Advancing Important Measures on the Floor

Floor Speech

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Mr. LANGWORTHY. Mr. Speaker, I thank our Conference vice chair for holding this Special Order hour and leading us and helping us get our message out there for the American people.

Today, I rise to bring attention to the fact that Americans have been held hostage in Gaza for 186 days. American citizens currently sit behind enemy lines held hostage in Gaza.

The world changed on October 7 when Hamas launched a barbaric attack, a blood-thirsty rampage on the peace-loving people of Israel and they claimed the lives of over 1,000 innocent civilians, including 32 American citizens.

Mr. Speaker, 250 hostages were taken, with five American citizens still believed to be alive and fighting for their survival in Gaza. Last week, I had the honor to travel to Israel and while in Jerusalem, I, with my colleagues, met with the Goldberg-Polin family, Rachel and Jon Goldberg-Polin, whose son, Hersh, an American citizen, was taken hostage at the Nova Music Festival, where 379 beautiful young peoples' lives were stolen.

They brought into focus that we have little to no information on the health and the welfare of the hostages. International organizations cannot get that data.

The last video of Hersh from that day showed him applying his own tourniquet as his left arm had been blown off by a grenade. Their family has shown such courage and grace in telling the world about their son and his story and the story of the hostages currently held.

There have been many other families just like theirs whose loved ones have been ripped away from them and they still do not have answers. We must do everything in our power to secure the release of these Americans, including standing strong with Israel in their fight against Hamas.

The fact that 6 months have gone by since the attack, we cannot forget that American citizens are still being held hostage by Hamas. Not for 1 day, not for 1 minute.

It is time for strength and unity, not weakness or division. President Biden should be calling for their release every single day. Israel needs America in its time of peril. The bond between our two nations is unbreakable. I will continue to work tirelessly in this Congress to defend Israel's right to exist and right to defend itself.

Israel needs to defend itself no matter what the cost against these people that committed these crimes and atrocities. We must stand together in the face of evil and send a clear message that America will not tolerate the murder and the capture of our citizens and innocent citizens across the globe. We need to demonstrate our unwavering commitment to peace and freedom in the world.

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