Political Quotes

“Mr. President, on a more credible note, I hope, I am here to speak on two noms that we have coming up. There is going to be a vote on confirmation of Thomas Barrack to be Ambassador for Turkiye and a vote on Tilman Fertitta for the nomination to be Ambassador for Italy. I want to speak first to the nomination of Thomas Barrack for Ambassador to Turkiye. As you know--as everyone knows--Turkiye is a critical U.S. and NATO ally. I use that word ally judiciously. They have been the recalcitrant ally, from time to time, lately and have been difficult. Nonetheless, we have gotten through those things, but it has been far from lockstep with America in supporting our mutual interests. While Turkiye hosts NATO and American forces and has supported efforts toward peace in Ukraine, it has troubling--troubling--ties to Russia and Hamas. Turkiye also has a difficult track record on human rights and has repressed dissent both in and outside of its borders. Mr. Barrack is the right man to tackle this challenging post. He will help President Trump and Secretary Rubio protect national security interests from the many threats we face. I hope my colleagues will join me in supporting the confirmation of Thomas Barrack. Next, I want to move to the nomination of Tillman Fertitta for Ambassador to Italy. Italy remains a close ally, an important partner in Europe, and is a special place for a lot of Americans.…”