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PROVIDING FOR CONSIDERATION OF H.R. 5665, COMBATING INTERNATIONAL
ISLAMOPHOBIA ACT
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, by direction of the Committee on Rules, I call up House Resolution 849 and ask for its immediate consideration.
The Clerk read the resolution, as follows:
H. Res. 849
Resolved, That upon adoption of this resolution it shall be in order to consider in the House the bill (H.R. 5665) to establish in the Department of State the Office to Monitor and Combat Islamophobia, and for other purposes. All points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. In lieu of the amendments recommended by the Committee on Foreign Affairs now printed in the bill, an amendment in the nature of a substitute consisting of the text of Rules Committee Print 117-23, modified by the amendment printed in the report of the Committee on Rules accompanying this resolution, shall be considered as adopted. The bill, as amended, shall be considered as read. All points of order against provisions in the bill, as amended, are waived. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill, as amended, and on any further amendment thereto, to final passage without intervening motion except: (1) one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs or their respective designees; and (2) one motion to recommit.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from Massachusetts is recognized for 1 hour.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, for the purpose of debate only, I yield the customary 30 minutes to the gentleman from Pennsylvania (Mr. Reschenthaler), my good friend, pending which I yield myself such time as I may consume. During consideration of this resolution, all time yielded is for the purpose of debate only.
General Leave
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members be given 5 legislative days to revise and extend their remarks.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Massachusetts?
There was no objection.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, today, the Committee on Rules met and reported a rule which would provide for the consideration of H.R. 5665, the Combating International Islamophobia Act, under a closed rule.
It provides 1 hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Foreign Affairs. It self-executes a manager's amendment from Chairman Meeks and provides for one motion to recommit.
Mr. Speaker, we are here today at a time when anti-Muslim hatred has risen to epidemic proportions. That is not my opinion; that is according to the U.N. Special Rapporteur on Religious Freedom and Belief.
Epidemic proportions, we see it all around the world: in China, as the government there commits atrocities against the Uyghurs; in Sri Lanka, where its President silences dissenting voices; in India, as government-led crackdowns leave entire neighborhoods virtually empty; in Hungary, where anti-Muslim sentiment continues to build. Unfortunately, I could go on, all around the globe.
Mr. Speaker, this isn't about the actions or misguided beliefs of a few. The U.N. Human Rights Council has found that an average of 37 percent of the population in Europe held unfavorable views of Muslims. We are talking about millions of people and a rising tide of hostility, violence, and discrimination that we, the Government of the United States, must call out and condemn. To stand firmly and loudly for human rights demands nothing less.
Mr. Speaker, I am also proud to announce today that we have reached a bipartisan, bicameral agreement on the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act that will allow us to move quickly to get this bill through Congress and to the President because this isn't a partisan issue. It is a human rights issue, and America must lead.
Mr. Speaker, just as we hold other nations to account, we must hold ourselves to account as well because the United States is not immune to these trends. The Council on American-Islamic Relations has documented over 500 complaints of anti-Muslim bias nationwide in just the first half of this year. That includes things like hate crimes, harassment, school bullying, and antimosque violence.
Sadly, this uptick is part of a larger trend. A poll conducted by the AP and released this year ahead of the anniversary of 9/11 found that 53 percent of Americans have unfavorable views toward Islam. This is the reality of what is happening in America today.
Mr. Speaker, to be honest, we have even heard disturbing rhetoric from some right here in this institution. A Member of this House has told a completely fabricated story again and again that implies a Muslim colleague is a terrorist just because they are Muslim.
It may have rolled off her tongue like some kind of laugh line, but this is a deadly serious matter because it led to our colleague, Representative Omar, who has already been the victim of years of anti-
Muslim bias, receiving even more heinous voice mails and even death threats. One man went so far as to tell her: ``There's plenty that will love the opportunity to take you off the face of this'' blanking Earth.
Mr. Speaker, I hesitated to even quote that here on the floor, but we all must understand the gravity of what we are dealing with. To hear a Member of this Congress say those things, is there no bottom anymore? Have things sunk that low?
Two decades ago, it was a Republican President, George W. Bush, who told the world: ``America treasures the relationship we have with our many Muslim friends, and we respect the vibrant faith of Islam, which inspires countless individuals to lead lives of honesty, integrity, and morality.''
Today, it is a Republican Congressperson who made headlines for comments that disrespect not only Congresswoman Omar and fellow Muslim Members but is a stain on this entire institution. And virtually the entire Republican Conference has said nothing.
Mr. Speaker, what on Earth has the Republican Party become?
I think this House is better than the worst actions of a few here, and I think the Government of the United States can still stand for human rights here and around the globe. This rule and the underlying resolution is our chance to show it.
Let's pass this measure so we can bring the full weight of our Nation in encouraging other nations to also confront and condemn the growing stain of Islamophobia.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume, and I thank my good friend and chairman of the Committee on Rules, Chairman McGovern, for yielding me the customary 30 minutes.
Mr. Speaker, in 2018, southwestern Pennsylvania witnessed the deadliest act of anti-Semitism in our Nation's history when 11 Jewish worshippers were killed at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Squirrel Hill. That was the first time I ever spoke on the House floor; it was to condemn acts of anti-Semitism and hatred in all forms.
No one should ever be attacked and no one should ever be denied their human rights or dignity because of their religious faith. Republicans have opposed hate and discrimination of any kind, including Islamophobia, but the bill made in order under this rule is rushed. It is a partisan effort, and it fails to address real concerns highlighted by both committee Republicans and the Biden State Department.
H.R. 5665 creates a new State Department office and a new special envoy position to combat ``Islamophobia and Islamophobic incitement.'' Those terms are not defined in Federal statute. They are also not defined in the bill. Without clear definitions, even First Amendment-
protected speech could qualify for an investigation.
Under this measure, it would be up to unelected career bureaucrats at the State Department to determine what constitutes this phobia and to single out groups, to single out governments, to single out individuals who do not share the political views of those unelected, career bureaucrats.
My Republican colleagues on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs rightly noted the lack of definitions in this bill, and that lack could be used to promote anti-Israel sentiment. Unfortunately, efforts to address those concerns were wholly dismissed by committee Democrats. Further, committee Republicans highlighted that this bill is absolutely redundant.
Mr. Speaker, the State Department already operates robust human rights and religious freedom efforts, and those include, and I will list: the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor; the Office of International Religious Freedom; and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. We already have offices for what this bill seeks to do.
{time} 1315
Creating a new envoy and office would simply duplicate those efforts; it would further fragment this important advocacy; it would increase the potential for conflict and delays; and it would thwart our efforts to actually help persecuted people.
Their concerns fell on deaf ears.
If House Democrats are serious about addressing anti-Muslim sentiment, then I encourage them to join the longstanding Republican efforts to hold the Chinese Communist Party accountable for their genocide against the Uyghur people.
Somewhere between 1 and 3 million Uyghurs are currently held against their will in modern-day concentration camps in Communist China. These people are subjected to atrocities that include forced labor, torture, and enforced organ harvesting.
Families are torn apart. The CCP even prohibits parents from teaching their Islamic faith to their children. Women are suffering forced sterilization and forced abortion to suppress Uyghur Muslim birth rates.
Anyone who truly supports religious freedom and stands against anti-
Muslim atrocities should want to hold the CCP accountable for their genocide against the Uyghur people.
Yet, earlier this year Democratic leadership caved to the Biden administration and delayed a strong U.S. response to the Uyghur Muslim genocide, rather than sending the bipartisan, Senate-passed Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act to the President's desk. It was the Biden administration who slow-walked that.
Last week, we were finally given the opportunity to vote on that bill, only after the press highlighted Speaker Pelosi's inaction. Further, during the committee's consideration of H.R. 5665, Democrats voted down an amendment to focus the new office's efforts on the plight of the Uyghurs.
In closing, it is obvious this bill is not combating anti-Muslim violence and persecution. If it were, House Democrats would have worked with Republicans and the Biden State Department on this effort. Instead, the Democrats are advancing this rushed, partisan legislation that fails to address the religious persecution happening right now in China and across the globe.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to oppose this rule, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I have great respect for my friend from Pennsylvania, but I want to provide a little bit of a history lesson on the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.
