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“HONORING FALLEN LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS” mentioning the U.S. Dept. of Justice was published in the House of Representatives section on pages H3246-H3249 on May 15, 2015.
The publication is reproduced in full below:
HONORING FALLEN LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS
The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Knight). Under the Speaker's announced policy of January 6, 2015, the Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gohmert) for 30 minutes.
Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, it is an honor and pleasure to follow my friend and fellow former judge from Texas when he talks about praying. I know him to be a praying man. I also know his heart to be a big heart.
We can disagree on issues, but he is a brother, as a Christian, and he is a very good friend, and I appreciate his perspective very much.
Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. Will the gentleman yield?
Mr. GOHMERT. I yield to the gentleman from Texas.
Mr. AL GREEN of Texas. I thank the friend from the great State of Texas. He and I happen to share more than being Members of Congress. We are Members of Congress from the same State.
I am honored that you have not only worked hard in Congress, but you have also been a part of activities outside of Congress, and I am honored to work with you on at least one project, and we hope to do some good for the great State of Texas on this project together.
I am grateful to you, and I am grateful for your kind words. Thank you so much.
Mr. GOHMERT. I would never question the heart or motivation of my friend Al Green. I know his heart to be bigger than most in Washington. It is just an honor to serve with you.
There is so much that has gone on this week. One of the things that has happened here in Washington and continues to happen today is a tribute, memorial to law enforcement officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty--doing what?--serving and protecting.
After the horrors and evil of 9/11/2001, it was encouraging to me to see so many people, once again, come to appreciate that the vast majority of law enforcement, the vast majority of first responders, they are serving and trying to protect for the good of others and willing to lay down their lives.
As Jesus said:
No greater love is this than a man lay down his life for his friends.
We have seen that in the hundreds of people--I think 273 lost their lives over this past year. Over 40 have lost their lives this year in the line of duty.
Just like in any walk of life, there are bad apples, people who don't have the best motivation; but I would humbly submit, I believe with all my heart that, when it comes to law enforcement, the percentage of those who are not properly motivated is far, far less than in the general population.
We do owe them so much.
Some people say: Oh, well, we ought to just live and let live.
They say: I am a Christian. I believe in living and letting live.
If you note, if you believe the Bible, Jesus was commenting, of course, his ultimate point was that we will be judged for what is in our heart by our Father in heaven.
He said, if you say ``raca,'' which was an offense back in that day, then you will answer to the courts. He understood, in an orderly society, you need a government; you need governing officials to which people will be responsible if they violate the law.
That was also true in Romans 13, anticipating, in an orderly society, you need a government with a sword to punish those who do evil. That is why 13:4 says: If you do you evil, be afraid, because God doesn't give the sword in vain.
I know some people in the country start freaking out when I quote the most quoted book in the history of the country, as quoted here in the House of Representatives and in the Senate floor. It is part of our history. The Bible is the most quoted book in congressional history--
was, is, and I hope will be in the future.
We owe so much to the police who risk their lives.
Right out of law school, I was an assistant DA for three counties in east Texas. Very early on, I went with law enforcement to execute a warrant, and the individual, the subject of the warrant for arrest, had made clear that, when he saw any law enforcement officers, he was going to start shooting; he would kill any law enforcement officer that came out there.
I don't forget the feelings that all of us had, even though some were very seasoned law officers, when you are approaching a dangerous building--in this case, a home--where somebody in there is threatening to kill anybody like you, you do have a little hair stand up on the back of your neck.
You do realize you are putting your life at risk in trying to maintain order and civility by approaching somebody that is a threat to society. That was quite a lesson, that these law officers--whether they are new, whether they have been working for a long time--they are constantly in a situation where they don't know if, 10 minutes later, they may be dead in the service of their community, but they are serving anyway.
We do owe them so much for what they do and what they risk on our behalf, so we are just grateful to all law enforcement officers willing to serve and protect all of us.
We have a report here back in February, and this is an article from The Hill entitled: ``FBI investigating ISIS suspects in all 50 States.'' The article is quoting FBI Director James Comey, that he revealed Wednesday his agency is investigating suspected supporters of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria in every State across the United States.
Down further in the article, it said, ``Earlier this month, Comey said the FBI was investigating ISIS supporters in every State except Alaska.''
