[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 4]
[Senate]
[Pages 5849-5851]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           EXECUTIVE CALENDAR

  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will report the nomination.
  The bill clerk read the nomination of Rod J. Rosenstein, of Maryland, 
to be Deputy Attorney General.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Georgia.


                      Confirmation of Sonny Perdue

  Mr. PERDUE. Mr. President, I rise tonight to speak briefly about our 
new Secretary of Agriculture, my first cousin Sonny Perdue. I grew up 
with this man. I probably know too much about him, but we won't go 
there tonight. He grew up on a farm. He became a doctor of veterinary 
medicine and served in the Air Force. He had an ag business for the 
past 40 years. He and I have been in business together. I have seen his 
integrity, and I have seen his responsibility all my life.
  He is the first Republican Governor in over 135 years in our State in 
Georgia--just 15 years ago now, I guess. He served two terms. He 
created the Commission for a New Georgia, and he started an economic 
development focus in our State that has carried on for the last 15 
years and has yielded the fact that our State today, by independent 
reports, is the best State in the country in which to do business.
  Tonight, he has been confirmed as our next Secretary of Agriculture. 
I could not be more proud for him, for our family, and, most 
importantly, for our country. I want to be the first in this august 
body to call my cousin Sonny Perdue by his new title: Mr. Secretary.
  I believe he is an outstanding candidate. I want to commend the 
President of the United States for his nomination. I think this is 
further evidence that this President, Donald J. Trump, is building an 
outstanding Cabinet with which to change the direction of our country, 
to get this economy going, to put America back to work again, to 
reengage internationally, and develop a fair and level playing field 
for the rest of the world economically.
  As Secretary of Agriculture, my cousin has a big job, and he has a 
big responsibility. I look forward to working with him as a member of 
the Senate Agriculture Committee to make our agricultural and farming 
and ranching industries vigorous and strong now and for future 
generations.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Arkansas.
  Mr. BOOZMAN. Mr. President, I am grateful for this opportunity also 
to offer a few remarks on the confirmation of Governor Sonny Perdue as 
Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. President Trump could 
not have nominated a more qualified individual to lead the USDA.
  Today's vote is not only a huge win for agriculture and rural 
America, but it is a win for the American economy. This vote also 
represents the first time since the 1990s that a southerner has become 
Secretary of USDA. For many Arkansans, agriculture is not just a rich 
part of our State's heritage; it is our livelihood.
  Over the last few years, this livelihood has been threatened due to 
tough economic times in the farm economy. As I travel across the State 
of Arkansas, I see and hear about those challenges firsthand. In 2013, 
the farm economy accounted for a record high of $120 billion. Three 
years later, the farm economy now has accounted for a record low of $67 
billion. This is a really hard time for the farm economy, and folks are 
really hurting in rural America.
  Now more than ever, our farmers and ranchers need a champion. I 
believe Sonny Perdue is that champion. One of the ways we can help our 
farm economy is by opening new markets for American products. I was 
pleased that during his confirmation hearing, Governor Perdue expresses 
his support for working hard to open new markets to American 
agricultural products.
  As a two-term Governor from Georgia with a background in agriculture 
and as a veterinarian, he understands the importance of the agriculture 
industry to our economy and the challenges our farmers and ranchers 
face in rural communities. I can think of no better person to lead the 
USDA during this challenging time. Governor Perdue's resume is 
impressive, and he is highly respected in the agriculture community.
  Simply put, he has what it takes to get the job done. I congratulate 
Governor Perdue on his confirmation as

[[Page 5850]]

Secretary of USDA. I thank my colleagues in the Senate for their 
support, and I look forward to working closely with him and his staff 
to address the needs of rural America.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Mississippi.


                                  OSCE

  Mr. WICKER. Mr. President, I was saddened to learn that an American 
member of the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to Ukraine was killed 
this past weekend by a landmine. Joseph Stone was carrying out his 
duties in territory controlled by Russian-backed separatists. Two other 
members of the team--one from the Czech Republic and another from 
Germany--were injured.
  The Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe controls 
these monitoring teams. They are comprised of unarmed civilians. The 
mission has been in the region since 2014, when, unfortunately, 
Russian-backed troops invaded Crimea. Had Russia lived up to the Minsk 
agreements and ceased supporting, directing, funding, and fueling 
separatists in this region, there would have been no need for the 
mission to continue.
  Sadly, that is not the case. This particular special monitoring 
mission currently fields roughly 700 monitors, with 600 of them in 
Donetsk and Luhansk. Those who are part of this mission are unarmed 
civilians. They serve as the eyes and ears for the world in the 
conflict zone. They report on the near-constant violations of the 
cease-fire, as well as reporting on humanitarian needs of the 
population.
  They play an essential role in the understanding of the situation on 
the ground, often under extremely difficult circumstances and, 
certainly, as we have seen with Joseph Stone, dangerous circumstances. 
As a member of the Armed Services Committee, I often hear from our top 
military leaders about the importance of the OSCE and the work being 
done by the special monitoring missions.
  In late March, for example, during a hearing of the Armed Services 
Committee, GEN Curtis M. Scaparrotti, commander of the U.S. European 
Command and Supreme Allied Commander in Europe, called attention to the 
good work of OSCE in the region and the work of the monitoring 
missions. He confirmed in his testimony that ``Russia is directing 
combined Russian-separatist forces to target civilian infrastructure 
and threaten and intimidate OSCE monitors in order to turn up the 
pressure on Ukraine.'' He also said, ``Russian-led separatist forces 
continue to commit the majority of ceasefire violations despite 
attempts by the OSCE to broker a lasting ceasefire along the Line of 
Contact.''
  The tragic death of American Joseph Stone underscores the need for 
the OSCE monitors to have unfettered access across the front lines and 
across the border regions controlled by the separatists. This 
unfortunate tragedy is a result of this access not being granted.
  I commend the Austrian Foreign Minister, who serves as OSCE chair-in-
office, for calling attention to this tragedy and calling for an 
immediate investigation into these events. Those who are responsible 
for the death of Joseph Stone and the injury of the two other monitors 
should be held accountable.
  Joseph Stone died serving his country by serving as a part of this 
international effort, and I extend my condolences this evening to his 
family and friends.
  I once again call on the Russian leadership to put an end to the 
cycle of violence and to live up to its OSCE commitments. As chairman 
of the Helsinki Commission, the U.S. part of the OSCE Parliamentary 
Assembly, I think it is important for Members of the Senate and for 
Americans to understand the important role that Americans are playing 
in this effort.
  Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Florida.


