[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 125 (Wednesday, July 27, 2022)]
[House]
[Page H7177]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




        AMERICANS DETAINED IN FOREIGN COUNTRIES DESERVE ANSWERS

  (Mr. BURCHETT asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BURCHETT. Mr. Speaker, dozens of Americans are being detained in 
foreign countries, and this has been brought to everybody's attention 
by the latest deal in Russia. These families deserve answers from our 
State Department about what is being done for their cases.
  One of these folks is an east Tennessean, a marine named Matthew 
Heath, who is being held in communist Venezuela. Right now, his family 
is back in Tennessee, wondering when their boy will come home and what 
will happen to him in the future.
  Mr. Speaker, they deserve real answers from the State Department, not 
just some bureaucratic nonsense. When it comes to cases like this, the 
Federal Government needs to be totally transparent, at least with 
folks' families.
  On the poster beside me, you can see a picture of a mural placed here 
in Washington, D.C., by artist Isaac Campbell. I spoke with Isaac this 
week. The mural is meant to draw attention to the dire situation. It 
depicts 18 of the 64 detained Americans, including Matthew Heath.
  The mural isn't permanent. It will wash away with the rain and with 
normal wear and tear. That is what it is meant to do. As we watch the 
mural deteriorate, we are left to wonder what is going to happen to 
these individuals by the time it disappears. Are they going to come 
home, or will they be abandoned by our government?
  Their moms and dads, brothers and sisters, loved ones and kids 
deserve answers from our State Department about what is really 
happening to their loved ones.

                          ____________________