At the time of this article, at the end of February, he was saying: We are investigating ISIS suspects in all 50 States.
Director Comey said: ``We have investigations of people in various stages of radicalization in all 50 States.''
He said: ``This isn't a New York phenomenon or a Washington phenomenon. This is in all 50 States and in ways that are very hard to see.''
He said: ``ISIL in particular is putting out a siren song with their slick propaganda through social media.''
He said: ``The message `resonates with troubled souls, people seeking meaning in some horribly misguided way,' '' and that ``those people exist in every State.''
His pronouncement in February should have been a siren song for Americans to understand there are people who live among us who want to destroy us and our way of life.
Then it was rather interesting--that was February 25. Less than 2 months later, there was an article put out, Judicial Watch indicated that an ISIS camp was just a few miles from Texas, that Mexican authorities confirmed that.
The article said: ``ISIS is operating a camp just a few miles from El Paso, Texas, according to Judicial Watch sources that include a Mexican Army field grade officer and a Mexican Federal Police Inspector.
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``The exact location where the terrorist group has established its base is around 8 miles from the U.S. border in an area known an
`Anapra,' situated just west of Cuidad Juarez in the Mexican State of Chihuahua. Another ISIS cell to the west of Cuidad Juarez, in Puerto Palomas, targets the New Mexico towns of Columbus and Deming for easy access to the United States.''
So, anyway, after this article came out in April, I quoted from that, brought it up on the floor and--
Let's see. This article was 2 days later from FOX News: ``Islamic State fighters are operating training bases near the U.S. southern border and are being aided by violent drug cartels to smuggle terrorists into States like Texas, a report published Tuesday by a watchdog group claims.''
So, anyway, I brought that up. And this report seems to get even more legs after the Federal Government, though, denying that any such thing like that was occurring, apparently sent FBI officials to Mexico to meet with their counterterrorism experts, seemed to give some credence that there is something to be concerned about in the way of training of violent radical Islamists across our United States border. So the irony here is pretty profound.
People all across the United States of America just accepted when the FBI Director says, you know, there are ISIS suspects in every State in the Union. People said: Wow, that is amazing. Man, they are here?
I saw a headline of a survey just moments ago on FOX News saying, 6 out of 10 Americans believe that there are terrorists in their community. So how ironic that even the far left that turns a blind eye to radical Islam could be so accepting that, yes, there are radical Islamist terrorists in every State in the Union. And when Judicial Watch and Louie Gohmert quote from their material, quote other things going on to point out that there is a report that there is an ISIS camp across our border, the left went nuts, saying how crazy Judicial Watch was, how crazy I am for even mentioning this. There couldn't possibly be an ISIS camp in Mexico.
Mr. Speaker, I hope you see the irony here. They are saying, yes, we believe there are radical Islamist terrorists in every State in the United States, but there couldn't possibly be ISIS across the border where the drug cartels are.
And I haven't gotten a good explanation. Do they have so much faith and trust in the drug cartels' integrity that they would never associate with radical Islamists? Is that what they are saying by their cynicism about ISIS being in Mexico? Because it is a bit intriguing.
But then again, some on the far left are educated way beyond their means--their mental capacity, at least--and so they have information; they just can't process it effectively. Because anyone who can readily accept when the FBI Director says there is ISIS in every State in the Union and we are investigating in every State in the Union radical Islamists--he doesn't use those terms because this administration doesn't want to offend any radical Islamists that want to kill us. So we don't use that term if you are in this administration, but I use the term because it is accurate. They are radical Islamists.
So, anyway, it is just a great irony here.
Then this is an AP story from this week: ``Minnesota men accused of trying to join Islamic State ordered held, but may have other options.''
And that is because U.S. District Judge Michael Davis, who wears a dark robe to match his intellect--he is the same guy that previously--
this is also a May 12 article by Patrick Poole. This is the same judge, Michael J. Davis, chief judge of the district of Minnesota--
This article from Patrick Poole says: ``A terror `deradicalization' program--established in the `Ground Zero' of terror recruitment, Minnesota's Twin Cities--has already failed after just a few months.
