Israel Security Assistance Support Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. CLYDE. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in strong support of H.R. 8369, the Israel Security Assistance Support Act.

This critical bill ensures defense articles and services are delivered quickly to our steadfast ally, Israel, as they face unprecedented threats from Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Iran.

On October 7, Iran-backed Hamas terrorists brutally attacked Israel, murdering, raping, and torturing more than 1,200 innocent civilians, and abducting over 240 others to Gaza as hostages, including American citizens.

In the following months since this unprovoked terrorist attack, Israel has continued to be under constant assault by Iran and its proxies. We must support our ally, Israel, and ensure that they have the weapons they need to defend themselves, including the small arms, the 50,000 rifles that the Israeli Government has on order that is being held up by our State Department, and the precision-guided munitions.

It is doublespeak. It is unconscionable that the Biden administration complains about civilian collateral damage when they are withholding the exact munitions that minimize civilian collateral damage.

H.R. 8369 would ensure that all previously approved arms transfers to Israel can move forward without interruption, as well as prohibit funds from being used to stop or cancel the shipment of defense items to Israel. In addition, it would require the timely shipment of any items that have been stopped or delayed by President Biden and the Biden administration to be sent within 15 days after enactment.

Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues to join me in passing this critical legislation.

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