[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 28 (Tuesday, March 5, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H1666-H1667]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      SITUATION IN UNITED KINGDOM

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of May 
12, 1995, the gentleman from Indiana [Mr. Buyer] is recognized during 
morning business for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BUYER. Mr. Speaker, I come to the well today to share an insight 
with my colleagues. About 10 days ago I was in London, the United 
Kingdom, actually there by invitation of the Royal British Legion to 
discuss the gulf war illness issues to coordinate our research efforts 
between the two countries.
  What brings me to the well today is, I was constantly asked the 
question, whether it be from the news media, members of the Parliament, 
House of Lords or even the citizens in the United Kingdom, what are you 
doing in the United States?
  Many people in the United Kingdom were extremely upset with the 
United States, in particular the President of the United States, with a 
coddling of Gerry Adams of the IRA, now that they have broken away from 
the peace process and have continued the indiscriminate acts of terror. 
I was almost left speechless, having to defend the President of the 
United States in what he had done in the past and not only in the past, 
but I am now deeply disturbed that while in Northern Ireland they have 
broken away from the peace process, that the President continues to 
coddle Gerry Adams, the leader of the Sinn Fein, the political party of 
the IRA, while the citizens in London and the rest of the United 
Kingdom do not know if they can walk down the streets in safety, 
whether the phone booth will explode, whether they can ride on a city 
bus. And I can understand why they ask, what are you doing in the 
United States.
  My only response is that for some reason this one does not resonate 
with the American people like it should. For so long we have been 
insulated from indiscriminate acts of terror, yet we had the explosion 
in the World Trade Center. We had the experience of Oklahoma City 
bombing. And how it moved everyone in this Nation that someone could 
actually commit a cowardly act of terror, such as the Oklahoma City 
bombing of the Federal building. Yet when trying to relate this to what 
Gerry Adams and others in the IRA are doing in London, for some reason 
it does not resonate. You see how would we feel if the President of the 
United States had coddled those involved with the Oklahoma City bombing 
at the White House prior to the Oklahoma City bombing, how would we 
feel in this country?

                              {time}  0945

  We probably would be having impeachment proceedings right now. Now 
what we have is the President, who now exempts them from the terrorist 
list, permits fundraising to occur in this country, and the President 
now, even though they have broken away from the peace process, says, 
OK, and we will grant this visa to Gerry Adams to come to the United 
States. Something is not right here. This is a disconnect. How can that 
happen?
  So I want to share to my colleagues, if you are going to travel the 
United Kingdom, be prepared to answer that tough question, what are you 
doing in the United States coddling Gerry Adams and the Sinn Fein Party 
while indiscriminate acts of terror are occurring?
  You know we are going to have an antiterrorism bill come to this 
House floor here relatively soon, and I think what we should do is take 
a good hard look here as to whether or not it is going to permit 
fundraising to occur. Perhaps what the President should do; he has not 
asked for my advice; but I think what he should do is in fact not grant 
the visa to Gerry Adams, play a much harder line. I would also stop any

[[Page H1667]]

forms of fundraising to occur in this country. We all want the peace 
process to be successful in the United Kingdom with regard to Northern 
Ireland.
  So I wanted to share with the American people and with my colleagues 
my dismay and my disappointment with the President of the United States 
and with regard to how he is treating Gerry Adams and the Sinn Fein 
Party.

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