Dean Phillips: “For the purpose of closing. I thank my friend and colleague from South Carolina. He is a gentleman and a champion of…”

“For the purpose of closing. I thank my friend and colleague from South Carolina. He is a gentleman and a champion of religious freedoms around the world. This is an example of what this institution, and we Americans can do together when we find common ground and set our minds to it in the face of such aggression and risk around the world. Putin's flagrant violations of the basic human rights of Ukrainian civilians on Ukraine's sovereign territory are disturbing, and they are unacceptable. Freedom of religion is a moral imperative that the United States must continue to strive to defend as we support the people of Ukraine through these incredibly trying and horrific times. This is personal to me. My own family fled Russian persecution during the pogroms of the late 19th century to come to this extraordinary country. Little could they have imagined that I would be standing here with you, my friend from South Carolina, talking about religious freedoms and doing everything we can as a country to preserve and protect those all around the world. That is what it means to be an American, not just here, but all around the world. We must take action where we can, including by ensuring that the President considers all regions where Russian influence is determining future development funding for the Nation. I trust my colleagues will join me in supporting this terribly important bill to defend these freedoms all around the world.…”