[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 163 (2017), Part 6]
[House]
[Page 8248]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                      VENEZUELA IS A FAILED STATE

  (Mr. HILL asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. HILL. Mr. Speaker, all of us in the Western Hemisphere are in 
horror. Venezuela is a failed state and potentially on the brink of 
civil war. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier this week that 
thousands of Cuban intelligence agents are helping the Maduro regime 
maintain control over the army, while Maduro orders his soldiers to 
shoot his own people who are demonstrating in the streets.
  We cannot let countries like China, Russia, Iran, and Cuba continue 
to play a role in propping up the Maduro regime. While I commend 
Treasury Secretary Mnuchin for issuing sanctions against individuals of 
the Venezuelan Supreme Court, I call on the administration to ratchet 
up the pressure on these outside forces and have them answer for their 
role in the emergency situation in Venezuela.
  While we face many challenges across the globe, America must reengage 
in the Western Hemisphere and not let the neighbors in our backyard 
slide back into tyranny.

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