Transcripts For CSPAN U.S. House Of Representatives Debate O

CSPAN U.S. House Of Representatives Debate On Removing Rep. Omar From Foreign... February 3, 2023



committee. today i serve as chair of that committee. . roughly two years ago, on february 4, 2021, i publicly warned of the dangerous precedent set by the previous majority as they put in place an unprecedented process to remove minority members from their committee assignments. two years ago democrats offered a resolution. that resolution based on clause 1, house rule 23, removed a republican member from all committees and referred the matter to the house ethics committee. however the process instituted at that time by speaker nancy pelosi bypassed any ethics committee involvement and brought the matter directly to the house floor for a vote. i and many of my republicans warned that this majority veto over the minority party's committee assignments apoivments removed important rights of the minority party. republican members also warned this process set a precedent that future majoritieses would follow to remove members from committee assignments. following the road map previously approved by the democrat-controlled 117th congress, we are here today to debate and to consider house resolution 76. a resolution to remove representative omar from serving on the committee on foreign affairs. today's resolution as it relates to representative omar details six statements she made as a sitting member of congress that under the tote tallity of the -- totality of the circumstances disqualify her from serving on the committee on foreign affairs. it is important to note that this resolution is very narrowly tailored and does not prevent representative omar from serving on other committees. house resolution 76 instead simply states that she cannot serve on a committee that receives classified briefings and is responsible for maintaining international diplomacy. the committee on foreign affairs is a prestigious committee viewed by nations around the world, both allies and adversaries, as speaking for congress on matters of international importance and national security. all members, both republican and democrats alike, who seek to serve on foreign affairs should be held to the highest standard of conduct due to the international sensitivity and national security concerns under the jurisdiction of this committee. based upon the important mission of this committee and the precedent previously set to remove members from their committee assignments, i support this resolution today. mr. speaker, i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from mississippi reserves. the gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. ms. wild: thank you, mr. chair. i rise in opposition to this resolution. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman is recognized. ms. wild: thank you. i rise as the ranking member of the ethics committee. a body that i am proud to have served on throughout my entire time in congress. and i also rise as a member of the house f orgn affairs committee, which i have also served on throughout congress. many people don't understand the nature of the ethics committee. it's a unique body within this congress. it consists of an equal number of democrats and republicans. and it offers a mechanism by which complaints against members of congress and high ranking staff can be vetted, investigated, and adjudicated on pretty much of a confidential basis by the members of the committee. i'm very pleased, what may really surprise people to know, that we often come to completely unanimous decisions in that very bipartisan committee. with that said i'm disappointed my colleagues in the majority are choosing as one of their very first exercises of authority in this congress to pursue vengeance over governance. governance would be to allow this resolution, which has been referred to the ethics committee, to proceed through the committee's regular process. the ethics committee is charged with determining whether a member behavior violates the code of official conduct and when warranted by a violation, recommending that the house adopt sanctions or restrict certain privileges like service on committees. i strongly urge a return to the days of civility which would be nice to see here in this body and which i think the american people would very much welcome. one of the ways of doing that is to have this chamber allow the ethics committee to do its work so that we avoid a situation where every couple of years when there is a transfer of power between one party to the other we don't see these constant efforts to boot people from committees based on past actions. if a member does something egregious that is worthy of a complaint, any member can bring a complaint to the ethics committee and it can be dealt with there. the majority is seeking to advance this resolution bef before -- they are trying to advance it before the ethics committee, and yet the ethics committee has not yet adopted its rules, held an organizational meeting or convened for the first time this congress. i want to address the issue of due process. during the rules meeting leading up to today's vote, a number of concerns were expressed and it's been reported in the media as well, concerns about due process. the resolution, house resolution 76, claims that any member reserves the right to bring a case before the committee on ethics as grounds for an appeal to the speaker of the house of representatives for reconsideration of any committee removal decision. notably that language is contained in one of the whereas clauses, not in the resolved clause, which is the only binding part of this resolution. by the way, it's even been conceded by members of the g.o.p. that the whereas clause, the quote is, merely references an existing process and in no way begins an appeal procedure or guarantees her committee seat will be reconsidered. it's nonbinding and not actionable, a senior g.o.p. aide told "politico" on tuesday. i agree with that quote with the exception where it says, that the clause added -- references an existing process. there is no such existing process. there is no due process at all afforded to the member who is being sought to be removed from a committee. that is not due process. i say that to address the many, many concerns that i have heard from members on the other side of the aisle, from members of the rules committee there is no due process in this house resolution. once the full house votes to strip a member of a right or privilege, only the full house can restore that right or privilege. allowing representative omar to appeal to the ethics committee after the house has already voted to deny her a seat on the house foreign affairs committee would be nonsensical and defective process. it is the wrong order of things. it violates how the ethics committee has operated ever since its creation as a standing committee of the house in 1967 where the committee recommends a sanction after full investigation and adjudication. after the member is allowed to present evidence and make their case, and then the full house votes on the committee's recommendation for sanctions. house resolution 76 violates the spirit of how our unique committee, the house's only evenly divided troolly partisan standing -- truly partisan standing committee operates. this is about partisanship, mr. speaker. not principle. this is about payback, not process. house resolution 76 is wholly transparent for what it is and i firmly oppose its passage. the gentlelady reserves, thank you. