-9999

Floor Speech

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Mr. BUDD. Today is the 229th day of captivity for eight American citizens held hostage in Gaza by the terrorist organization Hamas--229 days of being deprived of food, water, and medical care; 229 days of being subjected to unbearable violence, abuse, and psychological torture by Hamas terrorists; 229 days that mothers and fathers--many of whom I have met--and husbands and wives and brothers and sisters have had to live with the pain, the anguish, and the uncertainty of their loved ones' well-being. But if you flip on mainstream media tonight or if you watch the protests on college campuses or if you listen to the Biden White House, the conversation has been dominated by everything but securing the release of American hostages.

We have seen the prosecutor for the International Criminal Court seek arrest warrants of Israeli leaders as well as Hamas leaders. Equating the Israeli Prime Minister with Hamas terrorists is despicable, and it shows a complete lack of moral clarity.

We have read about the State of Qatar reportedly temporarily expelling Hamas leaders from Doha, only to reverse course and welcome them back later. To be clear, Qatar is hosting a brutal terrorist organization with American blood on their hands. This continued dithering and flip-flopping is not helping. Qatar must pressure Hamas leaders to release the hostages now or expel them from Doha. It is just that simple. To do anything less, my friends, is unbecoming of a major non-NATO ally.

When we look to the President of the United States, we continue to see weakness and a lack of moral clarity on this issue. In a total betrayal of our friend and ally, the Biden administration withheld lethal aid to Israel earlier this month. This signaled to Hamas that they can drag their feet and hold out because the so-called ironclad bond between the United States and Israel, in Biden's mind, is not so ironclad after all.

I know firsthand that Biden is overruling his national security team, and he is letting a few radical activists on his staff dictate foreign policy as American lives hang in the balance. At the end of day, there is nothing more important in U.S. foreign policy than protecting American citizens. The best way we can bring the hostages home from Gaza is by increasing pressure on Hamas.

On the international stage, we need global bodies, like the ICC and the U.N., to grow a moral core, identify the evil being committed, and to rally the community of nations to pressure Hamas to release innocent hostages. We need the State of Qatar to end its straddling and doublespeak and to permanently expel Hamas leaders from Doha. Here at home, we need the Justice Department to file charges and hunt down every Hamas terrorist responsible for the murder of over 40 Americans on October 7 and the kidnapping of 8 who remain in captivity. We need the President of the United States to show strength and to show some moral leadership on this issue.

Friends, the line between good and evil in this conflict is crystal clear. President Biden needs to use every lever of national power to secure the hostages' freedom.

After 229 days, let's be united in working for the release of these eight hostages.

BREAK IN TRANSCRIPT

Source