David Scott

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. And a final comment, Mr. Speaker. House Resolution 5834 indeed gives us an ambassador rank for human rights in North Korea. This is extraordinarily important, and this is not just right and needed for the people of North Korea. It's needed and it's right for all freedom-loving people on this planet, for us to move forthrightly and to be able to finally make this a critical, key part of our foreign policy. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks and include extraneous material on H.R. 5834.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the concurrent resolution (H. Con. Res. 371) strongly supporting an immediate and just restitution of, or compensation for, property illegally confiscated during the last century by Nazi and Communist regimes, as amended.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, it is my pleasure to yield 3 minutes to the distinguished congresswoman from Nevada, Ms. Shelley Berkley.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, it is my distinct pleasure to yield 5 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern) who has taken over Chairman Lantos' duties as cochair of the Human Rights Caucus as the new Democratic cochairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution and yield myself as much time as I may consume. I first want to thank our colleague, the newly appointed Democratic cochairman of the Congressional Human Rights Caucus, Congressman Jim McGovern, and the distinguished Republican Human Rights Caucus cochairman, Congressman Frank Wolf, for their strong leadership in bringing this important legislation before the House of Representatives. This legislation before us will immediately and fully institutionalize the biggest and most active human rights entity in the United States Congress, the Congressional Human Rights Caucus. The new entity will carry the name Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission and will be led by the current caucus cochairs assisted by the executive committee. This year, the caucus should have joyfully and proudly celebrated its 25th anniversary, on which Members of this House and human rights NGOs could have paid tribute to the tremendous human rights accomplishments of the caucus under the leadership of its founding cochairman, Tom Lantos. This joy was, of course, overshadowed earlier this year with the passing of this extraordinary human being and human rights giant, our good friend and distinguished former chairman of our Foreign Affairs Committee, the Honorable Tom Lantos. With him, the caucus had lost its inspiring cochairman; the Foreign Affairs Committee, its visionary leader; this body, one of its most respected, passionate and eloquent colleagues; and this Nation, a foreign-born public servant who loved this country with every fiber of his body. Given Tom's biography and life experiences before he was elected as the only Holocaust survivor to this distinguished body, and his burning desire to stand up for people around the world who do not have a voice in the corridors of power, it certainly is no surprise that 25 years ago our distinguished former colleague, John Edward Porter, collaborated with Tom to establish a working group dedicated to the defense of global human rights. With Annette Lantos and Kathryn Cameron Porter at their sides, the Congressional Human Rights Caucus was launched. It is impossible today to chronicle every single accomplishment of the Human Rights Caucus. But over the last 25 years, the caucus has intervened on behalf of countless individuals and groups whose human rights have been violated, raised human rights issues which were on nobody's radar screen, used its strong voice for the voiceless, and has actively engaged Members of the United States Congress on the important matter of human rights. Over the last 25 years, the caucus has also proven that human rights is a truly bipartisan issue and has driven totalitarian regimes and their lobbying agents to the brink of utter despair when liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans--and every shade in between-- relentlessly stood shoulder to shoulder on global human rights issues. Under the strong leadership of our colleagues, Jim McGovern and Frank Wolf, I have no doubt that the new commission will continue to stand as a beacon for human rights around the world. Madam Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to support this important resolution. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1451) establishing the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission in the House of Representatives.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, as we have heard and seen with this extraordinary outpouring of passion and support, this legislation establishing the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission naming Mr. McGovern and Mr. Wolf as cochairmen is extraordinary important, and we urge support across the aisle for this important piece of legislation.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 6646) to require the Secretary of State, in consultation with the Secretary of Defense, to provide detailed briefings to Congress on any recent discussions conducted between United States Government and the Government of Taiwan and any potential transfer of defense articles or defense services to the Government of Taiwan, as amended.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. 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 the resolution under consideration.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution, and I yield myself as much time as I may consume. I would like to first thank my distinguished colleague, the ranking member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, for introducing this very, very important legislation. When it comes to arms sales to Taiwan, U.S. policy is clear. We must ensure that the thriving democracy of Taiwan has the military capability necessary to defend itself from outside threats. The United States is obligated to provide defensive military equipment to Taiwan, not just because it is right to aid our democratic friends, but also because it is the law of the land under the Taiwan Relations Act. This act, which has been at the core of our policy towards Taiwan for almost three decades, clearly states that the United States should base its decision whether to supply defensive military equipment to Taiwan solely on the security needs of the Taiwanese military. The Taiwan Relations Act is also clear that it is the President and Congress that determine what military equipment shall be sold to Taiwan. Apparently, the White House does not understand the Taiwan Relations Act. As we speak, the administration is refusing to move forward with $11 billion worth of arms to Taiwan, arms which the administration has already agreed to sell. The Taiwanese government wants the weapons, and the administration has recommended that the sales be approved. The only thing remaining is for the administration to notify Congress, and yet, no notification has come. To address this peculiar situation, over the past months the Foreign Affairs Committee has repeatedly requested briefings from the administration. Most often, the answer is simply no response. When pressed, State Department and other administration officials throw up their hands and tell us to ask the White House because it is the White House that is making the decision to delay notification of the sales and not to talk to Congress. H.R. 6646 requires the administration to brief the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on all discussions that the administration has had with the Taiwanese Government regarding the arms sales and on any potential transfer of defense equipment to Taiwan. I would like to point out the extraordinary measure we are taking by introducing this legislation. Section 15(b) of the State Department Basic Authorities Act provides that the Department ``shall keep the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives fully and currently informed with respect to all activities and responsibilities within the jurisdiction.'' With respect to these arms sales to Taiwan, this law has been ignored. Because of the importance of the U.S.-Taiwan relationship and the importance of the Taiwan Relations Act, which has helped keep peace in East Asia for almost 30 years, it is time for Congress to take a more direct step in compelling the administration to explain its decision- making on arms sales to Taiwan. The stakes are too high to let the White House continue its policies of secrecy and disregard for congressional oversight. It is an injustice to our Taiwanese friends. It is a danger to our national security, and it is against the law. I strongly support this legislation and encourage my colleagues to do the same. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlelady from Nevada, Ms. Shelley Berkley.

