israel is one of America's closest friends, and Israel is facing growing threats. Today Iran's leading terrorist proxy, Hezbollah, has thousands of missiles and rockets and mortars that are aimed at Israel--over 100,000. And the threat from Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps is even worse, as we hear from those chants: ``Death to Israel.'' The United States must stand with Israel to help promote security and stability in the volatile Middle East. And next year, the current memorandum of understanding signed with Israel in 2007 that guaranteed Israel $3.1 billion per year in foreign military financing will expire. The administration and Israel are currently negotiating the terms of a new package for the next 10 years, ensuring that Israel will maintain its qualitative military edge in the region. That is the goal of Mr. Eliot Engel. That is my goal. That is the goal of our subcommittee chairman and ranking member. This new agreement will guide our security cooperation: from Iron Dome and David's Sling, defending Israel from the air, to cooperative initiatives aimed at tunnel detection, defending Israel from below. This relationship has real benefits for the United States. The two countries share intelligence on terrorism, on nuclear proliferation, on regional instability. Israel's military experiences have shaped the United States' approach to counterterrorism and our approach to homeland security. The two governments work together to develop sophisticated military technology for defense, such as the missile and subterranean detection systems that I have mentioned. These systems developed jointly may soon be ready for export to other U.S. allies. In part because of this security partnership, U.S. and Israeli companies partner in technological innovations that are helping the United States maintain its advantage in a range of military and nonmilitary security challenges. So I urge my colleagues to strongly support this resolution, urging the expeditious finalization of a new memorandum of understanding between the Government of the United States and the Government of Israel so that Israel maintains its qualitative military edge and has the capacity to work with us to defend itself from all threats. I reserve the balance of my time.

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 any extraneous material for the Record.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 729) expressing support for the expeditious consideration and finalization of a new, robust, and long-term Memorandum of Understanding on military assistance to Israel between the United States Government and the Government of Israel.

Mr. ROYCE. I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, as this resolution notes, Israel faces a growing number of threats, and I think I would just speak for a moment about the nature of those threats. I appreciate Representative Ileana Ros- Lehtinen bringing this resolution before us. Representative Eliot Engel and I had a rather unique opportunity of seeing how these threats keep evolving. We were near the border in Israel and had an invitation on the Gaza border to go into one of these tunnels that had been discovered. Imagine the shock when we found out the intentions of why this tunnel was dug. It ended up coming up underneath an elementary school. Now, imagine for a minute the situation Israel is in when you have an adversary, Hamas in this case, who wishes to tunnel underneath an elementary school in order to capture children, take them back into Gaza, and force the IDF, as you and I knew they would do, to fight block by block by block to try to free those children. That was the strategy. Now, luckily the tunnels were discovered before they could carry this out. I was in Israel also in 2006, back during the second Lebanon war. The Hezbollah rockets came down across northern Israel every day. And in Haifa, every day there were victims that were brought into that trauma hospital. Back then, Hezbollah had a collection of about 10,000 rockets and missiles. That is what they had left in the inventory. They had shot off about half of their inventory. And in each of those, there were probably 90,000 ball bearings. And when they shot those rockets, they aimed at the city center in Haifa. Today is 10 years later. Hezbollah, as Mr. Yoho shared with you, has a nasty collection today of over 100,000 of these rockets and missiles. Now, if you were to take the United States out of the equation with respect to NATO, and you were to take a look at the NATO arsenal without us in it, Hezbollah, which is now equipped by Iran, has a larger number of weapons, rockets and missiles, than all of NATO combined without us. Included in that class are 700 long-range, high-payload rockets that have now been provided to Hezbollah, and these new rockets that carry these huge payloads are capable of taking out a city block and just creating havoc. And while the threat from Hezbollah is bad, let's talk about the threat from its sponsor for a minute. Let's reflect on the threat from Iran itself. If you wonder whether Iran intends what they say, think about their continued aggression in the region, and think about their testing of ballistic missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads. In case there is any mistake about how we might interpret it, they put on the side of these missiles, in Arabic, in Farsi, and in Hebrew, the words, ``Israel must be wiped out.'' That is the action of the Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps. That is what it puts on its missiles. Of course, under the administration's Iran deal, Tehran will keep much of its nuclear infrastructure and continue to develop advanced centrifuges faster and faster. They can continue to work on this, thus gaining the ability to produce nuclear fuel on an industrial scale. The ayatollah won't even have to cheat to be just steps away from a nuclear weapon 10 years from now when that agreement is phased out and expires. And that is about the same time that the next MOU will expire. So for those who are wondering why we are passionate about this memorandum of understanding with Israel, it is because we have seen the threats. Mr. Eliot Engel and I, in our trips to Israel to the border, have seen those threats. Given that, and given that Israel faces, not just from the proxies like Iran, not just from Hamas that are funded, but also from Iran itself Israel faces this threat, we need to ensure that the security package currently being negotiated is as robust as possible. I urge my colleagues to support this resolution. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, there are no further speakers other than myself to close.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Yoho), a member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs.

