Liberty Versus Dictatorship
Floor Speech
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Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I rise to place remarks on the Record this evening focusing on liberty versus dictatorship.
We have several Members who wish to submit comments for the Record. Congressman Mike Quigley is here this evening. Congressman Eugene Vindman is in a committee markup right now, and Congressman Steve Cohen will also have remarks for the Record.
I will begin briefly, and then I will yield to my fellow Congressman from Illinois.
China's dictator Xi was recently at the historic military parade that fellow dictator Vladimir Putin celebrated in Moscow. The purpose of the celebration was to honor the anniversary of Europe's defeat of Nazi Germany, signaling Putin's intent to actually use that occasion to turn his binoculars on capturing more free territory to control Ukraine and beyond.
Putin and Xi together in that situation was rather hard to look at. Yet, their presence underscored the danger stemming from their close and increasing cooperation, enlarging the spiderweb of tyranny led by Russia, China, North Korea, and Iran, all of them acting against liberty around the world.
Xi said that Russia and China should be friends of steel. He said that they would deepen relationships in all areas, including military ties, and strengthen coordination in order to decisively counter Washington's course of dual containment of Russia and China.
What is more, North Korean troops who have been fighting against Ukraine's freedom and their freedom fighters for months were fully on display in Red Square, where Putin embraced them.
America, pay attention.
While Iran was not present at the parade, it continues to be omnipresent in the skies above Ukraine. Ukrainians can't avoid the Shahed drones that Russia is using and buying from Iran to kill innocent Ukrainian civilians who are fighting for their very liberty.
This military parade took place at a critical moment in Moscow's aggression on Ukraine as American efforts proceed to negotiate an end to it. To be clear: Vital NATO interests are at stake in central Europe, where Ukraine serves as the scrimmage line for liberty across Europe today.
Russia is the free world's only peer in terms of its nuclear capabilities, and Russia's national security doctrine declares our country and our people as its principal foe.
America, pay attention.
Putin has made clear that he wants effective political control in Ukraine and other free nations that used to be part of the Soviet Union. Putin also wants a veto over defense measures being taken in the former Warsaw Pact states that want to remain free. Putin doesn't want that. This means he wants to dictate the fate of many of our NATO allies in Europe and beyond.
Instead of strategically pushing back on Putin's unchanged goals of European and global domination, this administration has steadily given Russian exactly what it wants, both in Ukraine and well beyond. If Putin had a checklist of things he wanted America to do, I will in a brief time tell you what it would look like, and it is exactly what the Trump administration is doing.
Before I get into that, I am going to call on my dear colleague from the great city of Chicago, Congressman Mike Quigley, to enter his remarks.
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Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I thank our co-chair of the Ukrainian Caucus, Congressman Mike Quigley of Chicago, for participating this evening. General Leave
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Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, I will go back to discussing some of the actions the administration has taken that have undermined America's position globally.
First of all, the Trump administration has sided with Russia over Ukraine, most especially by pausing military assistance to Ukraine. Mr. Speaker, 75 percent of those dollars are spent in this country on weaponry to help Ukraine repel the enemy.
Ukraine has been courageously standing and fighting in the breach between liberty and dictatorship. This has come at great cost to her people, her prosperity, and her aspirations.
The poorest country in Europe, Ukraine is holding back Putin's covetousness and aggression against the Continent of Europe. Ukraine wants nothing more than to finally and permanently ascend to the community of free nations in the European Union and join as a strong ally in NATO. For that aspiration, Putin attacked Ukraine and is eating her territory, and the Ukrainians are holding her off--can you imagine--the third largest military in the world.
Despite Ukraine being aligned with our values in its historic fight to regain its freedom, President Trump has time and again spouted Russian talking points by admonishing Ukraine and falsely suggesting that she started the war.
That is false.
Russia initiated its invasion of Crimea in 2014 and the larger full scale of invasion of Ukraine in 2022. It is just amazing what the Ukrainians are doing. In trying to negotiate a cease-fire between Ukraine and Russia, President Trump and Vice President Vance have squeezed concession after concession out of Ukraine, even its mineral wealth. At times, the Trump administration has effectively held Ukraine's economic future ransom for more military aid.
This includes the dastardly moment when President Trump suddenly withheld U.S. support and intelligence sharing that Ukraine relies on to defend itself from Russia's onslaught. Such a pause undoubtedly cost Ukrainian lives.
Trump has stated that Putin wants peace in Ukraine. Surely he can't believe this. Putin has failed to uphold any cease-fire agreement, including those struck with the United States of America. Dictator Putin doesn't want peace. He wants Ukraine, all of Ukraine, and beyond.
Secondly, the Trump administration has been dividing democratic alliances.
Yesterday, President Trump astoundingly said the European union is worse than China. He even has said that the European union was created to ``screw America.''
In what world does he live? He seems not to know our history.
Our Nation and European nations that won World War II created NATO to sustain liberty's alliance and as a shield against future invasions. Together, we comprise a formidable force. In doing so America was guaranteed strong security partners to defend against a world war and new threats of tyranny like that of Putin, North Korea, and Iran today.
That is why we have the European allies. They are our oldest friends and partners and we share a love of liberty. Rather than stand united as we have been for decades, the Trump administration has threatened to--are you ready for this--annex Canada and invade Greenland, which is part of Denmark.
