[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 10]
[House]
[Page 13878]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1030
                                 LIBYA

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Dreier) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. DREIER. Madam Speaker, back in 2009, my good friend and the 
cochair of the House Democracy Partnership, David Price of North 
Carolina, and I had the opportunity to visit former General--and at 
that time, U.S. Ambassador--Karl Eikenberry, Ambassador to Afghanistan.
  We were at the Ambassador's residence in Kabul, and I was struck with 
a statement that was made by General Ambassador Eikenberry. He said we 
have a tendency, as Americans, to express appreciation to men and women 
in uniform, those men and women who served in our Nation's Armed Forces 
around the world, but too rarely do we extend our appreciation to the 
men and women who represent the United States of America in the Foreign 
Service as diplomats around the world, and General Eikenberry 
encouraged us to do that. And Mr. Price and I have consistently done 
that in the visits of the House Democracy Partnership to the 17 
countries with which we've partnered over the past 7 years.
  I have to say that 3 years later, just a few months ago, Mr. Price 
and I were leading a delegation to Afghanistan and we recounted that 
story to our great diplomat, Ryan Crocker, the U.S. Ambassador to 
Afghanistan. Ambassador Crocker, when we shared the story with him, 
reminded us that more U.S. Ambassadors have been killed since the 
Vietnam War than generals or admirals. We know that down at the Harry 
S. Truman Building, there is a plaque that lists the names of the 231 
U.S. diplomats who have been killed since the first death in 1780. And, 
Madam Speaker, I have to say that the news that we have of the tragic 
death of Ambassador Chris Stevens in Benghazi, the U.S. consulate in 
Libya, is very sad news for all of us.
  Now, the upheaval in the Arab world has brought about many great 
things. For the first time in millennia, there are individuals who have 
been able to participate in elections and make decisions. But then we 
get the sad and tragic news that Ambassador Stevens and, according to 
the early reports, two marines, maybe another Foreign Service officer, 
were killed in this tragic attack.
  I would like to say that we have spent time there. We were just in 
Libya, Mr. Price and I, just a few weeks before Ambassador Stevens 
arrived, and Libya is a place that has held out great promise. I am 
determined, as I know Mr. Price is, to ensure that the promise that we 
saw several weeks ago in Libya will not be shattered by the tragic 
death of Ambassador Stevens.
  Madam Speaker, I'm pleased to be joined by my dear friend and 
colleague, Mr. Price, and would like to yield to him at this point.
  Mr. PRICE of North Carolina. I thank my colleague for yielding.
  Mr. Dreier and I have partnered for many years in the work of the 
House Democracy Partnership, which we and many others in this body 
believe in very deeply--that we need to be good colleagues, not just 
nationally, but internationally. And we need to reach out in ways that 
can strengthen democracy, strengthen representative institutions, in 
countries that are friends of our country. We can help encourage and 
strengthen those parliaments. That's exactly why we visited Libya back 
in the spring, a delegation led by Mr. Dreier. We were there a few 
weeks before Ambassador Stevens arrived.
  We were struck by the promise of Libya. Of course they've had 42 
years of dictatorial rule. The country has been liberated through the 
efforts of NATO allies. There are still major challenges--obviously, 
security challenges, as we are learning in a tragic way today--but the 
country is gradually being secured. Constituent assembly elections have 
been held and parliamentary elections are on the way. So we have great 
hope for Libya. We have been and we will be a friend to Libya in 
helping to realize the promise of the Arab Spring.
  Our solemn purpose here today is to mark this tragic loss, the eighth 
Ambassador in U.S. history to be killed in the line of duty. Our 
personnel in Libya are dedicated personnel, the best that the U.S. has 
to offer. The work that they're doing there is challenging and 
dangerous. The work promotes our national interest and is very, very 
valuable to Libya and to us. This horrible tragedy is one that we want 
to mark in this House here today, as we honor the victims of this 
attack and those who continue to serve.
  Mr. DREIER. I thank my friend for his contribution.
  Madam Speaker, if I may simply extend condolences to the loved ones 
of Ambassador Stevens and to say that we need to ensure that those who 
are responsible for this tragic death are brought to justice. And we 
need to do everything that we can to continue to encourage the 
development of the rule of law, self-determination, political 
pluralism, and, as Mr. Price has just said, the development of 
democratic institutions around the world. It's a universal right, and 
the United States of America is the single best model for that.
  So our thoughts and prayers, again, are with the loved ones of 
Ambassador Stevens.

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