We Are Paying Attention

Floor Speech

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Mrs. RAMIREZ. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to affirm that we are paying attention.

We were paying attention when 35,000 Palestinians were killed. We were paying attention when over 14,500 children were robbed of their future. We were paying attention as 404 doctors and aid workers were killed, 100 journalists and media workers were killed. Finally, we are paying attention as over 1.1 million people are on the verge of starving to death.

Yesterday, we were paying attention when Israel began its invasion into Rafah and seized control of the Rafah crossing.

We were paying attention on February 8 when President Biden said that providing periodic congressional reports to Congress enables meaningful oversight.

We were paying attention last month when a nonpartisan task force issued an independent, credible report outlining the Israeli Government's violations of international humanitarian law. In 76 pages of details, they provide example after example of what they call a systematic disregard for international humanitarian law and military best practice regarding civilian harm mitigation by the Israel Defense Forces, including with U.S.-provided arms.

Today, we are paying attention as President Biden's National Security Memorandum 20, what we call the NSM-20, congressional reporting deadline on Israel's use of U.S. arms comes due. We know that Netanyahu's administration has been and is continuing to assure the U.S. Government that it is using U.S. weapons in line with international laws and is not interfering with the delivery of humanitarian aid.

However, given what we have witnessed over the last 214 days, how can we trust Netanyahu's official assurances that they are complying with international law?

How can we be expected to ignore the violations of international law and interference with the delivery of humanitarian assistance we have witnessed in real time?

What are we to say to the constituents whose families are starving, whose loved ones cannot receive medical care, or who never received the promised evacuation from Gaza?

What do we say to the brave and courageous students across campuses, our children, who are defending other children in Gaza who are being murdered with U.S. bombs?

What do we say to the children who are still looking for their mothers under the rubble, as we approach Mother's Day?

The administration's willingness to make exceptions for Israel has got to stop. The actions of the Netanyahu government are exceptional-- exceptionally noncompliant with international law and exceptionally unconcerned with human rights. The Biden administration must consider other credible sources of information beyond the Israeli Government as it fulfills its NSM-20 reporting obligations, and the administration must fulfill those obligations today.

I expect that this country will demonstrate our commitment to international law, to human rights, and congressional oversight because we are paying attention. The time has come for the administration to follow through on its warning about Israeli conduct and take meaningful action because if the administration is paying attention, they will enforce both our laws through NSM-20 and section 620I of the Foreign Assistance Act and also international law. Anything less undermines our credibility and is a stain on the legacy of our country's leadership.

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