Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume. Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 1600, the Stop FGM Act of 2020. This bill outlaws a practice that is recognized internationally as a human rights violation, and even torture. It is an extreme form of discrimination against women and girls. Unfortunately, half a million girls and women worldwide are subject to this torture or at risk for it. I am sure most people assumed that FGM was already illegal. It was. In 1996, Congress prohibited the practice of FGM. But in 2018, a Federal judge in Michigan dismissed charges against a doctor and others from a local Indian Dawoodi Bohra community involved in the mutilation of nine young girls. The judge ruled that the Federal Government does not have the power to regulate FGM. Since that time, the Justice Department has been able to stop these acts of violence against America's young girls. This bill will amend title 18 to make FGM that is performed for nonmedical reasons a crime and overturn the judge's decision by explicitly describing the constitutional basis for banning FGM under the Commerce Clause of the United States Constitution. Mr. Speaker, I think all my colleagues can come together and support this important bipartisan bill, and I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting H.R. 6100. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.”