Political Quotes

“Mr. President, I thank Senator Tillis and the Presiding Officer for acknowledging our time to have this conversation. This is a serious conversation because this is a NATO ally. Dr. Andrew Brunson has been in Turkey 24 years. For 23 of these years, he served as a pastor in humanitarian work. He took care of providing food and clothing and pastoral ministry for anyone who would come, just like anyone does. That has not been an issue in Turkey for decades because Turkey has been very open to all faiths, all religions, and they have prided themselves on being a nation that recognizes all faiths, all backgrounds, and all religions and ethnicity. At least that was the old Turkey. Literally, under Dr. Brunson's feet, Turkey shifted from where they were to where we don't recognize them anymore as a NATO ally. In October of 2016, Dr. Brunson was called by the police department there. Assuming it was an immigration issue, he and his wife went because they had gone multiple times to the police department to renew their visa and keep everything up to date. They had a great relationship with the local police department, with local individuals, and with all the authorities in the area because they had been there for two decades and had developed great friendships.…”