Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from South Carolina for the time, and, of course, I thank my friend, Mr. Phillips, for leading the debate on this important issue. Once again, we gather on the House floor in unity--Republicans and Democrats--to counter Putin's behavior. Last year, I cofounded the first Congressional Task Force for American Hostages and Americans Wrongfully Detained Abroad with my friend, Ted Deutch, from Florida. I thank Representative Stevens for being one of the first members of that task force, and that is why I rise in strong support of my friend Haley Stevens' resolution which calls for the release of Paul Whelan who is, in fact, unjustly imprisoned in Russia. We have heard today in the debates some of the details of Paul's arrest and nearly 2 years in pretrial detention with no evidence publicly presented justifying wrongdoing. All parts of our government, especially Members of Congress, who directly represent the families of those held hostage or wrongfully detained, must engage with friends and enemies alike, to ensure that Americans in situations like Paul Whelan's are expeditiously brought home. Further, Congress must continue to engage with the administration in situations like these to disincentivize the wrongful detention or hostage taking of Americans. Last year, we passed a similar resolution on this floor in support of Trevor Reed and Paul Whelan.…”