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. DOGGETT. Mr. Speaker, in this rule, the wolves bare their fangs-- not American wolves, but Saudis, who are willing to sever heads, dismember opponents, and bomb the innocent.

This rule is truly a wolf in wolf's clothing. By blocking a vote on whether America should continue to aid and abet Saudi atrocities, this Congress would remain an obedient lapdog to President Trump's impulses, and not the watchdog for American values.

The Saudi ruthless war in Yemen has created what so many have described as the largest humanitarian disaster on our planet today, and yet it continues. American support for Saudi atrocities is truly a stain on our Nation with which so many of our country members are not familiar.

But without American spare parts, American targeting, American weapons and bombs, and until recently, American refueling, this killing could not occur. My colleague mentioned the school bus. Forty children were murdered in August, and sprawled across the bomb that was next to their bus were words that meant: ``Made in America.'' That is the message that we are sending there. That is where American tax dollars are going.

The Trump administration last week belatedly said it would stop refueling. That is insufficient. If we are to stop Saudi killing, we must stop all of the assistance that they are receiving.

Now, of course, there has been attention on Saudi murders of late in a different area: about one person, about the dismemberment of a legal American resident who was a leading journalist in this city.

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Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Speaker, after taking the standing Trump approach of denying everything--saying he accepted the lies and the denials of the Saudis--Mr. Trump dodged again by saying, ``I am going to leave . . . it up to Congress.'' And so what is this Congress doing about the Khashoggi atrocity? Absolutely nothing. That is what should have been in this rule, doing something about the sanctions and the disclosure.

Forty of us asked this past month for the administration to brief us on what they knew before Mr. Khashoggi was murdered, and whether they warned him about that, and we have had a deafening silence in response to our request on that, and on cutting off assistance to Yemen.

Even an audio of the gruesome murder of Mr. Khashoggi--we don't know whether it included the sound of the bone saw that the Saudis apparently used to dismember him--but even a murder will not cause some in this leadership to stand up to President Trump and this atrocious regime.

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Mr. DOGGETT. Mr. Speaker, I look forward to a Congress with the courage to end support for these crimes, to cease American sales to the Saudis, and to do something to hold Mr. Khashoggi's killers accountable.

But to say, wait until a much-improved new Congress comes into session to do anything about it means that tonight and every day going forward to January 3, more children will be starved; will be victims of cholera; and will be victims of bombings and blockades. When this Congress has the power to do something about it now, we ought to act today by rejecting this rule.

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