Commending the people of Israel for conducting free and fair elections, reaffirming the friendship between the Governments and peoples of the United States and Israel, and for other purposes.

Mr. Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and agree to the resolution (H. Res. 61) commending the people of Israel for conducting free and fair elections, reaffirming the friendship between the Governments and peoples of the United States and Israel, and for other purposes.

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. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

I would like to thank my colleague, the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Cantor), for introducing this important resolution commending the people of Israel for conducting free and fair elections and reaffirming the close friendship between our two nations.

Virtually since its creation in 1948, the state of Israel has been the only democratic ally of the United States in the region. Today, it is the only country in the Middle East with truly free elections, a vibrant free press, an active civil society and other elements which constitute a free society, making it indeed the only country in the Middle East classified as free by Freedom House in its report on democracy and human rights in the region.

Its declaration of independence, its system based on separation of powers, particularly its emphasis on an independent judiciary, its guarantee of equal access for women and minorities, and its guarantee of freedom of religion to the entire population are but some of the parallels that we share, which further strengthen the bonds between our countries. However, our nations share more than just democratic principles.

Regrettably, we have both been victimized by terrorism, the common enemy of the civilized world. The continuing terrorist attacks against Israel clearly follow the pattern of attacking democratic countries which support and implement the rule of law, mistaking the openness and tolerance of such societies as a sign of weakness. Israel is targeted in part because it is our friend and in part because it is an oasis of liberal, democratic values in a vast expanse of authoritarian regimes, fanaticism and bigotry.

As a liberal democracy under repeated attack by murderers who target innocent men, women and children, Israel deserves our steadfast support. This support is essential to Israel's continued survival as a free and democratic nation, for only the United States has the power and political will to provide meaningful assistance to the only parliamentary democracy in the region.

While we may have shared interests with Arab states in the Middle East, it is with Israel that we share core values. As it was in Afghanistan, U.S. foreign policy should be about more than geostrategic concerns. It should also reflect who we are as a nation and as a people.

There is an expression in Spanish which says, loosely translated, ``Tell me who your friends are and I'll tell you who you are.'' Let then the U.S. be judged by its friendship and by its partnership with Israel, the region's truly free, democratic society.

I strongly urge my colleagues to support the gentleman from Virginia's resolution.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Cantor), the author of this resolution, who is our new chief deputy whip and a person with whom I had the pleasure of going to Israel with last year.

I look forward to my next visit to Israel just this Friday. I wish that he would be going with us.

Mr. Speaker, I have no further requests for time, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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

Mr. Speaker, I rise to support H. Res. 61, and I thank the gentlewoman from Florida and the gentleman from California for their work in bringing this resolution to the floor.

On January 28, citizens in Israel exercised their right to vote in a free, transparent and democratic election. In Israel, like the United States, the right of citizens to vote is not denied or abridged on account of race, color, creed, sex or religion. Unfortunately, commitment to democracy and equal rights is a rarity in the Middle East. Israel's neighbors, like Syria, Iran, Iraq and others, do not share our respect for freedom. Behaviors that we consider basic rights, like free speech, fair trials, freedom of the press and freedom of religion are nonexistent. The concepts of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness are often demonized in some countries as sinful products of the Great Satan culture of the West.

That is, Mr. Speaker, why I stand here today and congratulate our only democratic ally in the Middle East, Israel, a country that stands with the United States on the key principles of human rights, freedom, peace and democracy, a country like no other in its region.

Mr. Speaker, like the United States, Israel is currently fighting a war on terrorism against people dedicated to hate and destruction, people dedicated to ending freedom and democracy, and dedicated to suppressing the basic rights of life and liberty.

It is incomprehensible, but these armies of evil believe that they can destroy, maim, and kill innocent people in the name of God. For the past 22\1/2\ years, Israel has faced an unrelenting campaign of violence and terror against her citizens, a war that began just months after the region stood at the doorstep of peace waiting to enter and then the door was abruptly shut. Throughout all of this unrest, it is amazing that on January 28 just a few weeks ago, the Israeli people engaged in the most basic and important feature of democracy. They held free, open, and competitive elections, an act in stark contrast to their dictatorial enemies.

Mr. Speaker, we in the United States consider Israel a real friend, a true ally. We must maintain our commitment to Israel's security. We must stand steadfast with President Bush and hold the Palestinian Authority to the strict guidelines laid out during the President's June 24 Rose Garden speech. We know from past experience that imposing an artificial deadline will not result in peace in the Middle East. Peace will only come with security, not in spite of it. Israel has always made a sincere commitment to peace in the region. Many times her commitment to peace has come at the expense of innocent life. We need to make sure we stand with and support our only democratic ally in the region.