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady reserves. the gentleman from mississippi is recognized. mr. guest: yes sir, mr. speaker. before i yield time to the gentleman from ohio, i do want to point out that house resolution 72 of the 117th congress, which is the resolution that stripped marjorie taylor greene of her committee assignments, contained no language whatsoever relating to due process and set forth no appeals process for her to be able to appeal the ruling of the body as a whole. and i will say that the resolution that we are debating today does contain language as to an appellate process. so i do believe that the resolution that we are debating today does contain additional rights to the member that we are seeking to remove than what was offered in house resolution 72, as it relates to marjorie taylor greene. mr. speaker, at this time i would yield six minutes to max miller from the great state of ohio. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for six minutes. mr. miller: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank the gentleman from mississippi for yielding. mr. speaker, the house committee on foreign affairs has broad jurisdiction over national security and foreign policy. peacekeeping and peace enforcement, international law, and the promotion of democracy and many other critical issues that require its members to be both objective and credible. members of the committee on foreign affairs represent the united states abroad and are regarded as credible add emissaries of u.s. policy. they guide our relation was other countries and relied upon by world leaders. most importantly our allies such as israel the forever home of the jewish people. what happens when a committee member is no longer viewed as a credible emissary of our foreign policy? what if a member is bar interested visiting one of our allies because of her prejudice comments? how can members who are unable to engage with our allies in a constructive manner be considered credible members of the committee? well, the gentlelady's discriminatory comments disqualify her from traveling to israel in 2019, prime minister of israel, netanyahu, said we respect all political parties in the united states equally. however we also respect ourselves. whoever comes to impose boycotts on us and deny the legitimacy of the state of israel will not allow them entry. yes, the gentlelady disqualified herself from entering into one of the most important countries alleyed with the united states. over the past 75 years israel has been a steadfast ally of the united states. israel has stood by us in the volume tillity of the middle east and this has been critical to our own national security. how can someone not welcomed by one of our most important allies serve as an emissary on the foreign affairs committee. given her bias comments against israel and against the jewish people, how can she serve as an objective decisionmaker on the committee? let's look at some of the gentlelady's comments. in february of 2019 barely more than a month after become ago member of this body -- become ago member of this body, representative omar suggested that the jewish people and american-israel public affairs committee were buying political support writing on twitter, it's all about the benjamins, baby. clearly amplifying an anti-semitic stereotype about the jewish people and money. in response, congressional democratic leadership, her own party, immediately release add statement by saying, anti-semitism must be called out, confronted, and condemned whenever it is encountered without exception. not long after representative omar trivialized the terrorist attacks of september 11, 2001, by describing that day of infamy as, some people did something. that's horrific. some people did something. yes, mr. speaker. some people did do something. some people committed evil acts of terrorism and killed nearly 3,000 americans. and in response some thousands of our fellow citizens, myself included, enlisted in our armed forces to defend the gentlelady's right to make her prejudiced remarks. many went off to combat and even died to defend that right. but they did not die fighting to have their bravery and love of country undermined by a member of the house foreign affairs committee. mr. speaker, i have no words to describe just how utterly unacceptable these comments are. but that's not all. in 2021, the gentlelady referred to israel, which has the absolute right to defend itself against terrorism and attacks on its very existence as an apartheid state. she even equated the united states and israel, countries that have stood as beacons of democracy, to the taliban and hamas organizations that impose terror on their regions in the world. once again even her democrat colleagues swiftly condemned her comment. 