Mr. ROYCE

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and concur in the concurrent resolution (S. Con. Res. 46) expressing support for the goal of ensuring that all Holocaust victims live with dignity, comfort, and security in their remaining years, and urging the Federal Republic of Germany to continue to reaffirm its commitment to comprehensively address the unique health and welfare needs of vulnerable Holocaust victims, including home care and other medically prescribed needs.

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 any extraneous material in the Record.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I would like to start by thanking Senator Nelson for advancing this measure through the other body. I would also like to recognize the good work of Chairman Emeritus Ros-Lehtinen as well as Congressman Deutch for their companion resolution which passed this body in June with the unanimous support of our colleagues. The horrors wrought by the Nazi regime did not end when the prisoners finally walked out from behind the barbed wire fences in 1945. The aftereffects of Hitler's death camps still haunt the lives of those who remain. Tens of thousands of Holocaust survivors throughout the world live in poverty. The problem is staggering. There are 195,000 survivors and their families, according to the Registry of Holocaust Survivors, that remain. Most of those survivors, original survivors, are in their eighties today. The world loses 1,000 of those survivors every month. But today, more than one in four lack sufficient access to or funds for necessary medical, home care, mental health care, medicine, and transportation--essential tools which would allow them to live their final years in comfort and in dignity. For decades, Germany has instituted and funded a number of aid programs in recognition of its moral obligation to guarantee for those survivors--to guarantee--a chance at such a life. However, as they age, Holocaust victims' health and assistance needs--already more demanding than those of their peers--evolve and intensify. German evaluations of government programs this year exposed gaps in home care, in mental health programs, and in long-term medical care, and this must be remedied. Chancellor Merkel has acknowledged Germany's responsibility to those who survived Hitler's terror. The government has also affirmed that more must be done. A high-level working group was recently established to develop proposals for more extensive assistance for home care and for social welfare needs, but the negotiations for these changes, these program changes, under German law have stalled. Time is of the essence. Every day that decisions are stalled, we lose another survivor, we lose another story, and we lose another chance to show our respect for those individuals who have already endured what no one should. That is why our ranking member, Eliot Engel, and I are supportive of this measure and would urge all Members to support it. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as she may consume to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen).

