[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 5]
[House]
[Page 6278]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




               MR. PUTIN: THE AGGRESSOR IN EASTERN EUROPE

  (Mr. POE of Texas asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. POE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, last week I traveled with a bipartisan 
delegation to see firsthand the situation on the ground in ``Putin's 
Ukraine.'' The Napoleon of Siberia has driven his tanks over the 
administration's ``reset'' button. He launched a blitzkrieg-style 
aggression, stole Crimea, and he doesn't appear to be through.
  The West's timid response to Putin's aggression has failed to stop 
his crusade to restore the former Soviet empire. He does not fear the 
United States. With our response so far, why should he?
  Instead of retreating, Putin has brought back his imperialistic 
tactics from the old Soviet playbook. The consensus on the ground is 
that the worst is yet to come. It is time for the administration to 
stand up against Putin.
  We must implement sanctions that actually work where it will hurt 
Russia's economy the most--and start with the financial and energy 
sectors. We must expedite the approval of U.S. natural gas export 
permits so Ukraine and other European countries can buy American 
instead. And we can end Russia's monopoly and stranglehold over Europe 
when it comes to energy. We need to put the Russian bear back in the 
cage.
  And that's just the way it is.

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