America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology, and Economic Strength Act of 2022

Floor Speech

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Mr. MARSHALL. Madam President, let me start by thanking the junior Senator from Iowa for her leadership.

I thank Senator Ernst for fighting for freedom. Thanks for showing me the way to continue to fight for those who need help.

This weekend, together, we witnessed the worst of mankind, but we also saw the best of humankind, and that would be the Polish people and the job that they have done welcoming--yes, welcoming--almost a million refugees from Ukraine over a period of about 2 weeks.

They didn't just welcome them. They gave them food; they gave them clothing and shelter. And then more than that, they helped process them and get them to a location, to a friend, to a relative, buying them plane tickets, putting them on trains.

I have done missionary healthcare work all across the world, and what we saw the Polish people doing there was absolutely incredible. Half of the Polish people have taken a refugee into their own homes.

But like I said, we also witnessed the worst of humankind, the worst of mankind, and that would be Vladimir Putin's war on the people of Ukraine.

One Ukrainian woman--her name was Olena--whom I spoke with said:

The Russians are attacking Ukraine from the north, from the east, and the south. With their missiles, they can reach every place of our country--there is no safe place in Ukraine any more. Everything can be targeted: hospitals, kindergartens, maternity wards, hospitals, everything.

And another Ukrainian we spoke to, Daria, said:

In the city of Mariupol, almost every single building was hit by a Russian bomb or a Russian missile. People are residing in bomb shelters. They are cut from electricity. They are cut from aid, food, and from water. They are melting snow to drink water. Russians are deliberately throwing bombs into hospitals.

And, again, I am quoting Daria.

There is only one hospital remaining. One of the hospitals was a maternity hospital. Men were trying to evacuate a woman who was in labor, and she died with her unborn baby. Another pregnant woman--her name was Mariana--was going down the stairs. She survived. She gave birth. They don't have food now to feed the mother. I don't know if the baby girl is still alive. There are thousands of people dead, but it's impossible to bury them. The bodies--it's a horror movie which is happening--people are dead on the streets.

These stories are heart-wrenching, and there is no doubt the world needs to step up and we need Europe to lead. And I am so proud to report the buzz across Europe and the buzz across Germany as we landed, that the Germans are committed once again to this transatlantic partnership and a willingness to commit dollars and funds to this NATO alliance and to the security of the world.

That said, there is so much more that we can still do short of boots on the ground. And like my Ukrainian friends remind me: This war didn't start with Russia on February 24.

And this is Olena again. She said the weakness of the United States started much earlier:

Since the beginning of November, we've been shouting out loud to help arm Ukraine, sanction Nord Stream 2--why did the U.S. lift sanctions on Nord Stream 2 and basically give the green light for Putin to move forward in Ukraine? We clearly warned that that might happen--we were not heard.

Earlier this month, the Ukrainians said that they met with Secretary Blinkin and they begged him to please send air defense systems now. But weeks later, they still don't have them. This is day No. 26 since Russia invaded, and the Ukrainians are telling us they are not seeing any American weapons yet.

I asked them to describe to me what they needed to win this war, and their answer was very simple: maximum military assistance as it relates to weapons, including, MiGs, A-10s, Javelins, Stingers, drones.

Look, the Ukrainians can win this ground war, but the problem is Russia is launching bombs from their own airspace, from their own land, from the seas as well. What they need are missiles that will intercept the Russian bombs.

Another Polish woman we met said:

We were ready as Poland to give these MiGs--

This is a Polish woman speaking now.

We were ready as Poland to give them the MiGs, but the Biden administration didn't want us to provide them. And what happened--instead of consulting us, the Biden administration decided to go public without the Polish Government even knowing that this was the case.

The impression in Ukraine is that the White House is undermining the giving of weapons from our allies to the Ukrainians, that they are thwarting the transfer of these weapons. One of the Ukrainians even went so far as to say she wanted to steal the MiGs because there was just no other option.

This war was completely preventable had the United States projected its strength. The United States can do so much more. President Zelenskyy has begged us, the United States, to lead more, but this administration is following the footsteps of President Obama by leading from behind. They have been slow to react at every step.

This is a portion of a cruise missile that hit in Ukraine. Two Ukrainian diplomats describing to me what happened, where 35 people were killed by the cruise missile. This was launched by Russia on one of the days that President Biden said what NATO will not do to help Ukraine.

Let me say that again. This was launched the day that President Biden said what NATO will not do to help Ukraine.

This is the very telegraphing that has, yet again, proved to be deadly. As Ukrainians pointed out to us, this is what led to the disastrous Afghanistan withdrawal. In their words--the words of the Ukrainians, not mine--they say this administration is operating what they call an ``Afghanistan syndrome.''

The Ukrainian people don't need speeches. They don't need words. They don't need resolutions. They don't need Americans forming committees and praying about it. They need more than our prayers. They need action. They need action.

I call for a war tribunal to be formed and Putin and his generals to be held accountable and put on trial for crimes against humanity.

The world needs to seize his personal assets and the assets of his oligarchs, and we need to use those personal assets to rebuild Ukraine. The world needs to stop doing business with Russia today. Don't wait on your governments. Don't wait on the sanctions. I call on every business in the world to stop doing business with Russia today.

And finally, the United States needs to implement our sanctions today, not yesterday. We don't need to delay until June 24 a waiver on energy payments from Russian banks.

We still have so much more we could do short of putting American boots on the ground. We need to send this military aid yesterday--not tomorrow, not next week.

It is not a time to debate. Give them the damn weapons. The brave Ukrainian people will use them. They will fight to the death, but they have to be empowered to do it, and every day we wait, thousands more will die.

I want to finish on a positive note. I am so proud of these young men and women, American fighters in the Big Red One, the 1st Infantry Division of Fort Riley, KS. They have been there for years training Ukrainians, training our partners.

Some of the folks will ask me back home: Are we going to be safe? I have got all the faith and confidence in the world of our soldiers, of our military--all the confidence in the world of these men and women that are willing to put their lives on the line.

And let me reassure you also that the Ukrainian people are not going to give up. They are not going to give up. They are going to fight for every inch, every mile of their home soil.

In Poland, Olena and Daria told me just before we departed:

America is the leader of NATO. Every NATO country is looking at what America is doing and not doing. What America is saying and what America is not saying. We know that there are NATO countries here on the border who have weapons which we need, but they simply need backup from America. We will win this war. But, at which price will we win this war? Help us win it at the price of less casualty. That's what we are asking the United States.

Like I said earlier, the Ukrainians can win this war. There is a path to victory. I believe in them, but the world has to step up. We have to empower them. We are doing so little of what we could be doing.

I was taught at a young age: Of him who much is given, much is required. And the United States has been given so much. We are still the leader of the free world. It is time we start acting like it.

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