Donald M. Payne: “I rise today in absolute strong support of H.R. 3127, the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act. I thank Mr. Lantos, our…”

“I rise today in absolute strong support of H.R. 3127, the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act. I thank Mr. Lantos, our ranking member of the International Relations Committee, for his continued leadership on issues of importance to the committee, a person who can speak of genocide, being the only Member in Congress who is a Holocaust survivor. So this is very personal, as it is with all of us. I would like to thank Chairman Hyde for the work that he and his staff did for being open to negotiations with me and my staff and other Members as well as those of other members of the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Human Rights and International Operations, chaired by Representative Smith, my friend from New Jersey, who has done an outstanding job chairing the subcommittee. I would also like to thank Congressman Wolf for his continued work, who for many, many years has been involved in Sudan; and Congressman Tancredo, who went to Southern Sudan on his first CODEL a number of years ago with Senator Brownback and myself; and to Melvin Watt of the Congressional Black Caucus and Barbara Lee and others who have stood shoulder to shoulder opposing this horrendous genocide. It was nearly 2 years ago on June 24 in 2004 where I stood with the Congressional Black Caucus, Leader Pelosi, and Tom Tancredo and introduced H. Con. Res. 467, declaring that genocide was occurring in Darfur, Sudan and that the government of Sudan was responsible.…”