Floor Statements

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of two measures, H.R. 535 and H.R. 3320.

Both of these measures are aimed at strengthening our bonds with Taiwan, a partner in every sense of the word--in trade, in technology, and in culture. Over the last decade, Taiwan has emerged as a vibrant and liberal democracy of more than 23 million people, and remains a key ally in the Asia Pacific region. I support H.R. 535, which would

strengthen U.S.--Taiwan relations by encouraging travel between the two nations by high-level officials, and H.R. 3320, which directs the Secretary of State to develop a plan to regain Taiwan's observer status in the World Health Organization.

Adoption of these bills would underscore the United States' commitment to our relationship with Taiwan, and I encourage my colleagues to support them as well.

Mr. Speaker, had I been present, I would have voted ``Nay'' on rollcall No. 708.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the bipartisan Taylor Force Act, which eliminates United States aid to the Palestinians unless they end payments to terrorists. I thank my colleagues, the chair, and the ranking member for their leadership.

Today we are condemning an evil system that rewards terrorists based on how many innocent civilians they maim or kill. In recent decades, 1,600 people have been killed by Palestinian terror attacks, like 17- year-old Liana Sakiyan, a high-spirited girl, a friend to many. On a break from exams, she and her friends were in line for a night of celebration at a discotheque in Tel Aviv when a bomb went off, instantly snuffing out her life and 20 other innocent young Israelis.

As a reward for this heinous attack, the suicide bomber's family received thousands of dollars from the Palestinian Authority--this authority which continues to give hundreds of millions of dollars to terrorists and their families, a part of the so-called martyrs' fund. This legislation, which correctly exempts humanitarian and democracy- promoting programs, tells the Palestinian Authority: No more pay to slay.

Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of this bill.

Mr. Speaker, this Congress, with a unanimous voice vote, passed a resolution that mandates antisexual harassment training for Members and staff.

Of course, it is about time. But here is the thing, Mr. Speaker: it is pitiful and embarrassing that a Member of Congress would need an instruction manual that tells them that they must keep their pants on in their office.

What we need is to create an environment of a safe and respectful workplace and policies and procedures that will allow victims to come forward to be fully compensated, for Members to be held accountable, and to have fair due process.

Mr. Speaker, I must leave for a funeral. Had I been present, I would have voted ``nay'' on rollcall No. 651.

personal explanation

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to welcome Temple Torat Emet's new Rabbi, David Siff, to the South Florida community.

Rabbi Siff has been an inspiration to Jewish communities across the country, from South Carolina to Philadelphia, and now he joins us here in Boynton Beach. Since receiving his rabbinic ordination in 2006 and a Ph.D. in Jewish Philosophy in 2009, both from the Jewish Theological Seminary in New York City, he has cultivated a culture of warmth and inclusiveness for everyone in the community. Rabbi Siff has been key in developing Shabbat and holiday programming that engages families with young children, promoting a vibrant and hopeful future for the American Jewish community. His dedication to Tikkun Olam, or repairing the world, will be a great asset to the Temple and to South Florida.

Temple Torat Emet and the rest of the Jewish community of South Florida is lucky to have Rabbi Siff, and I'd like to join them in extending him a warm welcome.

Mr. Speaker, first I want to thank my colleagues and all those ``me too'' survivors who bravely come forward to tell their stories of sexual harassment.

Imagine you are a young congressional staffer who eagerly comes to Washington to make the world a better place for some and work for someone you actually believe in. Instead, your boss breaks your trust with unwanted sexual advances, groping, abusive language, or worse, and you feel absolutely devastated and powerless.

Here is the thing: the United States Congress has made sexual harassment in the workplace illegal, yet this behavior has sullied our own Halls.

Quite frankly, I think it is pitiful and embarrassing that we even have to have this discussion, but with that said, today's resolution to require mandatory antiharassment training is obviously a good step and necessary. And there is more work to be done, as my colleagues have said.

