[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 164 (Thursday, October 17, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Page S5856]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                            TURKEY AND SYRIA

  Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, on an entirely different matter, I 
was encouraged to see yesterday's display of bipartisan concern in the 
House of Representatives for sustaining America's global leadership 
and, specifically, over the damaging impact of hastily withdrawing that 
leadership from Syria.
  Back in January, I led a forward-looking debate here in the Senate on 
these very issues. I sponsored an amendment to S. 1 that earned the 
support of a bipartisan supermajority--70 Senators. We went on the 
record as opposing a premature exit from Syria or Afghanistan and 
emphasized the need for sustained American leadership in the fight 
against terrorism.
  I was disappointed when a number of leading Democrats, including my 
counterpart, the Democratic leader, and most of our colleagues who are 
running for President, voted against this bipartisan consensus, but, 
overall, a huge majority of the Senate spoke up strongly.
  I know many of us are keen on engaging in these important issues 
further in light of recent events. As the Senate debates our Middle 
East policy and contemplates what action to take, I believe it is 
important that we make a strong, forward-looking, strategic statement.
  For that reason, my preference would be for something even stronger 
than the resolution the House passed yesterday, which has some serious 
weaknesses. It is so narrowly drafted that it fails to address the 
plight of imperiled Sunni Arab and minority Christian communities in 
Syria. It is backward-looking, and it is curiously silent on the issue 
of whether to actually sustain a U.S. military presence in Syria, 
perhaps to spare the Democrats from having to go on the record on this 
key question.
  So my first preference is for something stronger than the House 
resolution. I look forward to continuing to engage with my colleagues 
on both sides of the aisle as we chart the right course, and I expect 
many of us will have much more to say on the subject very soon.

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