Kelly Ayotte: “I would like to thank the Senator from Hawaii. This is such an incredibly important issue. It is an honor to see my…”

“I would like to thank the Senator from Hawaii. This is such an incredibly important issue. It is an honor to see my colleague from North Dakota as well. This is a great example of an incredibly important issue that is a bipartisan issue. Unfortunately, human trafficking, sex trafficking--this is something that impacts everyone. This is something that the women of the Senate have been very focused on, but it crosses all party lines. We want to work together to end this modern day slavery. Unfortunately, the funding for this is really supporting criminal syndicates and so many other crimes. It is also supporting terrorism. So working together, we hope to make meaningful progress to end this slavery that is happening for too many young people in this country who are vulnerable. But let's make no mistake. This happens in every single community in this country. I had the opportunity to testify before the Senate Judiciary Committee last week, along with Senators Mikulski, Collins, and Gillibrand, regarding the importance of legislation to fight sex trafficking and ensure, most of all, that we understand that the victims of these horrific, horrific crimes need our support. We need to ensure that we can get them back on their feet, help them get the support they need and make sure they can lead productive lives--and hold the traffickers accountable.…”