Both are current NATO allies. Canada fought nobly with our troops on the shores of Normandy on D-day and many other places. Both nations served honorably alongside our Armed Forces in Afghanistan in response to 9/11. Threatening our neighbors and allies in such a manner is taking a page out of the very playbook of lies Putin has used repeatedly against Ukraine. Our partnerships have been won and developed as liberty's umbrella with the democratic nations of Europe.
Putin knows that. He cannot defeat our alliance if we stand united. Instead, he now waits for Trump to break apart our own security blanket so he can pick liberty's shield off one by one.
Thirdly, the Trump administration has weakened our cyber defense. U.S. top intelligence officers recently released the annual threat assessment, which states the following: ``Russia's advanced cyber capabilities, its repeated success compromising sensitive targets for intelligence collection, and its past attempts to pre-position access on U.S. critical infrastructure make it a persistent counterintelligence and cyberattack threat. Moscow's unique strength is the practical experience it has gained integrating cyberattacks and operations with wartime military action, almost certainly amplifying its potential to focus combined impact on U.S. targets in time of conflict.''
So yes, Russia is a real threat to our freedom. Its cyber capabilities are a unique threat. Despite knowing this to be true, Trump has taken steps to tear down our cyber capabilities in a comprehensive manner. Why?
Since taking office, Elon Musk and DOGE have decimated cybersecurity, CISA, our premier cybersecurity agency, with personnel cuts and stop work orders.
Why would anyone do that?
In March, President Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth abruptly ended U.S. cyber operations against Russia. This was done without warning and without consulting Congress.
Then in April, at the beck and call of a far-right, online opinion influencer, President Trump fired four-star General Timothy Haugh without warning from his position leading our military cyber forces. General Haugh--get ready for this--served our Nation honorably with distinction for 34 years.
The Trump administration has left America's cyber gates unlocked at a time when cyberattacks are rapidly on the rise. Putin will make our Nation pay dearly for that set of serious errors.
Fourthly, Trump administration policies threaten U.S. global economic standing. Through American ingenuity and hard work, the likes of wish Russia cannot compete against, our Nation's financial systems are a privileged place at the center of a global economic system.
The United States has the largest economy in the world. Most other nations rely on the U.S. dollar to hold their savings and reliably conduct international trade. Putin wants to end that. Trump's unprecedented and irresponsible reciprocal tariff regime is helping Putin achieve that goal. Not only has Trump's costly universal tariffs endangered our good trade relations with our closest economic allies, moreover, they are also making others think twice about using and trusting the U.S. dollar.
These costly economic taxes on U.S. consumers will be very difficult to reverse, even if Trump pulls back his tariffs, supply chains are clogged already.
Putin has long spoken about his interest in reducing the world's reliance on America's economic strength and the U.S. dollar. Such a world leaves each American poorer and with fewer economic opportunities. Just as Russia relies on oil exports to finance and undercut the financial sanctions that have been placed on that country due to its invasion of Ukraine, Putin has called for the world to adopt untraceable cryptocurrency to protect his assets. He prefers this unregulated alternative as he pushes the world to abandon the dollar.
Now, Trump is one of the world's biggest promoters of cryptocurrency and has even started his own cryptocurrency to avoid regulated financial markets to enrich himself and his family.
Fifthly and finally, the Trump administration's actions to date are upending America's global reputation. Perhaps most damaging, Trump has upended our global reputation as a responsible partner and guardian of liberty across our world. He leans toward dictators.
What is that all about?
It took 80 years for America, with our leaders like Franklin Roosevelt, John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan to meticulously secure our place as leader of the free world. We didn't seek it, but we did our job.
America is the global beacon of liberty and justice for all. Our reputation has been earned by tremendous sacrifice and vision. Our commitment to liberty has been built on the sacred graves of over 500,000 Americans who sacrificed their lives for the first time in history and fought not for power or land, but for the liberation of others from tyranny during World War II.
Over 2 million of our fellow citizens bore the injuries from that conflict. In the decades that followed, our Nation and our allies became prosperous not by closing our doors to the world or hiding from the challenges of the Communist bloc, our forebearers met tyranny head- on. We met the threats that we faced and stood together on our Nation's founding commitment of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, year after year, in the face of constant threats.
American liberty has been a multigenerational effort, admired around the world with each generation standing firm. In just over 100 days, Donald Trump, whose family has no record anywhere of military service or sacrifice for this Nation, is carelessly throwing liberty to the wolves. He seems to enjoy dictatorship, plutocracy, and wealth over principle. Russia celebrates as America retreats from the world, so does Iran and North Korea.
Trump has taken Putin at his word. Putin's word can never be trusted. As long as President Trump keeps trusting Putin over our allies, then he will continue to do Russia's bidding at the expense of the American people.
If America doesn't lead, then Putin and Xi and all of their dictator buddies will rule the day, and in their world, liberty cannot survive.
America must pay attention. Pay attention not just to what is happening inside our borders but outside our borders. I can tell you there are enemies to liberty across this world. We have to hold our ground. We have to tell our own President pay attention, learn from history, appreciate the relationships that had been won at such a high price.
Mr. Speaker, I thank Congressmen Quigley, Cohen, and Vindman, all of whom will contribute remarks to the Record this evening.
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