[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 121 (Wednesday, July 18, 2018)]
[House]
[Page H6475]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     KEEPING THE PRESIDENT IN CHECK

  (Mr. PANETTA asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. PANETTA. Mr. Speaker, this week, we witnessed the weakening of 
the Presidency due to the actions of this President.
  Now, I realize that President Trump is not constrained by customs, 
norms, or decorum, but his actions this week contravened his oath to 
preserve, protect, and defend the United States Constitution.
  Yes, this President likes to act tough with tweets and trash talk, 
but he has proven that he is unwilling to get tough with adversaries 
when he stands face to face.
  What is worse is that he is willing to sell out our intelligence 
agencies in order to suck up to the leader of a nation that has 
attacked us and continues to attack many democracies around the world.
  Hopefully, his actions will motivate this body, our Congress, to act. 
Let's condemn these comments. Let's protect the special counsel. Let's 
protect the integrity of our elections. Let's fully implement the 
Russian sanctions passed last year and pass even harsher ones, if 
Russia does this again.
  By doing anything, we can keep this President in check. When we do 
that, we restore the credibility of our Presidency. If we do that, we 
uphold the credibility of this Congress by fulfilling our oath to our 
democracy, so help us God.

                          ____________________