We actually passed that bill a year ago in the last Congress, and the Republican Senate and President Trump killed it. I didn't hear a peep out of any of my Republican colleagues urging that the Senate take the bill up then.
Last week, the House passed by an overwhelming vote--only one Republican voted ``no''--my bill on the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act.
By the way, it is a stronger bill than the one that was passed in the Senate. Senator Rubio and I have come to an agreement on reconciling the differences. That bill will be voted on, perhaps even as early as today, and be sent over to the Senate, where I think they will take quick action on it and send it to the President's desk for signature.
That is real. That is the strongest bill to deal with the horrific treatment by the Chinese Government of the Uyghurs that has ever gone to any President's desk. I am proud of the bipartisan support for the bill in the House and the Senate. Let's not politicize an issue that I think we have come together on. My hope is it will be done today.
The bill that is before us is very similar to the bill that was passed in a previous Congress to create a post to deal with anti-
Semitism in this country.
Mr. Speaker, I would urge my Republican friends, who I hope share our view, that anti-Semitism is intolerable wherever it may exist, and we need to do more to combat it. Please call your friends in the Republican Senate to stop holding up President Biden's nominee for special envoy.
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a CNN story, ``Senate Democrats Say Republicans Are Holding Up Nomination For Anti-Semitism Post.''
Senate Democrats Say Republicans Are Holding Up Nomination for Anti-
Semitism Post
(By Jessica Dean)
(CNN) Democrats in Congress told CNN that GOP senators are continuing to hold up the nomination of the woman President Joe Biden tapped to become the next US Envoy to Combat and Monitor Antisemitism, five months after she was nominated.
Biden nominated Deborah Lipstadt, an Emory professor of Modern Jewish History and Holocaust Studies, on July 30. Lipstadt has thus far not even been offered a hearing by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Lipstadt has previously worked with both Democratic and Republican administrations and enjoys strong support from a wide range of Jewish groups.
``Our Republican colleagues have refused to give her a hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations committee,'' Committee Chairman Bob Menendez, a Democrat from New Jersey, told CNN. Typically both Democratic and Republican members of the committee agree to have a hearing for a nominee.
Menendez said they're approaching a time when he may go against tradition to bypass the committee and move to discharge Lipstadt's nomination straight to the Senate floor where Democrats hold the majority.
Republicans denied that they were stalling the confirmation process.
``I wouldn't say we're holding it up,'' said Republican Sen. Jim Risch, the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, adding they are waiting on additional materials from Lipstadt. An aide said they had spoken with Lipstadt on Tuesday.
When asked if he thinks they will ultimately give Lipstadt a hearing, Risch replied, ``I think so'' but offered no timeline.
What's the hold up?
Risch said there has been some concern from members over Lipstadt's previous tweets.
In one tweet from March 14, Lipstadt reacted to comments from Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin, who sits on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, writing, ``This is white supremacy/nationalism. Pure and simple.''
Lipstadt was referring to Johnson's comments that he might have been concerned for his well-being during the January 6 attack had the protestors been affiliated with Black Lives Matter instead of being a largely white, pro-Trump crowd.
When asked about Lipstadt's nomination and the tweet, Johnson said, ``I feel like we have so many nominations floating around right now, I really can't comment at this point.''
Republican Sen. Marco Rubio of Florida, who is also a member of the committee, said he was not familiar with Lipstadt's nomination.
``I am not sure I have reviewed that nomination yet. To be frank, it doesn't ring a bell,'' Rubio told CNN.
``I want to make sure that whoever is there is someone we can count on to be heard around the world and whatever they have said in the past won't undermine their ability to do their job,'' Rubio said. ``But I just don't want to comment on a nomination that I haven't fully reviewed yet.''
Menendez said there was nothing in her background that should be a problem.
``If calling out anti-Semitism in the past is somehow an obstacle to this nomination, and that would be an amazing set of circumstances, because that's what we want this person to do,'' he said.
Strong support from the Jewish community
In a rare joint statement, the Anti-Defamation League, the Jewish Federations of North America, and the Union of Orthodox Jewish Congregations of America sent a letter to Senate Foreign Relations Committee on November 4 urging its members to act.
``There is no question that Prof. Lipstadt has the credentials to deserve a proper hearing before the Committee on Foreign Relations--and that hearing is now overdue,'' the letter read.
The unified support of Jewish groups is important to note.
``To find this level of agreement about someone on such a contentious issue as anti-Semitism is rare,'' Yair Rosenberg, a writer who covers anti-Semitism for The Atlantic, told CNN in an interview.
``And it's very rare to see that and it's rare to see people then say, 'Well, we don't care what all these Jewish groups think,''' Rosenberg said.
In an attempt to move the nomination along, a number of House Democrats who sit on the House Bipartisan Task Force for Combating Anti-Semitism--led by Reps. Kathy Manning of North Carolina and Ted Deutch of Florida--wrote a letter to Menendez and Risch pressing them for a hearing for Lipstadt.
``In recent months, we have witnessed growing threats against Jewish communities in our own country and worldwide,'' the group wrote. ``We believe it is vital to have a Special Envoy in place to confront these threats and ensure that the United States continues to lead the world in the fight against antisemitism.''
Rosenberg told CNN the stalled nomination is ``a much broader effort to stall Biden's nominees and prevent their confirmations.''
``It's typical partisan warfare, but this time, it's not a victimless crime, right? There's the nominees themselves, and then in this case, there's Jewish communities abroad that are protected by the antiSemitism envoy position. And right now that office is short-stringed because the Republicans will not move forward on this confirmation.''
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Chu).
Ms. CHU. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of today's bill to help monitor and combat Islamophobia.
Targeting someone because of their religion is discriminatory and it is dangerous. Yet, across the world anti-Muslim prejudice is spreading. As a result, innocent people are being attacked, their mosques vandalized, and their rights curtailed. All of this is the deliberate result of anti-Muslim fearmongering, often from the highest levels of government.
The violence and repression would not be possible without the propaganda that paints all Muslims as dangerous. We have seen that even in our own country, where a lie that Muslims are dangerous was used to justify a Muslim ban. This hate speech continues to echo in the halls of Congress today, even against our own Members of Congress. This must stop.
The more these hateful lies spread, the more people will follow the words of their leaders and take action, leading to more violence like the shootings in Christchurch and around the world.
With this bill we can help stop the spread of this Islamophobia and stop the violence these words cause. Let's ensure that everybody, regardless of race or religion, can feel safe in this country and around the world for being who they are.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I am glad it was brought up, the so-called Trump Muslim ban, because it gives me a chance to set the record straight.
Let's be clear, the seven countries that my colleague was referring to--the seven countries specifically targeted with travel restrictions in Executive Order 13769, they were actually countries that were determined by Congress in the Obama administration to be countries of particular concern for terrorism activity pursuant to the Visa Waiver Improvement and Terrorist Travel Prevention Act of 2015.
In fact, the policies in the administration's travel restrictions apply to just 8 percent of the world's Muslim population, and according to Pew Research Center, only cover one of the top 10 countries in the world with the largest Muslim population, that country being Iran.
The courts even found that Trump's travel ban was ``facially neutral toward religion.'' The court also ruled that Trump ``set forth a sufficient national security justification.'' So I thank my colleague for giving me the chance to put in the Record the truth about the so-
called Trump ban.
Mr. Speaker, let's talk about something that the American people are focused on right now. Thanks to the Biden energy crisis, Americans are paying 56 percent more for a gallon of gas.
In Pennsylvania, families are facing a 50 percent increase in their energy bills. Biden's war on fossil fuels continues to devastate the Nation this holiday season.
That is why, Mr. Speaker, if we defeat the previous question, I will personally offer an amendment to the rule to immediately consider H.R. 6235, the Strategic Production Response Act.
This legislation would require the Secretary of Energy to develop a plan to increase oil and gas production on Federal lands if the President uses the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for non-emergency reasons.
Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to insert the text of my amendment into the Record, along with any extraneous material immediately prior to the vote on the previous question.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the gentleman from Pennsylvania?
There was no objection.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Michigan (Mr. Upton), one of the authors of the legislation, to explain the amendment.
Mr. UPTON. Mr. Speaker, I do rise in opposition to both the rule and the previous question so the House can consider H.R. 6235, the Strategic Production Response Act, introduced by the top Republican on the Energy and Commerce Committee, Mrs. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington, in the recent weeks.
This President and the Democrats are waging a war on fossil fuels and affordable American energy, and American families are paying the price in the form of skyrocketing energy bills and inflation that is surging, frankly, out of control. We see that constant increase at the pump literally every time we get in the car and pass a gas station in virtually every State in the Union.
Before this President came into office, the U.S. was more energy secure than ever before. Energy prices were low, stable, and manufacturing was coming back to the U.S. after decades of offshoring.
Today, America's energy security is under siege by President Biden and the Democrats. In fact, in the span of a year the price of crude oil and many energy commodities has risen to a 7-year high. Gasoline prices have nearly doubled, while more Americans are struggling certainly to make ends meet.
Forecasts--even before this winter's heating costs season started, American families were expected to pay some 54 percent more for propane, 43 percent more for heating oil, 30 percent more for natural gas, and 6 percent more for electric heating.
Even as millions of Americans depend on reliable and affordable supplies of fossil-based fuels for home heating, electricity, transportation, manufacturing, and agriculture, Democrats have doubled down their anti-American energy agenda.
It was a mistake when President Biden canceled the Keystone XL pipeline, which would have transported almost 1 million barrels a day of stable energy supplies to the U.S.
President Biden issued a moratorium on energy development on Federal lands. Now the administration is even considering killing Line 5, another important pipeline that provides critical heating fuels and gas to the Midwest.
Yes, faced with skyrocketing energy prices and low poll numbers, this President has begged OPEC--of all places--OPEC and Russia--to pump more oil. When OPEC and Russia refused to increase supplies, guess what, President Biden then turned to China and resorted to tapping America's Strategic Petroleum Reserve, rather than encourage drilling here domestically.
This President turned to China for oil. China is persecuting more than a million Uyghurs, Muslims, and other ethnic minorities. They certainly don't share our values. America's Strategic Petroleum Reserve is one of the Nation's most valuable energy security tools, and this President and the Democrats are squandering it, using it for a political coverup for their anti-fossil fuel agenda.
If allowed, this motion is pretty simple. It would protect the Strategic Petroleum Reserve and lower gas prices by unleashing American energy production.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentleman has expired.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentleman from Michigan an additional 30 seconds.
Mr. UPTON. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve was created by Congress to respond to several oil supply disruptions, not as a bailout. This administration has to end its hostility to producing energy right here under our feet and reverse the policies that have contributed to the energy crisis facing Americans today.
If this administration is serious about lowering gas prices it has to stop encouraging other countries, and rather encourage ours to produce gas and oil rather than relying on OPEC, Russia, and China.
Mr. Speaker, I would ask my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the previous question so we can consider this resolution.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentlewoman from Texas (Ms. Jackson Lee).
Ms. JACKSON LEE. Mr. Speaker, when the heinous acts of 9/11 came, this Nation could have easily fell upon the splinters of divisiveness and begin to point fingers in a massive way toward our fellow human beings, Muslims around the world and in the United States.
Isn't it interesting that the President of the United States, a Republican, George W. Bush, took to the microphone to denounce that kind of divisive action--a Republican.
We came together, even though there were incidences that many confronted, to hold this Nation together. Even with the small percentage of Muslims in the United States, we recognize the 1.8 billion Muslims in the world, which makes up nearly one-forth of the world's population. It is the world's second largest religion.
I am proud to be able to serve or have served with former Member Keith Ellison, the first to be elected; Congressman Andre Carson, Rashida Tlaib, and Ilhan Omar. I am proud to chair the Pakistan Caucus, the Afghan Caucus, and to work with Muslims around the world; and I have visited the Middle East often, and engaged with Muslims who desired peace.
Mr. Speaker, I rise today to support the rule and the underlying bill, to create the position of special envoy for monitoring and combatting Islamophobia that would be responsible for tracking and coordinating efforts to combat Islamophobia abroad. It would require the State Department to encourage reports on human rights practices and an annual report on international religious freedom, and include, where possible, the assessments on the nature and extent of Islamophobia and Islamophobic incitement that occur abroad.
{time} 1330
My colleagues on this floor might take heed to the importance of recognizing the humanity of all people. The hijab is a thing of beauty. Muslim women can choose to wear it, they wear it in front of men who are not their family members. Our Member, Ilhan Omar, wears that. It is not a sign of terrorism, and that kind of language should be denounced whether it is on the floor of this House or in some kind of private interaction.
We do not want the world to look at the United States as not caring about the rights of Muslims. America stands against the committing of acts of atrocities against the Uyghurs in China, or the Rohingya in Burma, or the brutal crackdowns on Muslim populations in other countries including Southeast Asia, scapegoating of Muslim refugees and other Muslims in Hungary and Poland, the acts of white supremacist violence against Muslims in New Zealand and Canada, or the targeting of minority Muslim communities in Muslim majority countries like those in Southeast Asia and Iran. I know that we are working hard to ensure that does not happen.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman from Texas an additional 1 minute.
Ms. JACKSON LEE. This legislation is crucial and important. The reason is because it speaks to who we are as Members of the most powerful lawmaking body in the world.
Mr. Speaker, I am glad to sit on the Tom Lantos Human Rights Commission with Chairman McGovern and that we can talk about human rights for all people. And we need to get over it and recognize that it is important to unify the world. Let the United States be the leader for what is right and to be able to acknowledge the doctors, lawyers, and other leaders in our Nation who happen to be Muslim.
So this legislation gives the United States the right hand, the upper hand to be able to assess this around the world and be the leader against anti-hate or anti-Muslim hate. Let's be the leader rather than the provoker of it.
I end by saying this plea to my colleagues: Whether you are Republican or Democrat, is this, in essence, the reputation you want to give to this Congress, that we are attacking people for their religion and who they are?
Let this bill pass but let it be a symbol that we will stop this kind of Islamophobia, and it starts with each and every one of us.
Mr. Speaker, I ask my colleagues to vote for the rule and the underlying bill.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the Rule Governing Debate of H.R. 5665, the Combating International Islamophobia Act, which will address the increasing number of incidents of Islamophobia around the world.
Specifically, this bill will:
Create the position of Special Envoy for Monitoring and Combating Islamophobia, who will be responsible for tracking and coordinating efforts to combat Islamophobia abroad.
Require that the State Department's annual country reports on human rights practices and annual Report on International Religious Freedom include, wherever possible, assessments of the nature and extent of acts of Islamophobia and Islamophobic incitement that occur abroad.
As Islamophobia rises globally, it is vital that the State Department have senior personnel in place charged with understanding, reporting on, and combating this scourge worldwide.
In recent decades, we have seen a staggering rise in incidents of violent Islamophobia worldwide.
Whether it is the atrocities being committed against the Uyghurs in China and the Rohingya in Burma, the brutal crackdowns on Muslim populations around the world. The scapegoating of Muslim refugees and other Muslims in Hungary and Poland, the acts of white supremacist violence targeting Muslims in New Zealand and Canada, or the targeting of minority Muslim communities in Muslim-majority countries. It is time for us as policymakers to understand these problems as interconnected and genuinely global.
There are about 1.8 billion Muslims in the world, which makes up nearly one-fourth of the world's population. Islam is the world's second largest religion. Painfully, a staggering number of people have experienced anti-Muslim hate in their lifetime; a number that has only inflated since 9/11.
America is home to one of the most diverse Muslim populations in the world, including people of almost every ethnicity, country and school of thought.
Approximately one third of the community is African American, one third is of South Asian descent, one quarter is of Arab descent, and the rest are from all over the world, including a growing Latino Muslim population.
While exact numbers are difficult to establish, there are between 3-6 million American Muslims. About one half of this population was born in the U.S., a percentage that continues to grow as immigration slows and younger individuals start having families.
