Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas speaks in favor of HR. 4278.
On March 27, 2014 Rep. Jackson-Lee asked for and was granted permission to address the United States House of Representatives in support of HR 4278 – The Support Ukraine Act:
“Mr. Speaker, let me thank the managers of this legislation, the chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee and the ranking member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, for their leadership and for their commitment, as I acknowledge the other body as well.
This morning, a bright announcement came from Mr. Putin that he was drawing Russians to a program of exercise in the name of labor and defense. Someone said it is reminiscent of past history, when other despots drew their Nation together in massive public exercises to show the world that they were not going to be part of the world order.
I believe in peace. I believe that we should be engaged, that diplomacy is right. I also don’t believe in condemnation of a Nation purely for its ideological disagreement.
In this instance, it is important for the United States to make a public stand. As a member of the Inter-Parliamentary Exchange, meeting with Europeans over the years, I know that they are proud of the democracy that they have maintained since the horrors of World War II.
Today, the United States, with the passage of this legislation, and ultimately hopefully the signing by the President, will tell the world that the United States stands firmly with its own democratic principles. But the people of Ukraine, those in Kiev and places around, will still have the knowledge that America stands by it economically, with loan guarantees, but it also stands against a despot who has illegally moved into a sovereign Nation, with no provocation, undermining the military base of Ukraine. So I would ask my colleagues to join against a despot and for a people and support the underlying legislation”, said Rep. Jackson-Lee (Source: Congressional Record http://thomas.loc.gov/).