Providing for Consideration of H.R. Manage Our Wolves Act, and Providing for Proceedings During the Period From November Through November 2018

Floor Speech

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Mr. WELCH. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.

We know what is going on in Yemen, so none of us can escape the responsibility we have to either endorse or ignore the suffering that is occurring there. Thousands of victims in Yemen--hundreds of thousands--are dying of starvation.

It is happening, in some cases, quickly. People living in their homes under a bomb die instantly. In other cases, the suffering is prolonged--badly injured and no medical help to ease the suffering, let alone save the life. But in the case of most, it is prolonged through starvation.

Children do not have access to their mother's milk, do not have access to the aid that is in the port but is getting bombed and can't be delivered. That is happening every single day.

The U.N. report said that, of the 28 million people in Yemen, about 20 million are in danger of humanitarian disaster. That is happening. There is no dispute that it is happening.

Here is the question: Right now, that is being done with the authority of the executive branch of the United States Government. It means that that suffering that is avoidable and hardly inevitable is being done in your name and in mine.

Mr. Khanna has brought forth a resolution that allows us to have a debate on this floor as to whether we will condone the continuation of that policy of inflicting the loss of innocent life: women, children, and citizens of Yemen. This rule prohibits us from accepting responsibility as to whether we will condone or condemn or oppose that policy.

We have no justification for failing to do our job. Let us debate.

This policy of Saudi Arabia of inflicting massive civilian casualty and suffering is for what? What national interest of this country is at stake by allowing that to continue?

Some, including me, may say that this threatens our national interest because our national interest is to defend innocent life; it is not to kill innocent life. It is to stand with allies who are going to be honest and transparent with us as well as their own citizens.

This blank check that our administration has given to Saudi Arabia for massive killing that is occurring in Yemen or individual assassination that is occurring in Turkey is wrong.

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Mr. WELCH. Mr. Speaker, the question for us is: Will we accept the minimal responsibility that we have in our job to have a debate and say no more, no more will this be done in our name?

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