American Muslims are present in all walks of life, as doctors and taxi drivers; lawyers and newspaper vendors; accountants, homemakers, academics, media personalities, athletes, and entertainers.
Although American Muslims make up approximately one percent of the U.S. population, most Americans can name several famous American Muslims. Names like Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Mos Def, Fareed Zakaria, Shaquille O'Neal, Lupe Fiasco, Dr. Oz and Rima Fakih are part of our popular consciousness.
Important business figures like Farooq Kathwari (CEO of Ethan Allen), Malik M. Hasan (a pioneer in the field of HMOs), and Safi Qureshey (a leader in PC component manufacturing) are all American Muslims.
Many American Muslims are also civically engaged, working with their neighbors to better their communities. Well-known American Muslim leaders include Rep. Keith Ellison (DFL-Minn.), the first American Muslim to be elected to the U.S. Congress; Rep. Andre Carson (D-Ind.); Mohammed Hameeduddin (Mayor, Teaneck, N.J.); and Amer Ahmad
(Comptroller, Chicago).
Nevertheless, levels of Islamophobia are so high that the United Nations Human rights Council has declared it an issue of ``epidemic proportions.''
Atrocities have been occurring across the globe, from hate-messages spray-painted on buildings in America to the violent genocide of the Uyghurs in China.
The United States State Department estimated that up to 2 million members of Muslim minorities have experienced a system on detention centers in Xinjiang, known political indoctrination, forced labor, torture, and sexual abuse.
The US, UK, and Canada have accused China of committing genocide and crimes against humanity against Muslim populations at Xinjiang.
In 2018, UN investigators accused the Myanmar's military of carrying out mass killings of Muslim populations with ``genocidal intent.''
There are reports of attacks on mosques in Southeast Asia and Iran, a history of anti-Muslim sentiments and attacks in Sri Lanka, police targeting against Shia Muslims in Southeast Asia again, massacres of Muslim people in New Zealand, and Islamophobic hate-speech in Canada. We have to demand justice for Muslims and better treatment for all religions.
This global injustice must be addressed and rectified and the United States must step up to spearhead the movement.
We need to establish a comprehensive plan for combating Islamophobia not only to ensure the religious freedom and human rights of Muslims, but to protect against a threat to international religious freedom and democratic principles.
The Combating International Islamophobia Act will require the State department to create a Special Envoy for monitoring and combating Islamophobia answering the call of the American Muslim community for the past two decades.
The envoy will work with domestic and international nongovernmental organizations and institutions to carry out its directives.
The special envoy will give reports on acts of physical violence or harassment against Muslim people as well as acts of vandalism of Muslim community institutions like schools, mosques, and cemeteries.
Regarding anti-Muslim government actions, the envoy will monitor instances of propaganda in media that attempt to justify or promote racial hatred or incite acts of violence against Muslim people.
With the new wealth of information this envoy will bring, policymakers will have a better understanding of the interconnected, global problem of anti-Muslim bigotry.
As part of our commitment to international religious freedom and human rights, we must recognize Islamophobia as a pattern that is repeating in nearly every corner of the globe.
It is past time for the United States to stand firmly in favor of religious freedom for all, and to give the global problem of Islamophobia the attention and prioritization it deserves.
I urge all members to join me in voting for the rule and the underlying legislation, H.R. 5665, the ``Combating International Islamophobla Act.''
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, my good friend and colleague from Texas mentioned George W. Bush in her remarks. That is certainly a blast from the past. I was actually too young to even vote for President Bush when he was running in the primary. So I say that respectfully for my good friend from Texas.
But when we are talking about blasts from the past, the American people have not paid this much at the pump since the last time Biden was in the White House. It is true. The national average of gasoline is currently $3.32. Americans are paying 54 percent more nationally for a gallon of gas. In some parts of the United States the price for a gallon of gas has reached $7.59 a gallon.
So with Biden in the White House we are repeating ourselves once again--a blast from the past--and the American people are, unfortunately, paying every day at the gas pump.
Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Oklahoma (Mr. Mullin), my good friend, who is going to talk about that.
Mr. MULLIN. Mr. Speaker, what we are seeing here from the Democrats is just a distraction. They are just trying to distract the American people from what is really happening.
What is it the American people are upset about?
What is it that they are concerned about?
How about what they are paying. We can talk about the groceries, and we can talk about what they are paying at the gas pump, so let's talk about that real quick.
If we are really serious about doing something that is important to the American people, then let's start with H.R. 6235 to address the high energy prices our country is seeing right now. Gas prices are at a 7-year high. On November 23, the Biden administration announced the Department of Justice will sell 50 million barrels out of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in an attempt to bring down gas prices.
What a joke. We consume roughly 20 billion barrels a day in the United States, and to say we are going to release 50 billion out of the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to bring down gas prices?
That is nothing but another game, like this bill that we are talking about today debating. It is nothing but smoke and mirrors just trying to distract the American people to say: Hey, look, we are fighting; we are trying to do something.
H.R. 6235 would require the Secretary of Energy to develop a plan to increase oil and gas production on Federal lands in conjunction with drawing down the oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.
If any President attempts to tap into the SPR for political reasons, the Strategic Production Response Act would require a plan to increase U.S. energy production at the same time. The SPR was established by Congress to respond to an emergency, not to manipulate gasoline prices.
The administration's anti-fossil fuel agenda is contributing to the record-high energy prices which is driving up inflation and household bills. It is projected to cost some families up to 54 percent more to heat their homes this winter. If President Biden and the Democrats want to be serious about bringing down costs to the families, they would stop the attack on American petroleum.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to defeat the previous question and take up this bill.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, we are considering the Combating International Islamophobia Act right now, and my good friend from Pennsylvania in the very beginning made reference to the fact that Republicans are all united in condemning hate, prejudice, and bigotry wherever it exists. But I just want to point out why this bill is so important. It is because the last Republican President who we had, unfortunately, it was like gasoline on a fire in terms of promoting Islamophobia.
In 2015, Donald Trump said that he would look at closing mosques in the United States. That same year he was open to the idea of creating a database of all U.S. Muslims. As President, he instituted a Muslim ban. So that is the Republican Party's recent history in terms of combating Islamophobia. Instead of combating it, he, again, threw gasoline on the fire and fanned the flames.
So the reason why this is important is so that we can show the world that that is not who we are and that we reject bigotry, hatred, discrimination, and prejudice wherever it exists. The statistics are clear: we see a rising tide of Islamophobia all throughout the world.
This should not be controversial. This, quite frankly, should be a suspension. That it has been politicized by some of my friends on the other side of the aisle is unfortunate, but I hope that some of them will at the end join with us in voting to pass it.
I reserve the balance of my time, Mr. Speaker.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 3 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess), who is my good friend and fellow Rules Committee member.
Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, if we defeat the previous question, we will immediately consider the Strategic Production Response Act which will require the Secretary of Energy to develop a plan to increase energy production on Federal lands if oil in the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is used without a severe energy supply interruption. In November, the Biden administration announced the release of 50 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to manipulate the market and address high energy prices that were created by his policies.
On his first day in office, President Biden weakened America's energy independence by rejoining the Paris climate agreement, blocking new energy development on Federal lands, and killing the Keystone pipeline. These are just a few examples of how this President's policies have slowed our Nation's economic recovery and will prevent us from reclaiming true energy independence.
Releasing oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve without an emergency declaration is unprecedented. No severe supply disruption exists, only a President who seeks to enact radical Green New Deal policies. Low Presidential approval ratings are not the emergency that Congress envisioned when the Strategic Petroleum Reserve was established in 1975.
The path to affordable energy is simple: increase supply to meet demand. Congress must reverse the policies that limit production of energy here at home. Clean energy is a priority for all Americans, but hurting domestic producers will only increase our Nation's dependence on dirty energy products from Russia, China, and the Middle East which are inherently less clean than American energy.
In conclusion, the Strategic Production Response Act ensures that a plan is in place to increase energy production before any President may use the Strategic Petroleum Reserve for purely political purposes.
Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the previous question so we can consider this amendment.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a September 7 Associated Press article titled ``Two Decades After 9/11, Muslim Americans Still Fighting Bias.''
Two Decades After 9/11, Muslim Americans Still Fighting Bias
New York (AP)--A car passed, the driver's window rolled down and the man spat an epithet at two little girls wearing their hijabs: ``Terrorist!''
It was 2001, mere weeks after the twin towers at the World Trade Center fell, and 10-year-old Shahana Hanif and her younger sister were walking to the local mosque from their Brooklyn home.
Unsure, afraid, the girls ran.
As the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks approaches, Hanif can still recall the shock of the moment, her confusion over how anyone could look at her, a child, and see a threat.
``It's not a nice, kind word. It means violence, it means dangerous. It is meant to shock whoever . . . is on the receiving end of it,'' she says.
But the incident also spurred a determination to speak out for herself and others that has helped get her to where she is today: a community organizer strongly favored to win a seat on the New York City Council in the upcoming municipal election.
Like Hanif, other young American Muslims have grown up under the shadow of 9/11. Many have faced hostility and surveillance, mistrust and suspicion, questions about their Muslim faith and doubts over their Americanness.
They've also found ways forward, ways to fight back against bias, to organize, to craft nuanced personal narratives about their identities. In the process, they've built bridges, challenged stereotypes and carved out new spaces for themselves.
There is ``this sense of being Muslim as a kind of important identity marker, regardless of your relationship with Islam as a faith,'' says Eman Abdelhadi, a sociologist at The University of Chicago who studies Muslim communities.
``That's been one of the main effects in people's lives . . . it has shaped the ways the community has developed.''
A poll by The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research conducted ahead of the 9/11 anniversary found that 53% of Americans have unfavorable views toward Islam, compared with 42% who have favorable ones. This stands in contrast to Americans' opinions about Christianity and Judaism, for which most respondents expressed favorable views.
Mistrust and suspicion of Muslims didn't start with 9/11, but the attacks dramatically intensified those animosities.
Accustomed to being ignored or targeted by low-level harassment, the country's wide-ranging and diverse Muslim communities were foisted into the spotlight, says Youssef Chouhoud, a political scientist at Christopher Newport University in Virginia.
``Your sense of who you were was becoming more formed, not just Muslim but American Muslim,'' he says. ``What distinguished you as an American Muslim? Could you be fully both, or did you have to choose? There was a lot of grappling with what that meant.''
In Hanif's case, there was no blueprint to navigate the complexities of that time.
``Fifth-grader me wasn't naive or too young to know Muslims are in danger,'' she later wrote in an essay about the aftermath of 9/11. ``. . . Flashing an American flag from our first-floor windows didn't make me more American. Born in Brooklyn didn't make me more American.''
A young Hanif gathered neighborhood friends, and an older cousin helped them write a letter to then-President George W. Bush asking for protection.
``We knew,'' she says, ``that we would become like warriors of this community.''
But being warriors often carries a price, with wounds that linger.
Ishaq Pathan, 26, recalls the time a boy told him he seemed angry and wondered if he was going to blow up their Connecticut school.
He remembers the helplessness he felt when he was taken aside at an airport for additional questioning upon returning to the United States after a college semester in Morocco.
The agent looked through his belongings, including the laptop where he kept a private journal, and started reading it.
``I remember being like, `Hey, do you have to read that?''' Pathan says. The agent ``just looks at me like, `You know, I can read anything on your computer. I'm entitled to anything here.' And at that point, I remember having tears in my eyes. I was completely and utterly powerless.''
Pathan couldn't accept it.
``You go to school with other people of different backgrounds and you realize . . . what the promise of the United States is,'' he says. ``And when you see it not living up to that promise, then I think it instills in us a sense of wanting to help and fix that.''
He now works as the San Francisco Bay Area director for the nonprofit Islamic Networks Group, where he hopes to help a younger generation grow confident in their Muslim identity.
Pathan recently chatted with a group of boys about their summer activities. At times, the boys ate watermelon or played on a trampoline. At other moments, the talk turned serious: What would they do if a student pretended to blow himself up while yelling ``Allahu akbar,'' or ``God is great?'' What can they do about stereotypical depictions of Muslims on TV?
``I had always viewed 9/11 as probably one of the most pivotal moments of my life and of the lives of Americans across the board,'' Pathan says. ``The aftermath of it . . . is what pushed me to do what I do today.''
That aftermath has also helped motivate Shukri Olow to do what she is doing--run for office.
Born in Somalia, Olow fled civil war with her family and lived in refugee camps in Kenya for years before coming to the United States when she was 10.
She found home in a vibrant public housing complex in the city of Kent, south of Seattle. There, residents from different countries communicated across language and cultural barriers, borrowing salt from each other or watching one another's kids. Olow felt she flourished in that environment.
Then 9/11 happened. She recalls feeling confused when a teacher asked her, ``What are your people doing?'' But she also remembers others who ``said that this isn't our fault .
. . and we need to make sure that you're safe.''
In a 2017 Pew Research Center survey of U.S. Muslims, nearly half of respondents said they experienced at least one instance of religious discrimination within the year before; yet 49% said someone expressed support for them because of their religion in the previous year.
Overwhelmingly, the study found respondents proud to be both Muslim and American. For some, including Olow, there were occasional identity crises growing up.
`` `Who am I?'--which I think is what many young people kind of go through in life in general,'' she says. ``But for those of us who live at the intersection of anti-Blackness and Islamophobia . . . it was really hard.''
But her experiences from that time also helped form her identity. She is now seeking a seat on the King County Council.
``There are many young people who have multiple identities who have felt that they don't belong here, that they are not welcomed here,'' she says. ``I was one of those young people. And so, I try to do what I can to make sure that more of us know that this is our nation, too.''
After 9/11, some American Muslims chose to dispel misconceptions about their faith by building personal connections. They shared coffee or broke bread with strangers as they fielded myriad questions--from how Islam views women and Jesus to how to combat extremism.
Mansoor Shams has traveled across the U.S. with a sign that reads: ``I'm Muslim and a U.S. Marine, ask anything.'' It's part of the 39-year-old's efforts to teach others about his faith and counter hate through dialogue.
Shams, who served in the Marines from 2000 to 2004, was called names like ``Taliban,'' ``terrorist'' and ``Osama bin Laden'' by some of his fellow Marines after 9/11.
One of his most memorable interactions, he says, was at Liberty University in Virginia, where he spoke in 2019 to students of the Christian institution. Some, he says, still call him with questions about Islam.
``There's this mutual love and respect,'' he says.
Shams wishes his current work wasn't needed but feels a responsibility to share a counternarrative he says many Americans don't know.
Ahmed Ali Akbar, 33, came to a different conclusion.
Shortly after 9/11, some adults in his community arranged for an assembly at his school in Saginaw, Michigan, where he and other students talked about Islam and Muslims. Akbar poured his heart into the research. But he recalls his confusion at some of the questions: Where is bin Laden? What's the reason behind the attacks?
``How am I supposed to know where Osama bin Laden is? I'm an American kid,'' he says.
That period left him feeling like trying to change people's minds wasn't always effective, that some were not ready to listen.
Akbar eventually turned his focus toward telling stories about Muslim Americans on his podcast ``See Something Say Something.''
``There's a lot of humor in the Muslim American experience as well,'' he says. ``It's not all just sadness and reaction to the violence and . . . racism and Islamophobia.''
He has also come to believe in building connections of a different type. ``Our battle for our civil liberties (is) tied up with other marginalized communities,'' he says, stressing the importance of advocating for them.
For some, 9/11 brought a different kind of racial reckoning, says Debbie Almontaser, a Yemeni American educator and activist in New York.
She says many Arab and South Asian immigrants came to the U.S. seeking the American Dream as doctors, lawyers, entrepreneurs. ``Then 9/11 happens and they realize that they're brown and they realize that they're minorities--that was a huge wake-up call,'' Almontaser says.
Some racial tensions play out today in U.S. Muslim communities. The racial justice protests sparked by the killing of George Floyd, for instance, brought many Muslims to the streets to condemn racism. But they also spurred an internal reckoning about racial equity among Muslims, including the treatment of Black Muslims.
