Providing for Consideration of H.R. Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, Providing for Consideration of H.R. Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, and Providing for Consideration of H.R. Israel Security Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2024

Floor Speech

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Mr. LANGWORTHY. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentlewoman from Minnesota for yielding time.

Mr. Speaker, on October 7, 2023, the world witnessed in real time on the internet the heart-wrenching images of innocent Israelis slaughtered in their homes. These attacks claimed the lives of more than 1,400 innocent people, including at least 30 American citizens that we know of.

We saw pure evil on display that day as Hamas murdered and kidnapped children, raped women, and savagely attacked the elderly. They killed entire families in the most brutal and shocking fashion that the world has ever seen. Even worse, they went as far as to desecrate the bodies, and they celebrated their war crimes.

Every single American should be heartbroken, should be disgusted, and should be enraged. Shame on my colleagues who have called for a cease- fire. Shame on my colleagues who have acted as apologists for the genocidal terrorist organization Hamas. Shame on my colleagues who have joined anti-Semitic rallies and waved Palestinian flags, especially here in our Nation's Capitol.

Every American should stand with the Jewish people in Israel. The people of Israel are a lone beacon of freedom in the Middle East.

I have been there. Many of us have been there. We all should go there. I have seen firsthand the threat that they face from radical terrorists. They are the very same ones who hate the freedoms that we enjoy here in the United States.

It is in these moments of crisis that the strength of our convictions and the depths of our friendships are truly tested. In Israel's time of need, America cannot be silent. H.R. 6126 provides Israel with the support that they need to protect their freedoms and eradicate Hamas while offsetting the financial burden on the American people.

It is time for Congress to step up and to send a message to the world that Israel is not alone. Unfortunately, this administration's foreign policy has failed. Their weak policies like unfreezing the $6 billion in assets for Iran starkly contrast the previous administration's work to establish the Abraham Accords and end ISIS.

This weakness on the world stage leaves our Nation vulnerable as well. Combined with our wide-open borders, we cannot wait until there is an attack on American soil to act.

The world is watching. Today we have an opportunity to send a message, both to our allies and our adversaries, that we will not allow this senseless terrorism to go unchecked.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to pass H.R. 6126 to support Israel, to eradicate Hamas, and to fight global terrorism.

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