Mr. SCOTT of GEORGIA

Mr. SCOTT of GEORGIA. Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1314) remembering the 75th anniversary of the Ukrainian Famine-Genocide of 1932-1933 and extending the deepest sympathies of the House of Representatives to the victims, survivors, and families of this tragedy, and for other purposes, as amended.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I have no further speakers. I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time at this time, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 1435) recognizing the 70th anniversary of the 1938 occurrence of Kristallnacht, The Night of Broken Glass.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Madam 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 resolution under consideration.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I rise in strong support of this resolution, and I yield myself as much time as I may consume. Let me first thank the gentleman from New Hampshire (Mr. Hodes) for offering this important resolution, which marks the 70th anniversary of Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass. His leadership on the Holocaust-related issues is greatly appreciated. On the night of November 9, 1938, the streets of German and Austrian cities were littered with the shattered glass of Jewish homes, businesses and synagogues. Ninety-one people lost their lives and 30,000 were deported to concentration camps during the course of this pogrom. Buchenwald and Dachau soon filled with Jews who had been deprived of their property, their savings and their livelihoods by the Nazis. Kristallnacht, the Night of Broken Glass, showed the world once and for all the true face of the Nazi regime and served as a prelude to the horrors that would soon befall Europe's Jewish community. As Germany's synagogues burned on this terrible night, the governments of the west, including our own, failed to take meaningful action. Ambassadors were recalled, speeches were made, but the Nazis' orchestrated pogrom resulted in the diplomatic equivalent of just a slap on the wrist. We condemn not just the destruction wrought against Germany and Austria's Jewish community that terrifying night, but we also condemn the world's inaction, which undoubtedly led the Nazis to believe the international community would offer little resistance to their plans to murder all the Jews in Europe. Though 70 years have passed since the Nazis began to set in motion the final solution, and 63 years since the liberation of the last of their death camps, we must continue to maintain our vigilance against all forms of ethnic, national and religious hatreds. Adolf Hitler exploited the world's failure to protect those threatened by the Nazi's vicious ideology of hate. As we reflect upon the anniversary of this infamous night and pay tribute to the over 6 million people killed in the Holocaust, we must recommit ourselves to preventing genocide anywhere and any time. I strongly support this resolution, and I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, we have no further speakers at this time. However, let me conclude by simply stating that Adolf Hitler and the Nazis perpetrated the most heinous tragedy of man's inhumanity to man. We will never forget it, and people all across this Nation on this 70th anniversary say never, never again. I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. SCOTT of Georgia. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.