[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 41 (Tuesday, March 15, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E312]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            THE RISE OF ISIS

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. PETE OLSON

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 15, 2016

  Mr. OLSON. Mr. Speaker, I am privileged to interact with some of the 
brightest students in the 22nd Congressional District who serve on my 
Congressional Youth Advisory Council. I have gained much by listening 
to the high school students who are the future of this great nation. 
They provide important insight from across the political spectrum that 
sheds a light on the concerns of our younger constituents. Giving voice 
to their priorities will hopefully instill a better sense of the 
importance of being an active participant in the political process. 
Many of the students have written short essays on a variety of topics 
and I am pleased to share them with my House colleagues.
  Cameron Kallina attends Seven Lakes High School in Katy, Texas. The 
essay topic is: The rise of ISIS.

       The rise of ISIS in the past year has taken a toll on the 
     perception of the terroristic group from a blatant ``JV 
     team'', the words of our Commander in Chief, to a threat even 
     greater than Al Qaeda. They have demonstrated time and time 
     again that they are serious and are here to stay. From Paris 
     to the shooting down of a Russian commercial airline, the 
     actions of these attacks have shaken sense of security of 
     everyday normal life.
       ISIS is a terrorist militant group, disowned by Al Qaeda in 
     early 2014 due to their brutal tactics, which has risen to 
     power through the massive land they have conquered from 
     Northern Syria to Central Iraq. They are the richest terror 
     group in the world due to owning over half of Syria's oil 
     assets and those profits from the oil help independently fund 
     their regime.
       Their actions have had an impact on not only the United 
     States, but abroad as well. ISIS has become a focus of the 
     2016 Presidential election. Where prior to the attacks of 
     late 2015 the focus of the debates centered on the economy, 
     there has been a shift to national security, especially how 
     to implement measures and how to maintain it. According to a 
     Gallup poll which was published on December 14, 2015, 16% of 
     Americans think terrorism is now the number one issue in the 
     election, up from 3% in early November. (http://
www.gallup.com/poll/187655/americans-name-terrorism-
noproblem.aspx) The candidates differ on how to handle the 
     rising situation. The candidates all have their theory on how 
     to defeat this group. One idea from Hillary Clinton states we 
     should shut down every terrorist account on social media, 
     Donald Trump has made statements that we should ban all 
     Muslims from entering the country, Ted Cruz says we must 
     stand with our Allies against the terror threat, and there 
     are many other ideas from other candidates that have their 
     own strategy for facing ISIS.
       Our sense of security has also been shaken. The ruthless 
     terrorist attacks on Paris, France left the world in a 
     shocked state of disbelief. 130 people were massacred and 368 
     were wounded that night at Stade de France, cafes, 
     restaurants, and a concert hall. It left a scar on France 
     they'll never forget. It seemed nowhere was safe; any place 
     could now be a target. And citizens around the world were 
     aware of this, tensions were high as everyone waited with the 
     anticipation of another attack happening. Cities in Europe 
     and the United States were on a heightened alert in the days 
     and weeks following.
       These acts of violence has shown the true colors and 
     motivation of this radical regime. They show no intentions of 
     letting up and have become a threat, not just to the U.S.A., 
     but to all of the Western Civilized world. America must lead 
     the fight against these monsters with the help of our Allies 
     to secure victory and peace worldwide.

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