Political Quotes

“At this time, I yield myself such time as I may consume to explain that this legislation would require the Secretary of State to develop a multiyear strategy to bolster the Organization of American States, OAS as we know it, and improve the performance and the process for managing the budget and the personnel at the OAS. When it was founded in 1948, it was the sole multilateral body in the Western Hemisphere. As the premier hemispheric organization, the OAS' key institutional documents--its charter, the American Declaration of Rights, the Inter-American Democratic Charter--enshrine values that are the foundation for political systems in the Americas. Since its founding, the OAS has accepted too many mandates from its member states, resulting in a loss of international focus, and in turn has reduced, frankly, the organization's effectiveness. This bill seeks to push the OAS to refocus on those two core principles of promoting democratic governance and institutions and resolving regional disputes. This push comes as other regional bodies are competing with the OAS for regional influence. There is the Central American System of Integration, the Union of South American Nations, and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, which includes Cuba but excludes both the United States and Canada. Many of these political bodies do not represent our values. Most exclude the U.S.…”