There must be respect and safety in all our workplaces, in Congress, and across America. I urge all my colleagues to support this good resolution.

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Christian D. Searcy and Steven L. Daniels for receiving the 2017 Anti- Defamation League's (ADL) Palm Beach Jurisprudence Award. This award acknowledges those individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the legal profession as well as the community in which they live. I have had the honor of knowing both these gentleman for many years and commend their worthy recognition.

Christian D. Searcy is President and CEO of Searcy Denney Scarola Barnhart & Shipley, P.A. For 43 years, he has litigated cases primarily involving catastrophic injury and death in venues throughout Florida, as well as other states. He has been honored numerous times for his exceptional advocacy and extraordinary contributions to the cause of justice. He is well known for his generous contributions to many non- profit organizations committed to helping the disabled, improving education, and advancing community causes.

Steven Daniels has played a significant role in the South Florida Jewish community since the 1980s. He has been an integral member of the local and national ADL leadership. Steven has also served as President of Temple Beth El in West Palm Beach as well as the Jewish Community Center of the Palm Beaches. He has earned the ``Super Lawyer'' distinction from Florida Trend magazine, and is currently the managing partner for the West Palm Beach and Boca Raton offices of Saul Ewing Arnstein & Lehr.

Christian Searcy and Steven Daniels share the distinction of excellence in their profession and the advancement of fairness and justice in the community, the founding principles of the ADL.

I congratulate and thank them both.

Mr. Speaker, I stand against Republican efforts to give massive tax cuts to the wealthiest citizens and big corporations while robbing the pockets of middle class families and ransacking Medicare and Medicaid.

My constituents are worried. Just ask Marion, who uses Medicare to buy her costly diabetes drugs, or Sherry, whose husband has Alzheimer's and lives in a nursing home paid for by Medicaid.

Americans want a better deal, one that invests in infrastructure, education, and innovative research and lowers the costs of things like child care and prescription drugs.

We want better jobs, better pay, and a better future, not more giveaways to hedge funds and conglomerates.

Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for the bipartisan leadership of this committee.

Mr. Speaker, this week marks the 34th anniversary of the devastating Marine Corps barracks bombing in Lebanon. As the very proud mother of a U.S. marine, this is deeply personal to me. My son returned safely from his tours of service. Not so blessed were the families of 220 marines and 21 other service personnel who were murdered when Hezbollah struck with truck bombs at a Marine Corps compound in Beirut, Lebanon, on October 23, 1983.

The marines we lost that day were someone's husband, father, brother, or son. Except for al-Qaida, Hezbollah has killed more Americans than any other terrorist group in the world, and it continues to be a menacing threat to all humanity.

Just look at Syria, the greatest humanitarian crisis of our time: hundreds of thousands of civilians murdered; 5 million have fled as refugees; Hezbollah, a tool of Iran, propping up Assad and fueling the violence.

Their actions don't stop there. Israelis live under the constant shadow of Hezbollah's missile arsenal that is pointed directly at them. In just a decade, they have increased their rocket count from 15,000 to 150,000. They hold the Lebanese people hostage by embedding weapons in their mosques, their hospitals, and their schools.

These bipartisan bills before us that I wholeheartedly support will help America go after the full range of Hezbollah's activities, sanctioning them for utilizing civilians as human shields, targeting Iran's financial support to Hezbollah, and urging the European Union to designate Hezbollah in its entirety as a terrorist organization.

Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of these bills.

Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague and the leaders of our comittee for their bipartisan efforts. It is very appreciated.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this bipartisan legislation that directs the State Department and USAID to support programs and educate displaced children, with a special focus on girls.

When you look at the horrors of the world, from South Sudan to Burma, to Syria, think about the fact that there are 55 million displaced children, 28 million refugee children that have been uprooted from their homes due to violence and poverty, and making up half of all the refugees.

