[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 22 (Monday, February 8, 2016)]
[Senate]
[Pages S696-S697]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
UNANIMOUS CONSENT REQUESTS--EXECUTIVE CALENDAR
Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I rise today for the fifth time to ask
unanimous consent for a vote for the Ambassadors to Norway and Sweden.
Senator Cruz has been objecting to this. I appreciate the bipartisan
support for these nominees. They made it through the committees without
any objections.
These are the 11th and 12th biggest investors in the United States of
America. They are our allies. They are our allies in our fight against
Russian aggression. Norway shares a border with Russia. Yet every major
European
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country has an ambassador except Norway and Sweden.
I ask unanimous consent that the Senate proceed to executive session
to consider the nomination of Samuel D. Heins, Calendar No. 263; that
the Senate proceed to vote without intervening action or debate on the
nomination; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered
made and laid upon the table.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Lankford). Is there objection?
The majority leader.
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, on behalf of the junior Senator from
Texas, Mr. Cruz, I object.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
The Senator from Minnesota.
Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the Senate
proceed to executive session to consider the following nomination that
is to the country of Sweden: Azita Raji, Calendar No. 148; that the
Senate proceed to vote without intervening action or debate on the
nomination; that if confirmed, the motion to reconsider be considered
made and laid upon the table.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
The majority leader.
Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, on behalf of the junior Senator from
Texas, Mr. Cruz, I object.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Objection is heard.
The Senator from Minnesota.
Ms. KLOBUCHAR. Mr. President, as I said, this has been a bipartisan
effort to get these two nominees confirmed. There is no one holding up
the vote on these nominations except for Senator Cruz. We asked him to
remove these holds. He has not voiced any concerns about these
individual nominees. He has voiced concerns about unrelated foreign
policy issues. There have been other holds in the past, but everyone
has lifted their hold. I note that even Senator Cotton from Arkansas
has said that there are no issues with the qualifications of these
nominees and that these nominees should proceed to a vote.
As I said, this is the fifth time I have come to the floor. I have
also been joined by Senator Cardin, Senator Shaheen, and Senator
Franken. This is something that has to get done.
Listen to these numbers: Sam Heins has been waiting for 293 days to
be confirmed as the U.S. ambassador to Norway. Azita Raji has been
waiting 474 days to be confirmed as the first female U.S. Ambassador to
Sweden. Both of these nominees were voted out of the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee without controversy and with significant bipartisan
support. Not a single Senator has questioned the qualifications of Sam
Heins or Azita Raji. That is because they are both qualified to take
these jobs.
We have an ambassador in France. We have an ambassador in England. We
have an ambassador in Italy. We have an ambassador in Germany. We have
an ambassador to nearly every European nation but not these two
Scandinavian countries.
More than 1,200 refugees seek asylum in Sweden every single day. I
cannot tell my colleagues how many times I have heard people on both
sides of the aisle talk about how during this refugee crisis we need a
strong and unified Europe, and we need to be their allies, and they
need to be our allies. While we may have disagreements on how to solve
all of the refugee crises, we have to at least give support to our
allies who are taking in these refugees.
Sweden accepts more refugees per capita than any other country in the
European Union. Norway expects to take in as many as 25,000 refugees
this year. It has already provided more than $6 million to Greece to
help respond to the influx of refugees seeking a way to enter Europe.
All of us on both sides of the aisle have talked about this. Yet, right
now, no Ambassadors are in those two critical countries.
I would note they have Ambassadors from China in those countries.
They have Ambassadors from Russia. They have Ambassadors. So the people
of their countries who love the United States, who respect the United
States, who travel to the United States, they want to know: How come
every major nation has an ambassador to our country but not the United
States of America?
We also understand the important economic contributions Sweden and
Norway make to our country. These diplomatic relations are 200 years
old. That is why we have widespread support for these nominees. Yet one
Senator--how can one Senator stand in the way of a vote affecting
relations that are 200 years old?
Our economic partnership with these countries is enormous. Sweden
supports over 330,700 American jobs across 50 States. In the case of
Norway, our trade partnership is $16 billion--$7 billion in exports, $9
billion in imports. Leaving these countries without a U.S. Ambassador
is a slap in the face to their governments, their people, and all of
the American workers who are supported by Swedish and Norwegian
investment in the United States. That is happening today.
In addition to Sam Heins and Azita Raji, there are other nominees who
are vital in our fight against terrorism; however, I am going to focus
today on these two nominees.
We have two countries, Norway and Sweden, that are members of NATO,
that have joined us in the fight against Islamic extremists, that have
joined us in the fight against ISIS. This is no way to treat them.
I would also add, in kind of a combination of our national security
interests and economic interests, that Norway has now signed to
purchase 252 fighter planes--22 just recently--from Lockheed Martin.
Those fighter planes are made in America. The country of Norway could
have decided to buy those fighter planes from any nation in the world.
They could have bought those fighter planes from Europe. Where did they
buy those fighter planes from? They brought them from the United
States, from Lockheed Martin, and that company is located in Texas.
Those fighter planes are made in Fort Worth, TX, Senator Cruz's home
State.
So what do we say to Norway when they invest? We can do the math--
nearly $200 million a plane, 22 planes. So they have strong national
security, as we see Russian aggression and Islamic extremism and as
they join with us in fights across the world. What do we say? You are
not worthy of an ambassador. Because one Senator--the Senator from the
State where those fighter planes are made, from Fort Worth, TX--has
decided to hold this up.
What are we doing when we say to a major company in the United States
that got a major deal with a foreign government that that government is
not worthy of having an ambassador? What kind of encouragement do we
give when we don't even let them have an ambassador?
This is one of many examples of what is going on and why the people
are so angry. We have heard from the Foreign Minister. We have seen
comments from people of Norwegian descent and Swedish descent who do
not understand how this could be going on right now, given everything
Europe is confronting.
It is my hope that we will be able to work these things out. We have
been given various reasons from letters that have been written, to
streets in front of embassies, for this hold. But we are hopeful that
somehow we are going to be able to work this out. This is because of
one Senator who is not even here in this Chamber day after day after
day when I return to put these names in for Ambassador.
We are not stopping. Senator Shaheen and I are going to come to this
floor every single day and make the case for these countries. I am
hopeful we will be able to resolve this.
Mr. President, I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Alaska.
Mr. SULLIVAN. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to enter into a
colloquy with the junior Senator from Montana for 20 minutes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
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