[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 160 (2014), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 12008]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                     SPECIAL IMMIGRANT VISA PROGRAM

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Oregon (Mr. Blumenauer) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, last Wednesday, I joined several of my 
colleagues and hundreds of people in the Congressional Auditorium to 
watch a gripping new film, ``The Interpreters,'' by VICE News, about 
the American failure to protect Afghans who helped our soldiers as 
guides, interpreters, and drivers. Their lives are now at risk as a 
result of their brave service and our failure to act.
  For almost a decade, I have been battling to have the United States 
honor these obligations by effectively implementing the Special 
Immigrant Visas program authorized by Congress. For a while, we were 
battling the bureaucracy itself, which issued an embarrassing total of 
32 visas for all of 2012 to help save these poor souls trapped in a 
bureaucratic hell.
  Since the beginning of the year, this bureaucratic logjam has broken 
and we have been able to raise it to an average of 400 a month. With 
that progress has come troubling news.
  Congress set the cap on these visas artificially low--only 3,000 for 
the entire fiscal year. These visas are effectively gone now. They are 
used up. It is not theoretical. We have 6,000 Afghan applicants in the 
pipeline right now and more who are looking for relief and safety.
  Recently, Secretary Kerry, in a powerful opinion piece in the LA 
Times, noted this challenge and called on Congress to act and raise the 
cap. With each day that passes, as is so vividly illustrated by VICE 
Media's gripping documentary, these are people whose lives and those of 
their families are left to the tender mercies of the Taliban seeking 
revenge and setting as an example.
  One case just caught my eye. The plight of Mohammad is typical. His 
father was murdered and his toddler brother was abducted, all because 
of his special service to the United States. Without a Special 
Immigrant Visa, he was next on the list to be kidnapped, tortured, and 
perhaps beheaded.
  As Secretary Kerry pointed out, ``the way a country winds down a war 
in a faraway place and stands by those who risk their own safety to 
help us in the fight sends a powerful message to the world that is not 
soon forgotten.'' Secretary Kerry said:

       And as the withdrawal proceeds, the United States is in 
     danger of sending the wrong message to the interpreters and 
     others who put their lives on the line to help our troops and 
     diplomats do their jobs.

  That is why this is so urgent.
  Remember how we brought the Iraqi Special Immigrant Visa back to life 
last October in the middle of impossible circumstances during the 
government shutdown? There was bipartisan support, thanks to Leader 
Cantor, Leader Hoyer, Chairman Goodlatte, Tulsi Gabbard, Adam 
Kinzinger, and others. A number of bipartisan leaders sprung to action. 
We need that same bipartisan spirit of support and urgency for the 
Afghan visa program. As soon as possible, Congress must authorize at 
least 1,000 additional visas for this fiscal year to get us through 
these next critical months.
  It is the moral obligation of every Member of Congress not to just 
cosponsor H.R. 4594, the bipartisan Afghan Allies Protection Act, which 
I have introduced with my friend and colleague Adam Kinzinger and 
Senators McCain and Shaheen in the Senate, but we should demand action 
before we adjourn.
  As Congressman Kinzinger pointed out, it doesn't matter where you 
stood on the Iraq war--I thought it was a tragic mistake, and I still 
do--but what matters now is where we stand in keeping our commitments. 
Innocent lives are at stake. American honor is on the line. Our future 
actions could be compromised if people don't trust us.
  It is our duty to save the lives of those who risked so much to help 
us when we needed them. They need us to cosponsor H.R. 4594 to protect 
innocent lives and American honor.

                          ____________________