Bob Menendez

It seems to me that instruments of national power--diplomacy, economic, intelligence, and military--are only useful when they are fully deployed.

I see much of the United States political and economic future depending on the Asia-Pacific.

If President Obama can rally his Cabinet ministers and sub-cabinet officials to fan out in support of his Cuba initiative, he ought to be able to do the same for struggling democratic countries who actually have an affinity for the United…

I hope that the State Department will accelerate their process here, because it seems that, to some degree, this is an aftermath of the thought.

This is not a new issue. We had notice. We have had experience. And we are, in my perspective, lagging way behind.

It is also creating the breeding grounds for transnational crime, with the gangs, with narcotrafficking and human smuggling.

This issue is as much a domestic issue as it is a foreign policy issue.

My view of this is that a long-term solution to the region's challenges is social. It is economic development.

For years, I have been saying, going back to President Reagan when we spent millions and millions of dollars to promote democracy in Central America and largely achieved our goals except that we walked away.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And I want to applaud you for calling this important hearing.

We need to know that they are doing the job that we said it was to do.

Then secondly, there has to be accountability.

But let me just raise two major caveats. And one is what the chairman mentioned, that you need to invest in good governance.

I am disgusted--disgusted--by the reports, by the actions of U.N. peacekeepers that U.S. taxpayers are paying for.

I would be on the first plane out of here to go home and protect her from the U.N. peacekeepers.

I sometimes become upset when I hear people say, well, you guys just need to develop a policy like we developed for the Soviet Union that can go from generation to generation, from decade to decade.

We need to address the underlying and root causes of extremism and terrorism, whether it is civil unrest, lack of border controls, lack of socioeconomic opportunity in large parts of the Middle East and North Africa.

So your testimony, Mr. Olsen, was that this is a real threat to the United States...

Thank you all for your testimony.

In Syria, we must continue to work with the international community and Syrians towards a negotiated settlement that is sustainable, inclusive, and reflective of the legitimate desires of all Syrians.

Only by resolving the political conflicts there can we hope to remove ISIL from the picture permanently.

And if we do not achieve that, there is a gap that feeds into the recruitment by extremist groups.

We want it to be nonsectarian. They want an all-inclusive government because they have recognized an all-inclusive government in Syria brings stability to Syria, which helps the stability concerns in the entire region.

I strongly support President Obama's goal of degrading and destroying ISIL, a strategy that seems to be succeeding in Iraq and Syria, though there is still a long way to go.

I am sorry, I just am. I am very direct and transparent in my thinking and feeling, and I am just disappointed in the lack of urgency.