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time. So I think, for the Members here, we all understand that we have to commit to do all we can to honor and to support those survivors who are still with us. Their stories serve as testaments to the consequences of doing nothing in the face of evil. Within these victims' lifetimes, we have already seen the minimization and the outright denial of the nightmares visited personally upon them during the Holocaust. We have already seen those who deny the existence of the Holocaust, as Iran did in May of this year again when it hosted yet another denial of the Holocaust and Holocaust cartoon contest. We owe it to those who suffered through Hitler's genocide to empower them to live the remainder of their lives in dignity and to hold to Elie Wiesel's pledge: that we shall never forget. I urge every Member's support for this resolution. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Yoho), for his leadership in authoring this critical legislation. The designation of a foreign government as a state sponsor of terrorism is one of our government's most powerful statements. In addition to imposing sanctions and other restrictions, the designation itself earns a state pariah status internationally, and that is deserved. After all, these are countries whose governments back the killing of innocents as a matter of policy. To be added to the list, the Secretary of State must determine that the government of such country has repeatedly provided support for acts of international terrorism. The designation then triggers unilateral sanctions by the United States. These sanctions include a ban on exports of weapons. It also includes limits on financing and economic assistance and restrictions on exports that can be used by that country to enhance its military capability or, of course, its ability to support terrorism. These are important tools. They are powerful tools. Yet, under current law, to delist a state sponsor of terrorism, the administration only needs to certify that the country has refrained from supporting terrorism for a mere 6 months. Administrations from both parties have abused this process. In 2008, North Korea's designation was rescinded following commitments it made to dismantle its nuclear weapons program. North Korea, of course, was delisted prematurely, but it kept its nuclear program, as evidenced by its fifth nuclear test last week. Likewise, Cuba continues to harbor terrorists, both foreign and domestic terrorists. It continues to meddle in Venezuela. It continues its support for Iran's designs on Latin America. Just last month, Cuba hosted the Iranian foreign minister, as Tehran seeks to expand its presence in the hemisphere. This legislation is an important check against administration overreach, increasing the period of time a country must refrain from supporting terrorism from 6 months to 2 years before it is eligible for being delisted. The bill also increases the period of time that Congress has to review any such proposed action by the President from 45 days to 90 days. So the bill strengthens congressional oversight of the process. I strongly urge my colleagues to support the legislation authored by Mr. Ted Yoho. I think it is critical. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen), the chairman emeritus of the Foreign Affairs Committee.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, 6 months to get off of that list for a terrorist country, that is an odd situation. We should not be giving terrorist regimes a clean bill of health in such a short time in that, by definition, these are regimes that kill innocents as a matter of policy. That is what terrorism is. And given that this process has been abused, in the case of North Korea, what is to prevent another White House from removing countries from the list to advance their own flawed agendas? Congress, I think, has a responsibility to prevent that from happening; and, ultimately, these regimes must understand that the only way to be delisted is to actually change their behavior and discontinue their support for terrorism, not simply press for their status to be reversed as a condition of a separate negotiation. That is what North Korea did some years ago. That is what concerns us here. Again, I would like to recognize Mr. Yoho for his excellent work on this legislation, and I urge its adoption. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5484) to modify authorities that provide for rescission of determinations of countries as state sponsors of terrorism, and for other purposes.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield 4 minutes to the gentleman from Florida (Mr. Yoho), the author of this important antiterrorism legislation.

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 the measure.

