[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 61 (Monday, April 16, 2018)]
[House]
[Page H3320]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                      RUSSIANS LIED--SYRIANS DIED

  (Mr. POE of Texas asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, the Russians lied.
  In 2013, the Russian bear entered into a sweeping agreement with the 
United States. The deal, Syria's arsenal of chemical weapons would be 
removed by the middle of 2014. Russia would guarantee this agreement. 
In return, the United States would indefinitely stall air strikes.
  For months, we have watched in horror as defenseless men, women, and 
children were murdered by the rogue Syrian regime, intent on using 
chemical weapons against their own people. Friday evening, President 
Trump joined our allies, France and Britain, to authorize precision air 
strikes against chemical weapon production and storage in Syria. This 
decisive retaliation was an appropriate, targeted response to this 
horrific crime. No chemical weapons in Syria.
  However, the United States' role in Syria must be focused. The U.S.' 
purpose in Syria is to eradicate the influence of ISIS. Any other U.S. 
military escalation of the Syrian war must be authorized by Congress. 
But meanwhile, Assad the butcher now knows from our President not to 
cross a red line and use chemical weapons on his people.
  And that is just the way it is.

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