S3470 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — SENATE June 13, 2019 to discharge Senate Joint Resolutions human rights challenges, particularly Unfortunately, these new require- 20 and 26, which sought to block the with respect to its labor practices. ments were inconsistent with Ginnie sales of certain weapons to That said, I have not seen any evidence Mae loan seasoning requirements. With and Qatar respectively. of the Qatari Government using arms implementation of reform, the new As many of you know, I have long against its people. Moreover, Qatar’s rules left approximately 2,500 VA-guar- been a champion of a U.S. foreign pol- involvement in the Yemeni war was anteed loans ineligible for Ginnie Mae icy driven by our values and respect for limited to primarily defending the pooling, a move which seriously con- human rights. This applies to our for- Saudi border from the Houthis, not strained lending. eign military support and arms sales. conducting airstrikes in . The The unintended consequence of this We must ensure that our military Qataris left the Saudi-led coalition en- measure put VA home loans out of might and weapons only go to support tirely 2 years ago. Qatar has proven reach and threatened to drive up future partners and allies who uphold our val- itself an important and responsible borrowing costs. The Protecting Af- ues. We have both a moral and a na- partner for the . The fordable Mortgages for Veterans Act tional security obligation to ensure Qatar flew strikes, alongside would correct this issue and maintain that U.S. weapons, equipment, and the U.S. and other partners, against liquidity in the veteran home loan training are never used to harm civil- the Islamic State in Syria in 2014 and market so that veterans and their fam- ians, abuse human rights, or end up in 2015. It also flew strikes against Qa- ilies can secure the safe, affordable the hands of enemies who seek to do us dhafi in Libya in 2011, but again, this housing they deserve. harm. was in concert with international part- When they return home, veterans With that in mind, I was pleased to ners including the United States. In who defend our freedom with dignity lead the Enhancing Human Rights in light of these factors, I voted against and honor should receive the thanks of Arms Sales Act of 2019 with my col- discharging S.J. Res. 26. a grateful nation and opportunities to leagues from both sides of the aisle. While both discharge motions failed, succeed as they transition to civilian This bipartisan legislation would put this issue will not go away because one life. That means delivering quality into place strict vetting criteria and thing that we all can agree on is that care at the VA, improving job and edu- end use monitoring for certain weapons no U.S. arms should ever be linked to cation opportunities, and ensuring af- sales to prevent U.S.-provided weapons the deaths of innocent civilians. No fordable housing is within reach for from going to governments who com- U.S. arms should ever be used to in- Americans who made the ultimate sac- mit human rights abuses and war timidate and destroy the defenseless. rifice for our country. Acclimating to crimes. I urge all of my colleagues to No U.S. arms should ever end up in the civilian life is challenging enough support this important and necessary hands a child soldier or a terrorist. We without the threat of being scammed legislation. may disagree on policy, but our values Until my bill is enacted into law and by predatory lenders. will always bridge the partisan divide. I want to thank my colleague from its critical safeguards are in place, it is That is why Congress and the adminis- North Carolina, Senator TILLIS, for incumbent upon Congress to evaluate tration must take a more holistic look each arms sale with important consid- working with me over the last several at this issue. My bipartisan bill, the weeks to craft this bill. I also want to erations for civilian security and Enhancing Human Rights in Arms thank Chairman CRAPO, Ranking Mem- human rights. Sales Act of 2019, offers a comprehen- ber BROWN, Chairman ISAKSON, and I have carefully examined both of the sive approach, and I urge my col- Ranking Member TESTER for their sales before us today, and applied the leagues to support its passage. same criteria outlined in the Enhanc- steadfast support in moving this fix ex- f ing Human Rights in Arms Sales Act. peditiously. Even in an era of divided Through this lens, I was compelled to S. 1749 government and historic gridlock, we vote in favor of discharging S.J. Res. Ms. SINEMA. Mr. President, I rise are getting things done for Arizona. 20, so the Senate could debate the today regarding the U.S. Senate’s pas- Now that this legislation has passed pending sale of various bombs and pre- sage of S. 1749, the Protecting Afford- the U.S. Senate, I urge my colleagues cision-guided munitions to Bahrain. able Mortgages for Veterans Act, by in the House to quickly pass S. 1749 so Domestically, Bahrain’s Ministry of In- unanimous consent. The Protecting Af- it can be signed into law. Let’s keep terior police forces were responsible for fordable Mortgages for Veterans Act working together, Democrats and Re- the repression of the 2011 uprising, and aims to preserve access to affordable publicans, to stand up for our veterans. well over 100 Bahrainis have been VA mortgages for the millions of vet- Thank you. killed in the course of repressing the erans and brave men and women in uni- Shia-led unrest. In the Yemen conflict, form in Arizona and around the coun- f the Bahrain Air Force is participating try. in Saudi-led coalition airstrikes that Last year, Congress passed S. 2155, REMEMBERING PRIVATE WILLIAM have led to civilian casualties. This the Economic Growth, Regulatory Re- TULLY BROWN pending sale would in fact provide mu- lief, and Consumer Protection Act, a nitions for Bahrain’s F–16 aircraft, bipartisan regulatory relief package Mr. UDALL. Mr. President, Today I which would almost certainly be used for community financial institutions. wish to honor Private William Tully in Yemen. We know this because Air Among other issues, this package Brown, a Navajo code talker who never Vice Marshall Hamad bin Abdullah al sought to crack down on ‘‘mortgage considered himself an American hero Khalifah, head of the Royal Bahraini churning,’’ a predatory practice where- but who was. Air Force—RBAF—stated in February in lenders push veterans over and over Private Brown enlisted in the Ma- 2019 that Royal Bahraini Air Force F– to repeatedly refinance their home, rines in 1944 and was trained as a code 16s had conducted over 3,500 sorties, or even when there is no clear benefit to talker at Camp Pendleton. Training combat aircraft flights, since the be- doing so. With each refinance, the lend- was intense. The code talkers under- ginning of the campaign in March 2015. ers take a fee. Veterans, on the other went extensive training in communica- With 3,500 sorties in Yemen, we have to hand, enter into a cycle of debt where tions and in memorizing the complex assume that Bahrain is responsible for fees and interest rates cost more than code that included Navajo words used some of the civilian deaths caused by the initial mortgage payments. for 450 military terms that didn’t exist the coalition airstrikes in Yemen. I To stop these predatory lenders and in the Navajo or Dine language. have repeatedly voiced my opposition the practice of churning, S. 2155 put Private Brown was part of the Sec- to U.S. support for the war in Yemen, into place new requirements that must ond Marine Division. In July 1945, he and we cannot risk our weapons lead- be met in order for a refinanced loan to shipped out of San Diego to Pearl Har- ing to further repression in Bahrain obtain VA guaranty and securitization bor, then to Saipan in the Mariana Is- itself. I cannot support the sale of U.S. from Ginnie Mae, the U.S. Government lands, and finally to Nagasaki and weapons to Bahrain at this time. corporation that helps lenders make Sasebo on the island of Kyushu, Ja- The case of the pending sales to more affordable mortgages to veterans, pan’s most southern main island. They Qatar is quite different. There is no first-time home buyers, and low-in- landed in Nagasaki’s harbor on Sep- doubt that Qatar has significant come borrowers. tember

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