Leader & Majority Whip Vow to Take Schiff Amendment Out of
Final Foreign Ops Spending Bill, Declare Intention to
Block Armenian Genocide Resolution
WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Adam Schiff (CA-29) today sent a letter to Speaker J. Dennis Hastert (IL-14), questioning his joint statement with House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (TX-22) and Majority Whip Roy Blunt (MO-7) in opposition to the Schiff amendment on the Armenian Genocide. The Speaker’s statement expresses the House Majority Leadership’s determination to drop the Schiff amendment from the final version of the FY 2005 Foreign Operations Appropriations bill (H.R. 4818) and their intention to block the consideration of H.Res. 193 – a resolution officially recognizing the Armenian Genocide – for the remainder of the 108th Congress.
“To stand in the way of acknowledging the Armenian Genocide is to deny the memory of 1.5 million victims,” Congressman Schiff said.
On Thursday, the House of Representatives voted to adopt an amendment sponsored by Congressman Schiff to the House version of the Foreign Operations spending bill. The amendment prohibits the Government of Turkey from using U.S. foreign aid to lobby against H.Res. 193, a resolution that officially recognizes the Armenian Genocide and marks the 15th anniversary of President Ronald Reagan signing the 1987 Genocide Convention Implementation Act. (Also known as the Proxmire Act, this put the United States on record as being strongly opposed to the heinous crime of genocide.) H.Res. 193 passed the House Judiciary Committee on May 22, 2003, shortly after its introduction on April 10, 2003. However, because of significant lobbying efforts by those who deny the Genocide, the resolution has been languishing on the House calendar for over a year.
From 1915 to 1923, 1.5 million Armenians were slaughtered by the Ottoman Turks in what is now known as the Armenian Genocide. Even though modern-day Turkey was established in 1923 out of the ashes of the Ottoman Empire and was not the actual perpetrator of genocide, Turkey spends millions of dollars each year fighting the recognition of the Genocide. Congressman Schiff firmly believes in the appropriate and accurate commemoration of the Genocide, and consistently fights for official U.S. recognition on all levels.
“I am deeply troubled by your assertion that you will not schedule H.Res. 193 for consideration by the House of Representatives," Congressman Schiff said. "Your refusal to allow the genocide resolution to be brought up for a vote directly contradicts your promise, made in a meeting with Armenian-American community leaders in my congressional district in 2000, that you would bring the Armenian Genocide Resolution to a floor vote in the United States House of Representatives."
Congressman Schiff is a Member of the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues, a co-founder of the Democratic Study Group on National Security and a member of both the House Judiciary and International Relations committees. He represents California’s 29th Congressional District, which includes the communities of Alhambra, Altadena, Burbank, East Pasadena, East San Gabriel, Glendale, Monterey Park, Pasadena, San Gabriel, South Pasadena and Temple City.