``The program was established after a Federal court released 19-year-
old terror suspect Abdullahi Yusuf to a halfway house earlier this year. Federal prosecutors opposed Yusuf's release, but were overruled by'' this big-hearted, caring ``Federal judge''--at least big-hearted and caring about radical Islam, not so much about victims of radical Islam. But Michael J. Davis cares deeply about those who want to kill us.
So as the article says: ``Remarkably, Judge Davis said today in a separate case of six men charged with trying to join the Islamic State that he would be willing to consider `less restrictive options' than detaining the men--just a day after Yusuf's re-arrest.''
That is because he decided that he was smarter and more capable than anybody else in America. He could deradicalize people who want to kill Americans by just sending them through this program that he had helped with or proved: Gee, we are going to get you reading good material that really helps you see the wonder and glory of this country.
And then, of course, I, Judge Michael J. Davis, will be a hero to all of my leftist friends because I cared more for the criminal radical Islamists than I did for the victims. And the left loves that kind of thing.
``Last May, Yusuf was arrested in Minneapolis airport while on his way of Syria by way of Turkey to join the Islamic State. One of his accomplices, Abdi Nur, did make it to Syria, and he now serves as an effective recruiter for the terror group.
``Just last week, The Wall Street Journal reported on the program with an article titled, `A Test Case for ``Deradicalization.' ''
``The path of reform for Abdullahi Yusuf, a U.S. teenager who tried to become a radical Islamic soldier, passes through writings of Martin Luther King, Jr. readings of the U.S. Constitution, and discussions about life and literature with a fellow Somali-American named Ahmed Amin.
``Mr. Yusuf's attempt to travel to the Middle East last year helped lead authorities to six Minnesota men who were charged last month in connection with a plan to join Islamic State abroad. The 19-year-old has become a test case for whether Americans lured by Islamic extremism can be deradicalized.''
Oh, I think they can, but I sure wouldn't trust them to Judge Michael J. Davis, if that is what we want.
But see here again, this is once again pointing out the ingenuity of the Founders in creating three branches. We have the executive branch that is supposed to carry out the laws that the Congress, elected by the people, pass. We have two Houses of Congress to make it more difficult to pass laws. They wanted some obstacles and problems to passing legislation too quickly. And then we have the judicial branch that will handle criminal cases, handle civil cases, handle review of actions to ensure their constitutionality.
And then we also have this part of the judicial branch, like five of the Justices on the Supreme Court that decided that they wanted to micromanage enemy combatants at Guantanamo. I thought it would have been a good idea to let them live over at the Supreme Court if they want to micromanage them.
But then, also, this judge like Michael J. Davis in Minnesota who decides, actually, he is not just judiciary; he is clairvoyant. He is a rehabilitative agent. He is everything to everybody, just the kind of judge you want. God in a robe.
So, anyway, he put Mr. Yusuf through these reading materials. And I wonder, though, if he was a bit surprised when Yusuf was arrested because he is not following the program, and he is not reformed. But even that does not prevent God in a robe from saying: You know what? But these new terrorists that you have arrested, they are just a little misguided. I hate to have them in jail because if they are in jail, then the American people will be protected, but they won't be able to come to see how wonderful people like I am. So I want them to develop warm and loving, fuzzy feelings for people on the left, like me. So I want to find some way we don't have to keep them in jail.
Anyway, there is another article about that.
But it is just amazing to me when people exceed the bounds of their job in government because they think they are wiser than the Founders. They think they are wiser than anyone that has gone on before. We hear people in recent days on the issue of marriage talking in terms of how much smarter and how much more we know today than the ignoramuses of the past. And the ignorance that displays is pretty astounding.
Solomon, for those who believe the Bible, Solomon, considered to be--
until he got sidetracked by having too many wives and concubines--was considered to be the wisest man in the world. And Solomon, credited for writing some of the things in the Old Testament--the Old Testament, as we call it--but in what we call Ecclesiastes, he points out, there is nothing new under the Sun.
You think socialism, communism is a new idea? It is not new. It has been around forever. And every time it has been tried, it leads to totalitarianism. It leads to the loss of freedom, and then it fails because, as Margaret Thatcher once said, eventually you find out--well, you run out of other people's money to spend. It doesn't work. It won't work.