                         Release of Aya Hijazi

  Mr. RUBIO. Mr. President, as a part of my office's ``Expression NOT 
Oppression'' initiative, I come to the floor today to highlight once 
again both a good news story with regard to human rights and a 
continuing challenge.
  First let me begin by highlighting the good news. Aya Hijazi, whom I 
have spoken about before on the floor, is an American-Egyptian citizen 
whom Egyptian officials had imprisoned on trumped-up charges almost 3 
years ago. She was released, and she was able to return home to the 
United States last week. I am pleased that she was set free, as are 
many of my colleagues in the Senate who had been calling for the 
Egyptian authorities to release her. I know this was a topic of 
conversation during Egyptian President Elsisi's visit to the United 
States 3 weeks ago.
  I want to also take this moment to thank the Trump administration for 
working to ensure her freedom. They were instrumental--in fact, they 
were key in this being possible. They made it a priority in their 
private engagements with regard to President Elsisi.
  Sadly, there are still many more political prisoners who remain 
jailed in Egypt. We here in Congress as well as the administration 
should continue to raise these issues with the Egyptian Government 
until all of them are released, regardless of their citizenship status.
  As the leader of the free world, the United States must work to 
safeguard the freedoms and liberties of all people. We must speak 
frankly with our allies, with our partners around the world, and we 
must work with governments to improve their human rights records.
  It is ultimately in America's national security interests to have 
stable democracies that observe the impartial rule of law and that 
respect the rights of their people.


                                Chechnya

  Mr. President, I would like to highlight the horrific reports on the 
pro-Russian Chechen Government's brutal campaign against LGBT people 
and others over the last several weeks.
  Human Rights Watch recently reported that ``law enforcement and 
security agency officials under control of the ruthless head of the 
Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov, have rounded up dozens of men on 
suspicion of being gay, torturing and humiliating the victims.''
  There are reports that at least 100 men have been arrested. At least 
three men have reportedly been killed since the campaign began. Chechen 
LGBT individuals, as well as those suspected of being gay, have been 
taken to unofficial secret detention facilities where they have endured 
heinous abuses.
  They also face the danger of so-called honor killings committed by 
their own relatives.
  Instructive in that vein is a statement from a spokesman for the 
Chechen leader. Here is what he told the Russian news agency, talking 
about gay men, in particular, in the LGBT community: ``If such people 
existed in Chechnya, law enforcement would not have to worry about 
them, as their own relatives would have sent them to where they could 
never return.''
  Unfortunately, this is not a new reality for those living under the 
brutal tyranny of the Chechen leader who, by the way, happens to be a 
loyal ally of Vladimir Putin. There have been reports in the past of 
similar abuses, although these reports seem to be the most brutal and 
should provoke anger in all of us.
  We should never, ever tolerate human rights violations against any 
person for their political views, their religious beliefs, or their 
sexual orientation.
  According to reports today, Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov said that 
Russian officials had not seen information to confirm the reports. 
Additionally, Putin's spokesman said: ``We have no reason not to trust 
the head of the republic''--talking about the Chechen Republic--``until 
there are actual complaints in this regard, not abstract, anonymous but 
actual complaints.''
  Well, the actual complaints are all around us. They have been well 
documented in publications throughout the world, but instead, Vladimir 
Putin is choosing to prop up Kadyrov, the Chechen brutal dictator, and 
prop up his brutal regime instead of holding them accountable.

[[Page 5851]]

  The United States and other responsible nations should do more to 
ensure that all people are protected and those who harm them are held 
responsible. We should use our voice on the global stage to call 
attention to these horrifying acts and to ensure that they are 
condemned in an appropriate way, ultimately in the hopes that they will 
be stopped.


                         Tribute to Alex Burgos

  Mr. President, before I yield the floor, as a matter of privilege, I 
am joined by a long-time staffer of mine who, in about 20 minutes, will 
end his employment with our office.
  Alex Burgos has worked for me since 2009, when he left a stable job 
with a stable paycheck to go work for an underdog candidate with no 
chance to win in the U.S. Senate race in Florida.
  For the last 8 years, he has been a critical member of our team. We 
are proud that he has moved on and is going to be working in another 
place outside of government, where he will be quite successful. We have 
watched him grow both in his professional career as well as his family.
  We are very proud of Alex because he is also from South Florida. He 
grew up in a household in the community where I grew up, in a story we 
are quite familiar with.
  We are very grateful for the service he has provided to the State of 
Florida, to my office, to my campaign before that, and we are proud of 
what I know he will achieve in the months and years to come.
  Given all the leadership he has provided our office over the years, I 
am grateful he had a chance to be on the floor with us for this speech.
  With that, Mr. President, I yield the floor.
  I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
  The senior assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order 
for the quorum call be rescinded.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

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