Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, and still I rise. I rise today as a proud American and a staunch believer in the noble ideals this country was founded upon. This country, which was built on the idea of equality and justice, today is a leader on the world stage that can boast of its commitment and success in spreading these values. We have established a world order based on the rule of law, a commitment to advancing human rights, and deference to international institutions. Yet, flagrantly contravening all of these principals, the House of Representatives has before it a bill that would punish the International Criminal Court (ICC) as it seeks justice for the Palestinean people. This legislation explicitly imposes sanctions on the ICC for ``any effort to investigate, arrest, detain, or prosecute any protected person of the United States and its allies''. I love my country, and I truly believe that at our core, Americans do want global peace. For this reason, I staunchly oppose these efforts to undermine the international order merely because the agents of that order are taking legal action against one of our allies. Many of our closest allies are intimately involved with the funding and proceedings of the ICC, meaning they would be exposed to the sanctions created by this bill. This includes many of the United States' closest allies, such as Germany, France, Japan, and the United Kingdom, where the current Chief Prosecuter of the ICC is from.…”