[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 119 (Wednesday, September 10, 1997)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1722]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        THERE'S TOO MUCH TO LOSE

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. ADAM SMITH

                             of washington

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 10, 1997

  Mr. ADAM SMITH of Washington. Mr. Speaker, a few days ago this House 
passed a good foreign operations bill, a bill which was structured to 
help ensure stability, prosperity, equality, and peace to our neighbors 
and allies around the world. But on that very same day, we witnessed an 
outrageous and cowardly act of terrorism, a triple bombing that shook 
the city of Jerusalem. And we were reminded that there are those who do 
not want peace, people who would destroy and tear down rather than 
resolving differences through negotiation and compromise.
  Such actions are completely intolerable, and so I stand here today to 
reiterate what Secretary of State Madeleine Albright has already 
stated, that the United States expects a ``100 percent effort'' by the 
Palestinian Authority to stop militants from using areas under 
Palestinian self-rule as a springboard for attacks on Israel. On this 
issue there can be no compromise. A serious discussion of peace can not 
take place while terrorists are receiving nods and winks by the 
negotiators who are sitting at the bargaining tables.
  And let us not confuse the issue, bombs are not the same as 
bulldozers. Recently, many papers have printed that this new wave of 
bombings is the result of controversial housing policies. While the 
Middle East peace process has had to overcome many obstacles, and will 
certainly have to continue to overcome many more, we can not begin to 
compare the actions of terrorists to the building policies of a 
government. There is no moral equivalency.
  So as Secretary of State Madeleine Albright begins her visit to the 
Middle East today, I call upon all the parties involved to bring their 
issues to the bargaining table. The terrorists are waging war, and it 
is a war on peace. As difficult as it may be, we must find a compromise 
because we cannot let the terrorists win. There is much too much to 
lose.

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