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“NOMINATION OF ADAM SZUBIN” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the Senate section on pages S8141-S8143 on Nov. 19, 2015.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
NOMINATION OF ADAM SZUBIN
Mr. BROWN. Another way to fight this war on terrorism and to help our efforts on fighting ISIS is to actually put the people in place in the U.S. Government who help us do that. I came to the floor today to join Senator Casey--my friend from Pennsylvania who is going to mention him too--and to support the nomination of Adam Szubin.
Adam Szubin has been delayed for more than 200 days by Republican obstruction in the Senate banking committee. Well, who is Adam Szubin? Adam Szubin has been nominated--listen to this job--to be the Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes at the Treasury Department. This isn't a low-level employee who has nothing to do with ISIS, fighting ISIS, and fighting terrorism; this is the No. 1 person in the Treasury Department--perhaps the No. 1 person in our whole government next to the Commander in Chief--who is in the position to fight terrorism and fight the kinds of financial crimes that ISIS depends on to fund its operations.
We had a hearing. Originally Mr. Szubin worked for the Bush administration for a number of years. He has been serving interim during the Obama administration, but my colleagues on the banking committee, my colleagues in the Senate, simply have refused to bring Mr. Szubin to a vote. He served Republican and Democratic administrations in senior positions. There is no question, zero question, that he is qualified for this position.
Let me tell you a little more about him. In 15 years he has distinguished himself as a tough, aggressive enforcer of our Nation's sanction laws--not against England or Germany--but against countries such as Iran, Russia, North Korea, against money launderers, against terrorists, against narcotraffickers, the source of a good bit of the money for terrorist groups such as ISIS.
Republicans say the administration is not doing enough; Barack Obama won't stand up. Well, the Republicans are blocking this appointment that would give the President the tools he needs to fight terrorism.
Again, more about Mr. Szubin, he earned his undergraduate and law degrees with high honors, he was a Fulbright scholar in Israel before joining the Department of Justice. As I said, he served with President Bush and with President Obama; he was counsel to the Deputy Attorney General. He worked as trial attorney on the Terrorism Litigation Task Force. He received the Department of Justice Special Commendation Award for his work countering terrorism. For 9 years he directed the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control. Many of us first came to know him then--in both parties--as a thoughtful policymaker and superb lawyer. Both parties respected him until Barack Obama nominated him; then Republicans seemed to forget how good he was and how qualified he was.
The Anti-Defamation League in this letter described him as an
``intellectual heavyweight who has worked effectively with global partners to amplify the effects of U.S. sanctions.''
The United Against Nuclear Iran, a group that strongly opposed the President's deal with Iran, supports Mr. Szubin to be promoted, to be confirmed by the Senate.
Many of my colleagues on the banking committee said: We are not going to confirm Szubin because he was for the Iran nuclear deal. Well, he worked for the President of the United States, who was negotiating it. Of course, he was for it. But are they going to oppose him because they don't like what his boss did or are they opposing him because they don't like much of anything President Obama did?
The fact is that group after group, whether they are for the Iran nuclear agreement or against it--it really doesn't matter--supports Mr. Szubin.
His mentor, Bush Under Secretary Stuart Levy--his mentor and his predecessor, not immediate predecessor but predecessor--was confirmed by the Senate 3 weeks after his nomination. But you know what, both parties then with President Bush recognized that you confirm somebody who is central to the war on terrorism. Republicans then believed that.
Today, with a Democratic President, even though Adam Szubin is supported by darn near everybody--with his qualifications, with his support and work in two administrations--they don't want to bring him forward for a vote. I am not even sure why. I hear all kinds of reasons, none of them really on the record, none of them official, from my colleagues. Oh, they don't like President Obama or this guy must be a bad guy because President Obama appointed him or he was part of the government when the nuclear agreement with Iran was negotiated. All of these reasons simply don't pass a straight-face test. This is a critical national security post, and it needs to be filled permanently and quickly.
Mr. Szubin heads what is, in effect, Treasury's economic war room. It manages U.S. efforts to combat terrorist financing and fight financial crimes. Again, ISIS, ISIL, gets a good bit of its funding through illegal activities like that. If the U.S.--and if Mr. Szubin has the full range of powers that we have given him in the Congress, he can help us fight that kind of financing, stop that kind of financing for ISIS.
He is helping to lead the charge to choke off their funding sources to prevent them from developing additional capacity to strike more targets around the world. He is working to hold Iran to its commitments under the nuclear deal and to lead a campaign against the full range of Iran's other destructive activities. He is supported by the Global Jewish Advocacy and, as I said earlier, by the Anti-Defamation League and by United Against Nuclear Iran.
I ask unanimous consent to have printed in the Record the documents from the organizations I just mentioned.
There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in the Record, as follows:
American Jewish Committee,
Washington, DC, November 4, 2015.