Here is the thing. What happens when a young person has no hope, no education, no future potential of a good

job to one day take care of their family? Will they become victims of trafficking or vibrant members of society? Will these millions of children become our friends or foes? Will the communities they live in be our trading partners or havens for terrorists?

Around the world, only a quarter of refugee children are enrolled in secondary school, and the number, as my colleagues have pointed out, is even worse for girls. Just seven girls for every ten refugee boys are enrolled in secondary school. We are talking about a lost generation.

In Syria alone, over 5,000 schools have been destroyed. Just ask a young lady named Muzoon. She is known as the Malala of Syria. At age 15, she fled her besieged home in Syria. When she was told to bring only her essentials, she packed a suitcase full of books because she knows, ``That education is a shield that we can use to protect ourselves in life.'' She even went door to door in refugee camps to convince parents to keep their daughters in school instead of pressuring them into early marriage.

Muzoon knows and we know that when girls are educated, they lead to healthier, more productive lives that enhance the economy and the peacefulness of their societies.

Mr. Speaker, I urge adoption of this fine legislation.

Madam Speaker, today I rise for Donna. This is her story:

She said it was a miracle. At age 41, she was finally pregnant. Early blood tests and ultrasound showed a healthy fetus. Donna was filled with the joy of an expectant mother. Then tragedy struck. Her fetus stopped growing at 26 weeks. An ultrasound showed anencephaly, a fetus without a brain, a fetus that could not sustain life on its own.

Madam Speaker, this 20-week abortion bill is cruel punishment for women like Donna, forcing them to face weeks of pregnant agony with no hope for the life that they so wanted. This is a bill that inflicts pain, not stops it, and I urge my colleagues to vote ``no.''

Mr. Speaker, I rise today to congratulate Team USA for their victory over Team Europe in the Solheim Cup.

Team USA includes our nation's best women golfers, and they took home the title for the second consecutive time by defeating Team Europe 16\1/2\ to 11\1/2\. The team was led by captain Juli Inkster and South Florida native Lexi Thompson, the third best female golfer in the world. The Americans went into the final day of the tournament with a five-point lead and they fought hard to maintain it. Important final day victories by veteran Paula Creamer as well as South Florida's own Christie Kerr helped seal the win for Team USA.

All the members of Team USA played well throughout the tournament, and I am happy to congratulate them again on this impressive accomplishment.

Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of this critical bill that will help ensure that women have a meaningful role in peace and security around the world. From Syria to Myanmar to South Sudan, violent conflicts are becoming more widespread and deadly. Women in conflict zones suffer tremendously, and women and girls make up around half of any refugee population, where they are at risk of unspeakable violence.

But women are not only victims. They also help moderate violent extremism and are key to post-conflict society building. Yet so few are present at the tables of power. In peace processes between 1992 and 2011, women made up only 9 percent of negotiators. When women have a seat at the table, the prospect that peace negotiations will succeed rise significantly, as does the likelihood that women's rights and interests will be addressed. A recent study from the International Peace Institute found that a peace agreement is 35 percent more likely to last for at least 15 years if women participate in its drafting.

This legislation would require a governmentwide strategy to promote women's participation, and institutes training for State Department, USAID, and Pentagon personnel to facilitate women's engagement in conflict prevention and resolution.

I'd like to commend the progress made under President Obama on this issue, which includes issuing the National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security. In the last five years alone, the percentage of peace agreements referencing gender equality has increased from 22 to 70 percent.

We have an opportunity to make our voice heard on the issue of women in conflict. The UN Security Council will convene next month to hold its open debate on Women, Peace and Security. The United States should highlight its commitment to ensuring women's equal participation in peacemaking, and protecting their physical and economic security. That begins with sending a high-level delegation.

I urge adoption of the bill.

Mr. Speaker, on Roll Call votes 494, 495, I was not present because I was unavoidably detained. Had I been present, I would have voted on Roll Call Vote 494: NAY, and on Roll Call Vote 495: AYE.