Now, that is different from socialized medicine, like ObamaCare is taking us toward, government control. I have friends on the Republican side of the aisle who say, Louie, we won't have to worry. ObamaCare is going to fall of its own weight. The problem is government health care, socialized medicine, it never falls of its own weight. Socialism does. It can't survive because when you are paying people to not work the same amount you are paying people to work, eventually you destroy the society. And we are in the process of doing that here in America, paying people to do things that are destructive to their well-being. We ought to be incentivizing good conduct, not rewarding conduct destructive to the individual and to the Nation.
But we continue down this path that has not been working for 50 years, so hopefully people are going to eventually get the message.
But amidst this, this same week, I have a Wall Street Journal article, ``Deadly Mexican Cartel Rises as New Threat.''
It should be noted--Carlos the Jackal, probably the most notorious, famous assassin--had commented that he believed the only way to really bring down the United States would be for socialists and Islamists to join forces, and that could be the successful force to bring down the United States. Interesting observation from an anarchist like Carlos the Jackal. Interesting.
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Anyway, Mr. Speaker, this article talks about the rise of the Mexican cartel and it says this in the second page of the article: ``The New Generation cartel is perhaps Mexico's most audacious and vicious criminal enterprise, after the government captured or killed most leaders of the Zetas gang based in northeastern Mexico, say officials and security analysts. Like the Zetas, originally formed by Army deserters, the New Generation gang favors paramilitary methods and has received tactical training from Mexican and foreign mercenaries, these people say, including the use of rocket-propelled grenades against the helicopter.''
So, let's see, Mr. Speaker, this columnist said the helicopter incident was a declaration of war. The coming months are going to be very hard in Jalisco.
You have got violence building on our southern border, but don't worry. Our Justice Department has been very helpful. We can't get documents because the Justice Department becomes an Injustice Department quite often in obfuscating--hiding documents, hiding the truth, preventing people from getting at the truth--and won't provide the documents to me that they provided to convicted terrorism supporters in the Holy Land Foundation trial.
Oh, they sent me a couple Web sites I could visit. That was very nice and gracious of them. But basically they were covering up their tracks, being the most muddy--not transparent--Justice Department in my lifetime. That includes going back to the lack of transparency under J. Edgar Hoover when he became too enthralled with his power and began using FBI agents to investigate people not for information to introduce in court but just to use, apparently, to persuade them to do what the FBI director wanted. Information like that is dangerous, and the Founders knew that.
Then there is another Wall Street article from May 14: ``FBI Says Texas Man Lied About Links to Syria.'' Imagine that, Mr. Speaker. They catch somebody who they have evidence to show he has got links to terrorism in Syria, and, lo and behold, they found out not only does he have links to terrorism but he may have actually lied to the FBI. Imagine that. The article points out that ``Bilal Abood, 37 years old, of Mesquite, Texas, was arrested Thursday after a 2-year game of cat and mouse with Federal agents, who questioned him repeatedly before and after he allegedly traveled to Syria in 2013.''
But anyway let's see. It says: ``A week later, agents interviewed him again and he admitted he planned to go to Syria to fight with the Free Syrian Army, according to the complaint. Unlike terror groups, such as Islamic State and the Nusra Front, the moderate FSA''--Free Syrian Army--``has received backing from the United States.''
Well, Mr. Speaker, they received backing from this administration is what the bottom line is, not from all of us here because some of us have been saying that this administration is providing weapons to the Islamic State. They were providing weapons to the so-called vetted moderate Free Syrian Army. Remarkably weapons that the Obama administration was providing to the vetted moderate Syrian Army kept ending up in Islamic State hands. And they were, Oh, gee, they raided, they took this stuff, they took the weapons, send us more. Well, the Obama administration wised up about 4 months. They suspended weapons shipment to the vetted moderate Free Syrian Army. But then, not to worry, they eventually started back sending weapons to the vetted moderate Free Syrian Army even after their leaders were saying, Yeah, we may disagree with the Islamic State on the leader, Assad, the leader in Syria, but we are brothers, and we do line up on most issues.
So, Mr. Speaker, it is important to note terrorism is alive and well in the world, and this administration has done very little to stop it, has turned a blind eye to it, and we have got to do all we can to help them wake up and smell the gunpowder coming from radical Islamists.
With that, Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
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