I join my colleagues today in congratulating Israel on free and democratic elections, and I welcome a continued dialogue on how to best stop the violence and bring about peace and stability in this vitally important region.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. First I would like to pay tribute to my good friend, the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Cantor), for introducing this legislation. I rise in strong support of this resolution.

Mr. Speaker, friendship with Israel and support for its security are unshakable elements of U.S. foreign policy. The primary reason for these close relationships is not just our strategic interests, but our shared values. Democracy and freedom form the core values of both the United States and of Israel.

Mr. Speaker, that is why the occasion of Israelis going to the polls as

they did just recently is the appropriate time to mark and to reaffirm this very special relationship. Israel is one of the world's most vibrant democracies.

Some may wonder why we choose to honor this small country for holding an election. After all, Israel has held 17 elections in its 55-year history, five in the past decade alone. Yet another Israeli trip to the polls seems hardly remarkable. But, Mr. Speaker, that is exactly what earns Israeli democracy its special place in our friendship and respect and its special status among the world's democracies. We take its democratic nature for granted. Yet Israeli democracy endures under extraordinary circumstances, of difficulties, tragedies, and suicide bombings found nowhere else on the face of this planet.

The object of hatred from most of the regimes in its region, not one of which is a democracy, Israel would have every excuse in the world to lapse into the lamentable political mores of its region. But it refuses to do so. Instead, it brings democratic light to a region dominated by dictators.

Mr. Speaker, I congratulate the people of Israel who have again shown their unswerving devotion to democracy with little sense that they are doing something extraordinary.

Let me also take this opportunity to congratulate Prime Minister Sharon on his impressive plurality and wish him good luck in forming a new government. In passing this resolution, we assure the new Israeli Government that it can look forward to the closest possible relationship with the American people and with the Congress of the United States.

I urge all my colleagues to support this resolution.

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

Mr. Speaker, I yield as much time as he may consume to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Bell), one of our new colleagues who has already demonstrated qualities of great leadership in this body.

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my friend from Texas for his eloquent and powerful statement, and I urge all of my colleagues to support this resolution.

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

Mr. Speaker, I reluctantly must oppose this resolution.

Though I am sure this resolution commending Israel for holding free elections was introduced with the best intentions, this legislation unfortunately goes further than a simple commendation. The legislation as written will only once again inject the United States into the decades-old and intractable conflict in the Middle East. By commending Israel while at the same time demanding that the Palestinians take specific actions, this legislation places the United States squarely in the middle of a conflict that has absolutely nothing to do with American interests. Also, the resolution states that the United States is committed

to secure peace for Israel. We cannot afford nor are we constitutionally permitted to play referee in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and securing peace for any country but the United States is not the role of this body.

We must resist the temptation to meddle in the affairs of far-away nations no matter how good our intentions may be. If we are to keep our Constitutional republic we must uphold the wise counsel of those who crafted our founding set of laws.

Thomas Jefferson summed up the foreign policy position we must uphold in his 1801 inaugural address: ``People, commerce, and honest friendship with all nations--entangling alliances with none.'' How many champion Jefferson and the Constitution, but conveniently ignore both when it comes to American foreign policy? Washington similarly urged that the U.S. must ``Act for ourselves and not for others,'' by forming an ``American character wholly free of foreign attachments.'' Do so many on Capitol Hill now believe Washington was wrong?

Mr. Speaker, how many more times must we place ourselves and our country at risk by taking one side or other in battles, wars, and conflicts that have nothing to do with the United States, and where anger toward the United States will inevitably result? I urge my colleagues to uphold the Constitution and vote against this unfortunately-worded resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to urge my colleagues to join me in commending the Nation of Israel and to support passage of this very important resolution. A great philosopher once wrote that ``freedom cannot be bought for nothing. If you hold her precious, you must hold all else of little worth.''

Those words were written thousands of years ago, but I cannot think of any contemporary statement that provides such a clear window into the times in which we now live, into the struggle in which we are now locked.

As we have once again learned here in America this past year, the struggle for freedom is a constant one. It is a battle never completely won but one that must be perpetually fought. The battle for freedom is one that exacts an enormous price, and few people on this Earth have paid as heavy a price for their freedom as the people of Israel.

And as we see on our evening news on too many nights, the sons and daughters of Israel continue to pay that price just as they have for thousands of years. I think it is only fitting that in the wake of their 17th consecutive election as a free nation that the United States Congress would honor the Nation of Israel. We should honor them for their unwaivering commitment to find and hold freedom, and we should honor them for the sacrifice millions of Jewish people have made in pursuit of their dream, in pursuit of their right to hold free elections as a free people.