AJC Statement on Adam J. Szubin Nominee for Under Secretary of Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence
Jason Isaacson, AJC Associate Executive Director for Policy, today issued the following statement on the organization's behalf:
AJC has worked with, and admired the dedication and effectiveness of, the Under Secretary-designee for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Adam Szubin, whose nomination is now before the Senate Banking Committee.
At a time when Iran and its terrorist proxies are ever more active and empowered, and when other terrorist threats to the United States and its allies are escalating, it is urgent that Treasury have in this critical position an experienced, creative, tireless watchdog, who has the know-how and the authority to lead U.S. efforts to track and choke off the financial lifeblood of terror.
As Acting Under Secretary, Adam Szubin has demonstrated that resolve and that skill--to the benefit of America's security and that of our allies. We look forward to his continued public service.
____
Anti-Defamation League,
New York, NY, September 9, 2015.Hon. Richard Shelby,Chairman, Banking Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC.Hon. Sherrod Brown,Ranking Member, Banking Committee, U.S. Senate, Washington,
DC.
Dear Chairman Shelby and Ranking Member Brown: On behalf of the Anti-Defamation League, we write in support of President Obama's nomination of Adam J. Szubin to serve as Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes, Department of Treasury.
As director of Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control
(OFAC), Mr. Szubin has earned a reputation as an intellectual heavyweight who has worked effectively with global partners to amplify the effects of U.S. sanctions. OFAC has been dubbed America's war room, a front line for the United States and its allies against terrorists and tyrants. It is a critical part of the effort to engage global partners to amplify the impact of sanctions and to innovate in the way that the U.S. targets violators.
OFAC's effectiveness, under Mr. Szubin's leadership, has exemplified the balance between working quietly behind the scenes or through diplomatic channels and sending strong public messages around the world about America's robust commitment to crack down sponsors of tcrror like Iran.
But Mr. Szubin has done much more than simply ably administer and enforce U.S. sanction against terrorism, weapons proliferation and rogue states. He has continued to expand and innovate how sanctions are devised and implemented as he has done with respect to sanctions on Iran and Russia.
As Members of Congress have debated how to balance diplomacy and sanctions, leaders on all sides of the debate are unified in their assessment that the strong, vigorous enforcement efforts by committed professionals like Adam Szubin have been one of the most potent and effective tools against the funding of terror and the isolation of rogue regimes.
We urge the Committee to act promptly and favorably on Mr. Szubin's nomination.
Sincerely,
Jonathan Greenblatt,
National Director.
____
[From the United Against Nuclear Iran, Nov. 3, 2015]
UANI Supports Senate Confirmation of Adam Szubin as Under Secretary for
Terrorism and Financial Crimes
Ambassador Wallace and Senator Lieberman Express Support for
Confirmation
New York, NY--United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) CEO Ambassador Mark D. Wallace and UANI Chairman Senator Joseph I. Lieberman issued the following statement today regarding the Senate confirmation of Adam Szubin as Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes in the U.S. Department of the Treasury:
``UANI was a leading opponent of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) nuclear agreement with Iran. The administration's success in blocking bipartisan and majority opposition to the JCPOA on Capitol Hill should not be the basis to oppose the confirmation of Director Szubin as Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Crimes. Simply put, he is the best person for the job, a true expert, a dedicated public servant and fully committed to serve his country. He has shown those traits over two successive administrations--a rare feat in Washington. On behalf of UANI, and in the strongest possible terms, we support Director Szubin's confirmation. We respectfully call on all of our Senate friends who were rightfully frustrated by the administration's tactics related to the JCPOA to put those concerns aside and support the confirmation of Director Szubin.''
Mr. BROWN. He has support across the political spectrum--or at least he did until he was nominated by this President.
I serve on the banking committee with Chairman Shelby. I sit next to him as the ranking member. I like Senator Shelby. I work with Mr. Shelby day-by-day on many things. He has described Mr. Szubin as
``eminently qualified.'' He has served with distinction in senior national security roles--I will say it again--for 15 years under Presidents of both parties. He is well regarded around the world for his intellect, courage, and expertise. He deserves the strong backing of the Senate.
Republicans in Congress need to stop holding our national security apparatus hostage to political demands. They should allow--we should allow Adam Szubin and other national security nominees to be approved as soon as possible.
Again, strip the partisanship away. Do what is right: Confirm Adam Szubin; confirm these other national security people.
They aren't controversial. The only thing controversial about these nominations is that Barack Obama made them. Well, the last time I checked, he was elected President of the United States twice, including my No. 1 swing State in the country--the hardest one to win, the one that both parties fight for in every election. He carried my State twice. He carried my State by over 100,000 votes.
He is the President of the United States. He appointed Adam Szubin, who is eminently qualified, who has had support from both parties. Why don't my colleagues confirm him, giving him the full range of powers to fight ISIS, to keep ISIS from getting the resources and the financing they are getting now to launch these terrible terrorist crimes against innocent men and women all over the world?
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Pennsylvania.
Mr. CASEY. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent to speak in morning business.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senate is in morning business.
The Senator is recognized.
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