Political Quotes

“let me first thank Mr. Lantos for yielding; also just to say to him that I appreciate the respect and the space that you provide for all of us who may have a different point of view, but who all support peace and security and Israel's right to defend itself. I also have tremendous respect for Mr. Lantos just in terms of your work and your long history as a champion of human rights not only on behalf of the State of Israel, but throughout the world, and so I thank Mr. Lantos for yielding. Madam Speaker, I join with those who condemn the recent kidnapping of Israeli soldiers and the rocket attacks into Israel, and also, I rise in support of Israel's right to protect and defend itself from attacks in accordance with international law, including Article 51 of the United Nations Charter. However, this resolution goes much further than that, and it also omits any mention, and I think this is so critical at this stage, it omits any mention of how and why the United States should exert its leadership in stopping the violence. Too many people, Israelis Lebanese and Palestinians, have been killed, and there is no end in sight. Very seldom do I cast a ``present'' vote, but in this instance I will, and let me explain why. This resolution reaffirms our support for Israel, demands that the Government of Lebanon do everything in its power to find and free the kidnapped Israeli soldiers and to gain control of its borders in order to prevent future attacks.…”