Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. I rise in strong support of Senate bill 1280, the Kate Puzey Peace Corps Volunteer Protection Act of 2011. This bill represents the culmination of bipartisan and bicameral efforts to remedy long-standing problems in the Peace Corps regarding the way that rapes, sexual assault, and other violent crimes committed against Peace Corps volunteers serving overseas are handled. Senate bill 1280 incorporates structural reforms in the Peace Corps that I had proposed in my bill, H.R. 2699. These are based on recommendations made by the Peace Corps Inspector General. It also incorporates the essential provisions of Representative Poe's bill, H.R. 2337, to bring best practices to the Peace Corps' response to victims of sexual assault. Both of these bills, Mr. Speaker, were adopted by our House Foreign Affairs Committee by unanimous consent. Senate bill 1280 is named in honor of a brave Peace Corps volunteer from the State of Georgia who lost her life while serving in Africa. Kate Puzey was brutally murdered in Benin when she tried to end the continuing rape of her students by reporting the assailant. Earlier this year, in an oversight hearing held by our Committee on Foreign Affairs, we heard from Kate's mom, Lois Puzey, who testified that the Peace Corps failed to protect the confidentiality of Kate's report, and this ultimately led to the murder of her daughter.…”