[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 1]
[House]
[Pages 403-404]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         THE FRENCH FIGHT BACK

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Texas (Mr. Poe) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. POE of Texas. Madam Speaker, around 11 a.m. on January 7, on a 
cold winter day in Paris, France, two men armed with AK-47s forced a 
woman entering the offices of a French newspaper to let them in.
  After murdering the security guard in the lobby, they ran up to the 
second floor and shouted, ``Where is Charb? Where is Charb?'' Charb is 
the nickname for the newspaper's editor, Mr. Charbonnier.
  Over the next 5 minutes, the two men would seek out and execute Mr. 
Charbonnier and 10 other people in the newspaper. They left the 
building, shouting the Islamic phrase, ``Allah Akbar'' or ``God is the 
greatest.'' They then murdered a policeman, ran back to their car, 
shouting, ``We have revenged the Prophet Muhammad.''
  You see, Madam Speaker, these killers murdered because the paper 
exercised the human right of free speech and a free press. The assassin 
brothers were on the run for 2 days, but on January 9, the police 
cornered them at a standoff near the Paris airport. The police rescued 
a hostage, and the brothers were killed, going out just like they 
wanted to, in a massive firefight as martyrs.
  On the same day, another gunman, but an accomplice of the two 
brothers, took hostages at a kosher grocery store on the east side of 
Paris. Police stormed the grocery store and killed the terrorist, but 
not before he had murdered Jewish hostages.
  You see, Madam Speaker, these three killed because people disagreed 
with them. They killed the Jews because they were Jews. They killed the 
people at the newspaper because they had the audacity to print things 
that these folks--these terrorists--did not approve of.
  The French authorities did a superb job hunting down and killing 
these terrorists. The two brothers responsible for the initial attack 
have a history of terrorist activities. One brother said he even 
dreamed of killing Jews in France.
  Hours before one of them met his Maker, they called a French TV 
station, saying, ``We are telling you that we are defenders of the 
Prophet--peace and blessings be upon him--and that I was sent by al 
Qaeda in Yemen and that I went there, and it is the imam al-Awlaki that 
financed me.''
  Yes, Madam Speaker, we have heard this before, young people traveling 
overseas where they meet radical Islamic jihadists who preach hate and 
murder in the name of religion.

                              {time}  1215

  They are indoctrinated and infected with the cancer of radical Islam 
and sent back to their home country to inflict terror and kill men, 
women, and children. They kill in the name of their radical religious 
beliefs.
  We are even seeing this in the United States. Groups like ISIS are 
encouraging Americans to join their reign of terror. Americans who 
travel overseas to fight with ISIS are not coming back home to America 
to open coffee shops. They are coming back to do mischief and kill us.
  That is why I have introduced and reintroduced the FTO Passport 
Revocation Act that would authorize the revocation or denial of 
passports to individuals affiliated with foreign terrorist 
organizations. The Benedict Arnold traitors who turn against America 
and join the ranks of foreign radical terrorist organizations should 
lose their rights. This bill will help law enforcement locate these 
individuals by preventing them from traveling internationally so they 
can be captured and brought to justice. Most importantly, this 
legislation will prevent traitor Americans from entering the United 
States undetected.
  Madam Speaker, the French people held a solidarity rally in honor of 
the murdered. It was also a statement of freedom. Some estimated over 2 
million attended the rally in Paris. Marching arm in arm with French 
President Hollande were 40 world leaders, including German Chancellor 
Merkel, Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu, and Palestinian President 
Abbas.
  Unfortunately, the United States President, the Vice President, and 
the Secretary of State did not choose to show up and support this 
solidarity meeting. That is unfortunate. The French are a close ally 
and our oldest ally. We have a portrait of the great Frenchman 
Lafayette in this very Chamber across the way from George Washington.
  Freedom is under attack by these terrorists. They are a threat to 
civilization, order, and liberty. The United States should be more 
outspoken in our support for the French people and our opposition to 
terror. We should support our allies like the French and mourn when 
they mourn and be resolved to track terrorists down anywhere in the 
world where they are. They are at war with us, Madam Speaker.

[[Page 404]]

  The French Prime Minister said it best:

       We are fighting a war, not a war against religion, not a 
     war of civilizations, but to defend our values, which are 
     universal. It is a war against terrorism and radical Islam, 
     against everything that aims to shatter solidarity, liberty, 
     and brotherhood.

  And that is just the way it is.

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