12 democrat members of this body released a statement which noted, equating the united states and israel to hamas and the taliban is as offensive as it is misguided. ignoring the differences between democracy's governed by the rule of law and contemptible organizations that engage in terrorism at best discredits one intended argument and at worst reflects deep-seated prejudice from her own party. some have decried this effort as a political game. mr. speaker, i assure you this is no political game. this resolution is not about engaging this is not about engaging in a tit for at that time with my -- tat with my colleagues on the other side of the aisle. this is about keeping someone with bice off the foreign affairs -- bais off the foreign affairs committee. even the democratic former chairman of the house foreign affairs committee, eliot engel, said that representatives owe -- representative omar's anti-semitic comments have no place in the foreign affairs committee or house of representatives. that is in addition to the previously mentioned joint statement from 12 of the gentle lady's democrat colleagues. the facts are clear. representative omar has espoused anti-semitic and anti-israel rhetoric time and again. she cannot be an objective contributor to the work of the committee and she has brought dishonor to the house of representatives. this body, this committee, which is viewed by nations around the world as speaking on matters of international importance and national security, should not have a seat for a member who would bring such dishonor to that committee. i encourage all of my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to support this resolution, to say with one voice that the united states house of representatives does not condone hate and to reaffirm we will always condemn anti-semitism. thank you, mr. speaker, and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from mississippi reserves. the gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. >> i now yield three minutes to representative dean phillips of minnesota, also a member of the house foreign affairs committee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for three minutes. mr. phillips: thank you. ilhan omar and i are products of remarkably different life experiences. hers began by fleeing civil war in somalia, before immigrating to the united states after four years in a kenyon refugee camp -- kenyan refugee camp. an experience that any of us in this room could possibly imagine. my family came to america a century before hers, seeking the same safety, security and opportunity as they fled russian pogroms targeting jewish people in eastern europe. my life began by losing my father in the vietnam war, an american tragedy that may well have been prevented if this chamber had been filled with more voices like ilhan omar's. don't get me wrong. representative omar and i regularly disagree on policy, both domestic and foreign. and she has at times used words that have caused concern, offense a. she and i have spoken face to face on those occasions and she's apologized and she continues to learn from those missteps. furthermore, she's never posted a video depicting herself decapitating and killing fellow members of congress. she doesn't question whether a plane really smashed into the towers on 9/11, she doesn't wonder if school shootings in america are staged. she has not propagated the absurd notion that space lazers financed by the rothschild family are the cause of wildfires in california. she's never equated vaccine mandates with adolf hitler. and she has never, ever expressed support for executing leaders of the united states congress. now, being a conspiracy theorist alone is not grounds for removal from committees. i'll admit that. but depicting violence or supporting violence against fellow members of congress is grounds for removal. be it a democrat or republican. so why will 9 0% of jewish members of the united states house of representatives vote to maintain her committee assignment? quite simply because we believe in the human capacity to make amends and that atonement should be rewarded, not punished. we also believe that the most dangerous acts by elected officials in a democracy are to silence voices of dissent, even those with which we fundamentally disagree. that's what this is about. silencing and canceling. how ironic. furthermore, this is the very weaponization of anti-semitism that i as a jewish person find repulse iive, -- repulsive, dangerous and shameful. so to my friends across the aisle, if you really, if you really are sincere about defeating anti-semitism in america, how about ask us, how about ask us what we need. and let me assure you, you might be surprised by the answer. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. >> reserve. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman from pennsylvania reserves. the gentleman from mississippi is recognized. >> thank you, mr. speaker. i yield two minutes to the representative from the great state of tennessee, mr. kustoff. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman from tennessee is recognized for two minutes. mr. kustoff: thank you, mr. chairman, thank you, mr. speaker. i rise today in support of the resolution to remove congresswoman omar from the house foreign affairs committee, for her anti-semitic speech, comments and rhetoric. no doubt words have meaning. when a member of congress stands in this chamber or at home or in their district, the nation and the world pays attention to what they say and how they say it. when a member of congress makes hateful and anti-semitic remarks, they are amplified. they are magnified. even more so when that member sits on the house foreign affairs committee. the committee tasked with helping set policy and providing oversight over our nation's relationship with israel and with jewish communities around the world, it is imperative that this body not only speaks against anti-centralism -- anti-semitism but also holds accountable those who spread such hateful beliefs. as our nation's leaders, as our nation's leaders, we have the ability and the responsibility to combat anti-semitism and ensure that our children, tomorrow's leaders, are taught that such rhetoric is unacceptable. let's be clear, anti-semitism has no place in the halls of the congress, nor in our national conversation. and i stand here today in solidarity with the jewish community with the strong message that the united states house of representatives does not tolerate such behavior. i urge my colleagues to support the resolution and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. the gentleman from mississippi reserves. the gentlewoman from pennsylvania is recognized. >> i yield one minute to the minority whip, katherine clark. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized for one minute. ms. clark: thank you. to the gentlelady from pennsylvania for yielding. the speaker of the house wrote this week that removing democrats from their committees was for integrity. integrity? is that the quality of honesty and acting with moral principle? there is no integrity here. congresswoman omar is a committed, hardworking and highly valued member of the foreign affairs committee. a refugee, a survivor of war. she knows firsthand how much is at stake in its work. it is too serious of a subject to be subjected to partisan games by the republican majority. but that's how the g.o.p. has decided to govern. not with solutions, but with political stunts

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