``For me, as a Muslim African American, my struggle (in America) is still with race and identity,'' says imam Ali Aqeel of the Muslim American Cultural Center in Nashville, Tennessee.
``When we go to (Islamic) centers and we have to deal with the same pain that we deal with out in the world, it's kind of discouraging to us because we're under the impression that
(in) Islam, you don't have that racial and ethnic divide.''
Amirah Ahmed, 17, was born after the attacks and feels like she was thrust into a struggle not of her making--a burden despite being ``just as American as anyone else.''
She recalls how a few years ago at her Virginia school's 9/11 commemoration, she felt students' stares at her and her hijab so intensely that she wanted to skip the next year's event.
When her mother dismissed the idea, she instead wore her Americanness as a shield, donning an American flag headscarf to address her classmates from a podium.
Ahmed spoke about honoring the lives of those who died in America on 9/11--but also of Iraqis who died in the war launched in 2003. She recalls defending her Arab and Muslim identities that day while displaying her American one and says it was a ``really powerful moment.''
But she hopes her future children don't feel the need to prove they belong.
``Our kids are going to be (here) well after the 9/11 era,'' she says. ``They should not have to continue fighting for their identity.''
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, a recent poll, as I mentioned earlier, found that 53 percent of Americans, unfortunately, hold negative views of Muslims--53 percent. Islamophobia isn't just a problem abroad. We need to combat it here at home as well.
Mr. Speaker, I include in the Record a December 9 report released by the Department of Justice titled ``2020 Hate Crimes Statistics.''
2020 Hate Crimes Statistics
In August 2021, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) released Hate Crime Statistics 2020, an annual compilation of bias-motivated incidents in the United States. Though the number of reporting agencies decreased by 452 since 2019, the overall number of reported incidents increased by 949, contributing to a total of 8,263 hate crime incidents against 11,126 victims in 2020. While annual law enforcement agency participation may fluctuate, the statistics indicate that hate crimes remain a concern for communities across the country.
According to this year's data, 62% of victims were targeted because of the offenders' bias toward race/ethnicity/ancestry, which continues to be the largest bias motivation category. Participating agencies reported 5,227 race/ethnicity/ancestry-based incidents in 2020, a 32% increase from 2019. Anti-Black or African American hate crimes continue to be the largest bias incident victim category, with 2,871 incidents in 2020, a 49% increase since 2019. Additionally, there were 279 anti-Asian incidents reported in 2020, a 77% increase since 2019. The other largest categories of hate crimes include anti-Hispanic or Latino incidents, with 517, and anti-White incidents, with 869 in total.
Incidents related to religion decreased 18% from 2019, with 1,244 total incidents reported. The largest category included:
683 anti-Jewish incidents, down 28% since 2019;
110 anti-Muslim incidents, down 38%;
15 anti-Buddhist incidents, up 200%; and
89 anti-Sikh incidents, up 83%.
Incidents related to disability decreased 17% from 2019, with 130 total incidents reported. By category:
Anti-mental disability incidents decreased by 29% since 2019, and
Anti-physical disability incidents increased by 8%.
Incidents related to gender and gender identity increased since 2019 with increases in gender-related incidents by 9% and gender identity-related incidents by 34%. There were:
50 anti-female incidents, a decrease of 4% since 2019;
25 anti-male incidents, an increase of 47%;
213 anti-transgender incidents, an increase of 41%; and
53 anti-gender non-conforming incidents, an increase of 13%.
See the Hate Crimes website for more highlights from the data: https://www.justice.gov/hatecrimes/hate-crime-
statistics. The full data set can be found on the FBI's Crime Data Explorer website at https://crime-data-explorer.app.cloud.gov/pages/explorer/crime/hate-crime.
The FBI Hate Crime Statistics is an annual compilation of bias-motivated incidents in the United States. For the purpose of the report, a hate crime is defined as a criminal offense which is motivated, in whole or in part, by the offender's bias(es) against a person based on race, ethnicity, ancestry, religion, sexual orientation, disability, gender, and gender identity. The 2020 data provides information voluntarily submitted from 15,136 of 18,623 law enforcement agencies around the country on offenses, victims, offenders, and locations of hate crimes.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, according to FBI statistics, in 2020 there were 110 anti-Muslim incidents, and there were an additional 89 hate crimes against Sikhs who are often wrongly identified as Muslim.
We know that hate crimes often go under-reported, so the actual number is likely much higher, which is another reason I think passing this bill is important.
I include in the Record a September 10 Business Insider article titled ``House Republicans Mocked Ilhan Omar's Bill to Establish an Envoy to Combat Islamophobia Worldwide.''
House Repubicans Mocked Ilhan Omar's Bill To Establish an Envoy To
Combat Islamophobia Worldwide
(Bryan Metzger)
In the wake of Rep. Lauren Boebert's Islamophobia comments suggesting that Rep. Ilhan Omar was a suicide bomber, House Republicans spent much of a Thursday hearing mocking a bill put forth by the Muslim Minnesota congresswoman to combat Islamophobia worldwide.
``I have many Pennsylvania Dutch that feel that they're not treated properly,'' said Rep. Dan Meuser of Pennsylvania, sarcastically calling for their inclusion in Omar's Islamophobia bill. ``How about those that are gay, you know, the LGBTQ community? That should be part of this bill.''
``Let's keep going, you know, there are people that are overweight, and there are skinny kids that get picked on,'' Meuser added. ``Why aren't they included in this as well?''
Rep. Omar's bill, which she introduced in late October alongside Democratic Rep. Jan Schakowsky of Illinois, would require the State Department to establish a special envoy for monitoring and combating Islamophobia and is modeled after a similar position created in 2004 to combat anti-Semitism.
``For over a decade we have seen increasing incidents of violent Islamophobia both in the US and worldwide--from the genocide of the Rohingya in Burma, and Uyghurs in China, to the attacks on Muslim refugees in Canada and New Zealand,'' Rep. Schakowsky said at the time.
``Hate crimes against American Muslims saw a 17% spike in 2017, when then-President Trump imposed a travel ban most focused on majority-Muslim nations.
The bill ultimately passed the House Foreign Relations Committee on Friday, with every Democrat voting in favor and every Republican opposed, and is expected to head to a full House vote on Tuesday. Democratic leadership is reportedly considering a vote on the bill as way to respond to the Boebert controversy, even as progressive lawmakers have introduced a resolution to strip Boebert of her committees.
House Republican leaders, including Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy and Minority Whip Steve Scalise, have declined to forcefully condemn Boebert's Islamophobia rhetoric or take any meaningful action against her.
`Shameful and embarrassing'
On Thursday evening, Republicans used both proposed amendments to Omar's bill and comments during the hearing to mock both the bill and Omar herself, in addition to downplaying Islamophobia.
Republican Rep. Steve Chabot of Ohio, who accidentally posted an image from an anti-Semitic website in 2017, said that Omar's bill would ``trivialize'' anti-Semitism, given the existence of another State Department post to combat that form of bigotry. ``We should avoid such a dangerous false equivalency at all costs, as it could be used by some extremists to actually justify further anti-Semitic activity,'' said Chabot.
``If you ask 20 different people what Islamophobia means today, especially in the Democratic Party, you're going to get 20 different answers,'' said the Florida Republican.
``And that answer is going to be what they decide best fits their political narrative to go out there and attack you.''
And Republican Rep. Ken Buck of Ohio offered an amendment to specify that it ``shall not be considered Islamophobia for an individual to criticize a brother marrying a sister for the purpose of committing immigration fraud in the United States,'' an apparent reference to long-standing right-wing conspiracy theories about the congresswoman.
As of publication time, the amendment was no longer available on the House Foreign Relations Committee website and was presumably withdrawn. Rep. Buck's office did not respond to Insider's request for comment.
But other amendments by Buck, including one mentioning female genital mutilation, remained online. Another amendment offered by Republican Rep. Scott Perry of Pennsylvania sought to exclude ``any action (to include counter-terrorism measures) taken by the Israeli Government'' from the bill.
