On the recordJanuary 17, 2018
I thank the gentleman from New Jersey for his leadership, and I thank Mr. Royce, Mr. Engel, Mr. Smith, and Ms. Bass for establishing a real, viable African policy, a policy that I have had the privilege of being part of for all of the years that I have served in the United States Congress. I remember making the first inaugural trip to do the research and to meet with heads of state in Africa on the question of the African Growth and Opportunity Act. Over the years, we worked with the Bush administration on the Millennium Challenge Corporation. So I am delighted that we have a bill that improves the benefits. It is even more important, in this time, to make sure that the policies of the United States toward Africa and the African countries are clear and precise. They are strong allies and a very viable trade partner. This, of course, Mr. Speaker, is crucial in the backdrop of very vulgar statements that, unfortunately, have come from the Commander in Chief. Therefore, this is the policy that is real, an ongoing partnership, the fact that Africa represents a growing population of 1 billion people. When we last traveled with a President of the United States--which then was President Barack Obama--and visited a number of African countries, in particular Kenya, we were there to look at the rising population of small- and medium-sized entrepreneurs, young millennials, and others who were eager to engage in business.…
