No Tax Dollars for Terrorists Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. JACKSON of Illinois. I rise in support of H.R. 260, and I thank my dear friend and honorable colleague, the Honorable Tim Burchett from the great State of Tennessee, for his remarks.

Mr. Speaker, oversight of U.S. policy toward Afghanistan does not have to be a partisan issue. We can all agree that we do not want American dollars sent to Afghanistan to be diverted to the Taliban. However, we must do so in a way that does not further alienate those partners already reeling from the Trump administration's foreign assistance freeze, which terminated nearly all humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, despite its compliance with U.S. law and policy.

Mr. Speaker, I am glad that Mr. Burchett was willing to work with Democrats to address many of our concerns about this legislation. I am also glad that this legislation contains important amendments offered by the Honorable Representative Kamlager-Dove to require additional reporting on the Haqqani Network, and Representative Keating to ensure that the strategy required by this bill prioritizes Afghan women and girls, as well as our Afghan allies. These amendments, adopted with bipartisan support during the markup, underscore that there remains considerable areas of bipartisan consensus in the House about our Afghanistan policy.

Unfortunately, there is not a consensus about what the Trump administration is doing on Afghanistan because they won't tell us. The State Department has ignored multiple bipartisan requests from this committee, dating back to February, for more information about the deals it is making with the Taliban and the Haqqani Network. Despite the fact that the Republican-led Congress enacted a law codifying the Coordinator for Afghan Relocation Efforts, Secretary Rubio is disabling the infrastructure supporting our Afghan allies and leaving Congress in the dark.

Likewise, Secretary Rubio has abolished the Special Envoy for Afghan Women and Girls, even as this administration lifted the Rewards for Justice bounties on the leaders of the Haqqani Network, a group with the blood of U.S. troops on their hands.

Mr. Speaker, we urgently need more information and assurances from the Trump administration about their priorities in Afghanistan and now Iran. I hope my colleagues on the other side will stand up for our committee's oversight responsibility. For now, we are glad to have the opportunity to work together on this legislation.

I thank, again, the Honorable Congressman Tim Burchett and all his great bipartisan advocates. I encourage my colleagues to join me in supporting this measure.

Mr. Speaker, our Afghan allies risked their lives for America. The United States must continue to do everything it can to support our partners on the ground providing assistance to Afghan civilians, including women and children, while also ensuring U.S. foreign assistance isn't being diverted into the hands of the Taliban.

There remain considerable areas of bipartisan consensus in Congress when it comes to our Afghanistan policy. This legislation will lean on that consensus to help bolster our committee's oversight power and take a step toward delivering to our Afghan allies the support that they deserve.

Mr. Speaker, I hope my colleagues will join me and support this bill. I yield back the balance of my time.

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