[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 8]
[Senate]
[Page 11348]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                                 HAITI

  Mr. DURBIN. Madam President, over the Fourth of July recess, I joined 
with Senator Bill Nelson and we went to Haiti. It is not a popular spot 
for Members of Congress to go on a weekend, but we made a point of 
going. It was a return trip for both of us.
  Our visit the first time was 5 years ago, after the devastating 
earthquake that left the capital city of Port au Prince in ruins, 
claimed more than 200,000 lives, and more than 1 million people were 
displaced from their homes. I recall visiting the island that many 
years ago, 2 years after the earthquake, and witnessing the ongoing 
devastation--people still living in tents. So it was with some 
satisfaction to see that Haiti has come a long way. Buildings are being 
rebuilt, the overwhelming majority of those displaced have found 
housing, and the economy is starting to recover.
  The United States has been a major contributor to Haiti's recovery, 
and I want to praise the dedicated American Government officials who 
work in a challenging environment--notably under the incredible and 
tireless and amazing leadership of our U.S. Ambassador in Haiti, Pam 
White, a career employee of USAID and now our Nation's Ambassador to 
Haiti.
  I noted that the Senate recently confirmed a couple of President 
Obama's nominees to become Ambassadors. There are now dozens still 
waiting. Can you imagine the United States of America in our Embassies 
overseas with no Ambassador month after month after month, when worthy 
people have been nominated and the U.S. Senate refuses to even consider 
an Obama nomination for Ambassador? Many of these are not political. 
They are career. They spent their career working in the State 
Department. Now, at the end of their career, they are named Ambassador, 
and the Foreign Relations Committee in the Senate, under Republican 
leadership, refuses to call President Obama's nominees for these 
ambassadorial posts.
  In many countries, the foreign minister in those countries counts the 
days and weeks that the United States has not had an ambassador. It is 
an embarrassment. I hope the majority party now will at least give the 
President and our Nation the opportunity to put good representatives of 
our countries overseas.
  Madam President, I wish to say a few words about the current 
President of Haiti, whose term ends this year. His name is Michel 
Joseph Martelly. He is known as Sweet Micky, which used to be his stage 
name when he was a rock and roll singer. He has now been the President 
4\1/2\ years and has done some very good things. He wisely guided his 
nation through the post-earthquake process and a lot of political 
change.
  The end of his term marks an important moment for Haiti and its 
future. Given that the Haitian Parliament dissolved in January, the 
success and timeliness of these elections cannot be overstated. I urge 
the political parties and candidates to renounce the use of electoral 
violence and to participate constructively in the upcoming election. 
And I hope that the neighboring country, the Dominican Republic, will 
join with Haiti in resolving some very vexing immigration problems 
between these two countries. These are problems which involve some of 
the poorest people on that island of Hispaniola. We need to find a way 
to treat them in a decent and humane fashion so they can ultimately be 
located in a place where they can maintain their dignity and their 
work.

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