Benjamin Gilman: “I want to thank our good chairman of the Asia and Pacific Subcommittee, the gentleman from Nebraska, and the ranking…”

“I want to thank our good chairman of the Asia and Pacific Subcommittee, the gentleman from Nebraska, and the ranking minority member, the gentleman from California, for bringing this important resolution before us today. I also want to commend the author, the gentleman from California, for crafting this resolution, House Concurrent Resolution 53 regarding approval of a private visit by President Lee or the Republic of China on Taiwan. Taiwan is a democracy, yet its President cannot visit our Nation. There are no political prisoners in Taiwan, yet its President is prohibited from visiting our Nation. When the Charter of the United Nations was signed on June 26, 1945, in San Francisco, the nationalist regime in China was one of the cosigners and founding members, yet the head of that Government is not allowed to visit our Nation. This is unacceptable. This injustice must not be allowed to continue. And I agree with the minority party in Taiwan, the DPP, that their Nation's President should be welcomed here in a way befitting Taiwan's stature, a visit to receive an honorary degree is a far cry from a visit to the White House. If President Lee desires to accept an invitation to go to Cornell, then he should be allowed to go to Cornell. The People's Republic of China can commit acts of aggression against citizens of the Philippines in the South China Sea and yet the State Department has nothing to say about that.”