Mr. ROYCE

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, as I mentioned in my opening remarks, Hun Sen and the Cambodian People's Party took yet another authoritarian step last week when they arrested and tried opposition leader Kem Sokha. In their attempts to consolidate power, they have utterly obliterated the opposition. Mr. Speaker, the long-suffering people of Cambodia deserve the opportunity to elect a government of their choosing. By attempting to disqualify and harassing all the political opposition, Hun Sen is denying the people this opportunity. By passing this resolution, Congress is sending a message to Hun Sen that the United States is watching and will not accept his brutality. It will send an important signal of support, I believe, to all Cambodians who wish to live under a government that respects the rights of the Cambodian people. I urge passage of the resolution. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I am rising here in strong support for H. Res. 728, supporting human rights and democracy and the rule of law in Cambodia. We have all seen the consequences of land grabbing and the destruction of human liberty in that country. I want to thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Lowenthal), my colleague, for introducing this resolution. I want to thank him for his advocacy for the people of Cambodia. Mr. Speaker, since Cambodia held its deeply flawed elections in 2013, we have seen significant attacks on those Cambodians peacefully opposing their government. Hun Sen's thuggish regime continues to crack down on the political opposition and on activists, and they continue to arrest and beat those who point out violations of freedom of speech, violations, frankly, of a stolen election. As noted in this resolution, Freedom House's most recent report card rated Cambodia as not free, noting restrictions on and the harassment of the government's political opposition. And that is putting it mildly. Last year opposition lawmaker and American citizen Nhay Chamroeun was severely and brutally attacked by plainclothes bodyguards who repeatedly kicked and stomped him. He was hospitalized for months. We have all seen the pictures of opposition figures who have been beaten and stomped and put in the hospital there. Several months later, Kem Ley, a popular Cambodian political commentator, was murdered in broad daylight for his outspoken protest of the regime. So much for freedom of speech in Cambodia. Then just last week, Hun Sen took yet another step to consolidate his grip on power, to make it impossible for people to run against him. He sentenced the de facto leader of the Cambodia National Rescue Party, Kem Sokha, to 5 months in prison on the spurious charge of refusing to appear for questioning in a politically motivated case that was brought against him. Although his sentence is short, the repercussions are dire, as convicted criminals are prohibited from holding office; and that, again, was what this was about: intimidation and trying to force a system where the opposition party leader already in exile would then be in a position where they couldn't run somebody against Hun Sen. Mr. Speaker, these attacks on the opposition must stop. This systemic persecution of the government's opposition completely undermines the legitimacy of upcoming local elections as well as the country's 2018 national elections. Without the full and free participation of the CNRP, future elections will be deeply flawed and cannot be accepted. Hun Sen's continued attack on his political opponents is something we cannot accept, and for the sake of the Cambodian people, I urge my colleagues to adopt this resolution. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

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 any extraneous material in the Record.

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 728) supporting human rights, democracy, and the rule of law in Cambodia, as amended.

Mr. ROYCE

Mr. ROYCE. Mr. Speaker, I would begin by saying I appreciate the efforts of the gentleman from New York (Mr. Israel). I appreciate his work here for authoring this resolution. I think it, again, has been said, but his life's work, Elie Wiesel's life's work, cannot possibly be overstated. I think that for those who have called for us to remember, who have called for us to take action, no time is more probably important than today, when we see the anti- Semitism, when we saw the attacks in Paris, when we see these attitudes. People say never forget. That is correct. Here are some of the words that he spoke when he was awarded the Nobel Prize in 1986. He said: ``I remember: it happened yesterday or eternities ago. A young Jewish boy discovered the kingdom of night.'' I think he was 15 at the time that he was held in the Nazi death camps of Auschwitz and later Buchenwald, 15 years of age. He said: ``I remember his bewilderment,'' speaking of himself. He said: ``I remember the anguish. It all happened so fast. The ghetto. The deportation. The sealed cattle car. The fiery altar upon which the history of our people and the future of mankind were meant to be sacrificed. ``I remember,'' and he asked his father, `` `Can this be true?' This is the 20th century, not the Middle Ages. Who would allow such crimes to be committed? How could the world remain silent? ``And now the boy is turning to me,'' he said later in life as he reflected on this. `` `Tell me,' '' he asks. `What have you done with my future? What have you done with your life?' ``And I tell him that I have tried. That I have tried to keep the memory alive, that I have tried to fight those who would forget. Because if we forget, we are guilty.'' If we forget, then ``we are accomplices.'' So today, we honor his memory by committing to continue his work, to preserve the memory of those who perished in the Holocaust, to protect oppressed minorities that face other genocidal campaigns, and to promote the eternal values of peace, of tolerance, and of understanding for future generations. By passing this resolution, the House will commit to uphold Elie Wiesel's pledge to never forget. I thank the gentlewoman from Florida for her work on this resolution with Mr. Steve Israel.