In a statement to Insider, Omar condemned Republican behavior during the hearing.
``It is shameful and embarrassing that the Republican Party's response to blatant Islamophobia and incitement of violence is to double down on anti-Muslim rhetoric,'' she said. ``Instead of engaging in a good faith discussion on how to address the rise of Islamophobic violence, Republicans engaged in ad hominem attacks, belittled Muslims, and minimized the pain of Muslim communities around the world.''
And Democrats on the committee sought to defend Omar's bill.
``One reason the United States is doing a diplomatic boycott of the Olympics in China is because China's engaging in a genocide of Muslims, of the Uyghurs, because of their religion,'' said Rep. Ted Lieu of California. ``The Rohingya in Burma were slaughtered because they were Muslims.''
He also called attention to Boebert's Islamophobic remarks.
``We had a congressmember from the Republican Party joke about a congressmember in the Democratic Party, that somehow she was a terrorist simply because of a religion,'' Lieu said. ``That's Islamophobia.''
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I don't know what the hell is going on in some corners of the Republican Conference, but to have Republican Members mock this bill, as they did during a recent committee hearing, is disgusting. This is no laughing matter. In fact, it is a matter of life and death.
We are talking about violence, death threats, bullying, desecrating mosques, and worse. Instances like that just show why we need to pass this bill.
Again, my Republican friends, as they do oftentimes when we have important matters like this up, they want to talk about everything except what is on the floor. But the reason why this is important is because I think we should show the world that we speak with one voice; that we are against hatred; that we are against bigotry; that we will not stand by silently in the face of Islamophobia; that we want to be an example, and we want to lead the rest of the world.
Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield such time as he may consume to the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Scalise).
Mr. SCALISE. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Pennsylvania for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, I rise in support of the underlying legislation that we are trying to bring to the floor which, if we defeat the previous question, would actually come up to confront a major problem facing families.
If you look over the last few weeks, Mr. Speaker, this Congress has done a lot of things. It has spent a lot of money. There was a bill just 2 weeks ago to raise over $4.5 trillion in taxes and new spending, which would fuel inflation even higher.
What families across America are telling us is: Why doesn't Congress work for those families who are struggling?
Why doesn't Congress work to confront the challenges they are facing every single day?
It seems as if this majority is tone-deaf to the real problems that are hurting families today. It is inflation, and it is the spending in Washington that is driving that inflation. And one of those leading indicators is the high price of gasoline because it is something that maybe multiple times a week families have to go fill up their car. They pay over $150 to do it, and they can't afford it.
So we have a bill to actually do something about that, something we haven't seen on this floor for weeks. It is a bill to actually confront a crisis that was created by this President. Unfortunately, there are crises after crises that have been created by President Biden.
One of those is an energy crisis self-created by President Biden. When he walked in the door prices were 40 to 60 percent less for gasoline. When you go to the grocery store everything is more expensive, Mr. Speaker; and if you are shopping for Christmas, things are more expensive if you can even find those gifts that you want to put under the tree.
So here we bring a bill, if we are able to defeat this previous question, to confront one of these challenges. And that is how this President has abused the Strategic Petroleum Reserve because the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is not supposed to be a piggy bank to cover up for the failed policies of the Biden administration. Yet that is what they have done.
Mr. Speaker, when you saw the President raid the SPR the other day, we actually had an increase in prices because people recognize this President isn't serious about addressing the problem.
This bill by Republican Leader McMorris Rodgers of the Energy and Commerce Committee, as well as Fred Upton, myself, and others would force the Departments of the Interior and Energy to confront this crisis.
By the way, when President Biden goes and begs OPEC and Russia to produce more oil, how about we start here at home where we have actually got a surplus?
{time} 1345
We were exporting oil to our friends all around the world, helping our friends geopolitically. And that was undermined when President Biden cut off the Keystone pipeline, cut off production on Federal lands, but he greenlighted the Russian pipeline. He begged OPEC to produce more oil, which, by the way, emits more carbon if that is what you are concerned about.
Mr. Speaker, why don't we focus on those things that will help American jobs and help lower carbon emissions? That is producing more American energy, and do you know what else it does? It lowers the price of gasoline. I urge rejection of the previous question.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Crenshaw), my good friend.
Mr. CRENSHAW. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend for yielding.
Mr. Speaker, `tis the season of misplaced priorities. In the midst of rising inflation, labor shortages, open borders, and foreign policy blunders, my colleagues seem to think that Islamophobia is what Americans care about.
I would rather talk about something that Americans actually care about: gassing up their cars and keeping the heat on. In November, President Biden said: `` . . . the reason Americans are facing high gas prices is because oil-producing countries and large companies have not ramped up the supply of oil quickly enough to meet the demand, and the smaller supply means higher prices. . . .''
Well, that is true. But he is not making the point that he thinks he is. Yes, there is a lack of production, but the question is why. Why has the world's number one oil and gas producer, the United States, not been able to ramp up production? The answer is actually simple: because Joe Biden has made it a priority to kill the American energy industry.
President Biden cancelled the Keystone pipeline, outlawed new oil and gas leases on Federal lands and waters, and has threatened even more burdensome regulations that put a freezing effect on any kind of new production that even Biden himself recognizes is needed.
Of course, most recently, with the help of even my colleagues from Texas on the Democrat side, they managed to pass an unprecedented tax on natural gas through the House as part of their socialist spending package.
It gets more interesting. In a letter to Speaker Pelosi, seven Texas Democrats put the natural gas tax in stark terms saying: This tax will
``cost thousands of jobs, stifle economic recovery, increase energy costs for all Americans, strengthen our adversaries, and ultimately impede the transition to a lower carbon future.''
These are very strong and very true words from my Democratic colleagues, but guess what? They voted for it anyways. And now Democrats are scrambling because they know Americans are starting to feel the pain of their policies. It has gotten so bad that Democrats are celebrating a two-cent decline in gas prices. Oh, I thank Joe Biden for the two-cent decline.
It would be funny if it weren't so serious that the Energy Secretary doesn't even know that their plan to release from the strategic petroleum reserve was only about 2 days' worth of oil. There is nothing funny about this. And the administration responds by telling people to put on a sweater and buy an electric vehicle.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
You know, we face a lot of challenges in this country and, in large part, we are still trying to come out of a pandemic that the previous administration tried to ignore.
We actually have done some good things. We passed a major infrastructure bill. In the previous administration we had infrastructure week and infrastructure month, and a press conference, but we actually passed a real infrastructure bill with bipartisan support over in the Senate and a handful of Republicans here.
I say to the previous speaker, to suggest that the American people don't care about Islamophobia, I think, is insulting. I mean, you say that to the Muslim student being bullied in a classroom because of their faith, or say that to a Muslim worshipper at a mosque that has been attacked, or say that to a Muslim family that has been belittled because of ignorances being promoted by some, including some in this Chamber.
I mean, please, the American people are good and decent. They do not want to accept prejudice and bigotry and hate and discrimination. They expect better.
We heard some talk earlier about the Uyghurs, and we need to do more for the Uyghurs, which we are doing, but I got a little whiplash saying that we need to move faster to combat the atrocities against the Muslim Uyghur population, but then on the other hand, we are told that nobody cares. You can't have it both ways.
But to suggest that the American people are indifferent to prejudice is something I won't accept.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I didn't anticipate that we were going to talk about the pandemic, but since we are on the topic, let's just get one thing clear. There have been more deaths from this pandemic under President Biden than under President Trump. Remember, President Trump is the one that put forth Operation Warp Speed with our pharmaceutical industry to get a vaccine to market incredibly quick, in fact, in record-breaking time. So again, there were more deaths under President Biden than President Trump. So who is really ignoring the pandemic?
Let's talk about the Uyghurs. The Chinese openly and proudly refer to Uyghur concentration camps as reeducation camps. It is a sin how the Chinese are trying to cover up the modern-day concentration camps they have. They claim they are necessary to ``rid them of terrorists and extremist leanings.''
