[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 16455]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              THE UNESCO VOTE ON THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY

  (Mr. OLSON asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. OLSON. Mr. Speaker, I rise with deep concerns about yesterday's 
vote to grant the Palestinians full membership in the U.N. organization 
known as UNESCO.
  America has been crystal clear about what the consequences would be 
for this kind of end run around negotiated peace between Israel and the 
Palestinians seeking their own nation. This action by UNESCO emboldens 
the fraudulent Palestinian bid for recognition without the Palestinians 
immediately recognizing Israel's right to exist as a Jewish nation-
state or even denouncing their stated goal of Israel's destruction.
  The United States had no choice but to refuse to make a scheduled $60 
million transfer to UNESCO. That $60 million should be used to pay down 
our Federal debt instead of to support an organization committed to 
thwarting peace in the Middle East.

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