On the recordMarch 7, 2012
Today marks exactly 125 months to the day that we've been at war with Afghanistan. That's 125 months that we have been sending brave young men and women to be maimed and killed in a conflict that is not advancing our values but actually degrading them. I've never believed more fervently that this war is a national security disaster, as well as a national tragedy and a moral catastrophe. What we need, Mr. Speaker, is a greater commitment to peace and security. What we need is a more generous humanitarian spirit. What we need is diplomacy and international dialogue, cooperation, and conflict resolution. What we need is to cherish human life and human dignity here in the United States and on every corner of the globe. Yesterday, we lost one of this body's fierce champions for these values, our colleague, Donald Payne. He was a peacemaker, a man of conscience, an ambassador of decency and compassion. He would not tolerate genocide and despair. He didn't turn a blind eye to human suffering, and he didn't care if it was happening in Newark or Nigeria. He went to some of the most dangerous places on Earth to make lives and conditions better. He was a voice for the otherwise voiceless. He used his power to advocate for people who were otherwise powerless. In the mid-nineties, I observed Representative Payne at a hearing with the Bush State Department. He was arguing, he was pleading with the State Department to designate the Darfur genocide.…