In these camps you have torture like sleep deprivation; people are being hung from walls; people are being locked in what is called a tiger chair, a steel chair with fixed leg irons and handcuffs that render their body immobile, often in very painful positions. Chinese officials have created a massive nearly week-long bonfire to burn documents that regard the oversight of these camps.
It is time that we call out the Chinese Communist Party for the atrocities they are committing on the Uyghurs.
When we are talking about legislation on this point it is actually the Speaker that slow-walked legislation by as much as 5 months. Let me explain the legislative history. The Senate passed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, which bans imports of goods made with forced Uyghur labor, in July of 2021 unanimously. That was in the Senate. Top House Democrats pointed to a procedural issue and promised future action and then finally passed the bill in December. Again, a 5-month delay for what?
Well, according to reports, the Speaker slow-walked this bill at the request of the Biden administration, who prioritized climate change and climate reforms over human rights violations in China. Further, the Biden administration asked that the bill be watered down, which is truly disgusting when you look at the human rights violations going on in China.
Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the gentlewoman from Georgia (Mrs. Greene).
Mrs. GREENE of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I rise in opposition to the Islamophobia bill. One thing that seems to be missing from this bill is the definition of Islamophobia. What this bill does is it sets up, through the State Department, an envoy to monitor and combat acts of Islamophobia and Islamophobic incitement that occur in foreign countries. This is about Islamophobia in foreign countries and the State Department monitoring and combating these acts. This is what we need to talk about. What does that exactly mean?
If we pass this resolution, does that mean our State Department is going to be monitoring how Israel responds when rockets are being fired from Hamas into Israel? If they defend themselves, does that mean the State Department is going to combat their actions because it will be considered Islamophobic? More questions need to be asked.
In Europe, there are no-go zones with high crime statistics. As a matter of fact, rape is a modern occurrence that happens all the time in these no-go zones. So if women are raped by Muslims in no-go zones and they want to file charges against them, is our State Department going to be monitoring those trials and then combating these women's defense because they are claiming it is Islamophobic because Muslim men raped them and that becomes part of the conversation?
What exactly does this mean, and why is our State Department taking this on? It shouldn't be. As a matter of fact, this is a bill that we should not be debating. This is a bill we should not be voting on because the United States State Department doesn't need to be monitoring and combating Islamophobia when it is not even defined in the bill for foreign countries; not the United States of America.
I have heard a lot of conversation from my colleagues across the aisle about Islamophobia in America, which we completely are against hate of any kind against anyone. And that is why we have laws against such hateful crimes and actions. But monitoring what is happening in foreign countries, which the State Department does, doesn't mean that it needs to combat Islamophobia when it is not even defined in the bill.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The time of the gentlewoman has expired.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield the gentlewoman an additional 15 seconds to summarize.
Mrs. GREENE of Georgia. This is a vote for every single person in Congress that should be ``no'' because this is an open door with no end to the book of where this can go for the United States of America, and this is a role that we should not be engaging in.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
I appreciate the fact that the gentleman yielded the gentlewoman more time because that made absolutely no sense to me.
Mr. Speaker, let me just say to the gentleman from Pennsylvania on the Uyghur thing; let me repeat the history again so it is clear to him. A year ago, we passed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act in the House. It went over to the Senate. Mitch McConnell and Donald Trump killed it. Nobody said a word.
The bill that passed last week that the gentleman was referring to is my bill. The bill that we are going to take up later today is my bill that we negotiated the differences between the House and Senate with Senator Rubio. The gentleman will be happy to know that the bill that we are passing today is stronger than the Senate-passed version. Maybe he would prefer a weaker version because that is what a lot of corporations that are very friendly to my Republican friends are now lobbying very hard for: a watered-down bill.
So this bill is not watered down. It is a stronger bill than passed the Senate. I would even like it to be stronger. But please, don't politicize human rights in a way where I think, to be fair, my friend is mischaracterizing what the history of this issue is. I don't take a back seat to anybody when it comes to human rights or it comes to human rights with regard to the Uyghurs. We have been fighting for this for a long time and we finally have a Speaker of the House and a President of the United States who will sign this bill when it gets there. And I want to thank the leadership in the Senate. I want to thank Senator Rubio. I want to thank Congressman Smith here in the House, Ranking Member McCaul, and Chairman Meeks for their cooperation.
But we are moving a bill forward that has teeth, that is real, that is tough. It is the strongest bill we have ever passed on this. But please don't politicize it. I have been working on this too long.
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time as I have no further speakers at this time, and I am prepared to close.
I applaud Chairman McGovern for his work on this piece of legislation. I applaud Senator Rubio, of course, and my colleague, Mr. Smith of New Jersey, for working on the legislation. And just to clarify, when I was talking about the watered-down version that the administration is trying to water down, I was talking about the Senate version of this bill. If I misspoke, I want to clarify the Record now. That is what I was speaking to.
But, again, I applaud anybody who is working on holding the Chinese Communist Party accountable for the atrocities they are committing on the Uyghurs. Let me be clear about something: House Republicans will continue to stand against all forms of hate and Islamophobia. We will continue to stand with Uyghurs in China and with all people experiencing religious persecution.
Unfortunately, H.R. 5665, this piece of legislation, is a rushed bill. It presents serious First Amendment concerns. It will complicate existing efforts to protect human rights and religious freedom around the globe. It is also incredibly duplicative. We already have the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor. We already have the Office of International Religious Freedom. We already have the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom. We already have institutions and bodies that are focused on this.
For those reasons, I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the previous question and ``no'' on the rule. I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time.
Mr. Speaker, let me just say again that this really shouldn't be controversial at all, and I am sad that it is being politicized by some of my friends on the other side of the aisle. We have heard one objection after the next to this bill which condemns Islamophobia as if somehow condemning Islamophobia is some sort of a radical idea.
I never thought I would yearn for the Republicanism of George W. Bush. But maybe things have gotten so out of control in the Republican Party today that Members cannot even stand here and publicly defend a Muslim from bullying or worse. I pray that is not the case.
Some things are about more than petty partisanship and towing the party line. This should be one of them.
{time} 1400
We have kids being bullied in school, hate crimes on the rise, mosques targeted for violence. That is just here in America. Around the world, Muslims are being silenced from public discourse, forced into detention camps, or disappeared altogether.
We are a Nation founded on the right to freedom of religion and freedom of worship. It is a fundamental part of being the United States of America. We must stand up and say that this is not right, the rise in Islamaphobia that we see globally.
I want to recognize the leadership of Congresswoman Omar, Congresswoman Schakowsky, and Chairman Meeks. They understand that this is the right thing to do. It is the American thing to do. They have worked tirelessly to get this bill to the House floor.
Now, we must get this bill over the finish line and on to the Senate because even today, even in this highly partisan era, the United States must and can still stand for human rights at home and abroad.
Mr. Speaker, I urge all of my colleagues to vote ``yes'' on this rule and the underlying legislation.
The material previously referred to by Mr. Reschenthaler is as follows:
Amendment to House Resolution 849
At the end of the resolution, add the following:
Sec. 2. Immediately upon adoption of this resolution, the House shall proceed to the consideration in the House of the bill (H.R. 6235) to provide for the development of a plan to increase oil and gas production under oil and gas leases of Federal lands under the jurisdiction of the Secretary of Agriculture, the Secretary of Energy, the Secretary of the Interior, and the Secretary of Defense in conjunction with a drawdown of petroleum reserves from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. All points of order against consideration of the bill are waived. The bill shall be considered as read. All points of order against provisions in the bill are waived. The previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill and on any amendment thereto to final passage without intervening motion except: (1) one hour of debate equally divided and controlled by the chair and ranking minority member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce; and (2) one motion to recommit.
Sec. 3. Clause 1(c) of rule XIX shall not apply to the consideration of H.R. 6235.
Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time, and I move the previous question on the resolution.
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Johnson of Georgia). The question is on ordering the previous question.
The question was taken; and the Speaker pro tempore announced that the ayes appeared to have it.
Mr. RESCHENTHALER. Mr. Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to section 3(s) of House Resolution 8, the yeas and nays are ordered.
Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further proceedings are postponed.
____________________
SOURCE: Congressional Record Vol. 167, No. 215
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