On the recordApril 17, 2012
I rise today to speak to an amendment that would end aid to Egypt until they end the prosecution of our U.S. citizens. I offered this amendment earlier this spring when Egypt was detaining our citizens--these prodemocracy workers--and was not letting them leave the country. Since then, they have let them leave the country but sort of in an insulting fashion in the sense they have let them leave when we paid, basically, ransom. We had to pay about $5 million in ransom--$300,000 per person--to let these people leave Egypt. So they came home, but Egypt still could only get its aid if the administration certified they were pro democracy. Within days, Secretary Clinton did release the aid and said they were achieving their democratic goals. I wrote a letter to Secretary Clinton asking her not to do this because the prosecutions still go on. These American citizens who were allowed to leave the country had to pay $300,000 in bail but they also had to sign a statement saying they were coming back for the trial. Everybody said, well, I doubt they are ever going back to Egypt for these show trials. But it gets worse. It turns out in December of last year, President Obama signed an Executive order--this is Order No. 13524--that gives Interpol, the international police organization, immunity in our country. We also have an extradition treaty with Egypt, meaning if you are accused of a crime in Egypt, we can send you back.…
