congress recesses for the eastern passover holidays. the senate taking up a bill that would extend an exemption for certain older boats from fire retardant materials requirements. particularly aimed at the delta queen river boat and as was mentioned a little earlier, the senate judiciary committee has ted the nomination of neil gorsuch out of committee to the senate floor, with some procedural votes coming up as soon as later this wreak. the -- week. the house, by the way, now includes 430 members, 237 republicans had, 193 democrats, and five vacancies. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, the chair will postpone further proceedings today on motions to suspend the rules on which a recorded vote or the yeas and nays are ordered or on which the vote incurs objection under clause 6 of rule 20.

record votes on postponed questions will be taken later. for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? roirsroirs mr. speaker, i move -- mr. royce: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that the house suspend the rules and 92. house resolution the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: house resolution 92, resolution condemning north koreas development of multiple intercontinental ballistic missiles, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from california, mr. royce, and the gentleman from california, mr. sherman, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. royce. mr. royce: mr. speaker, i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and xtend their remarks and to include any extraneous material in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. royce: thank you.

i also ask unanimous consent to introduce into the record an exchange of letters with the chairman of the committee on armed services. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. royce: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. royce: thank you, mr. speaker. let me begin here by thanking representative wilson for his leadership on this house resolution 92. now, what this resolution does is to describe in alarming detail the growing sophistication of north korea's missile and nuclear weapons program, and this, of course, poses a direct threat to the united states as well as to our allies. and last year alone, north orea, as we will recall, conducted more than 20 missile tests, including one from a submarine, and they're doing this in pursuit of an intercontinental ballistic issile capable of striking the

united states. kim junge unhas detonated -- kim jung un has detonated twice this year. today, the regime continues. a recent satellite imagery indicates pyongyang is now prepared to detonate its sixth nuclear device. with every test north korea gains valuable knowledge that has enabled it to make to ificant improvements this developing arsenal. bear in mind that north korea has cooperated on its programs with these countries, and i'd like the members to think on this. they cooperated with iran, they cooperated with syria on a nuclear program and they cooperated with pakistan. this, of course, is undermining u.s. security but frankly it

undermines the security of the entire global counterproliferation system. and that's why i strongly support the passage of this resolution. i have been in north korea, and let me tell you, this resolution, which condemns north korea's development of an icbm and calls for the united states and others to immediately address this urgent threat is very necessary at this time. fortunately, the new administration already has several tools at its disposal, one of those is a bill we wrote up in the committee, a bill by myself and eliot engel. it was signed last year and it was also taken up at the u.n. security council and passed at the security council level. well, this resolution, among other things, empowers the president to ramp up pressure on the north korean regime by sanctioning foreign companies

that do business with and therefore enable the regime. the deployment of the anti-missile defense system must continue as quickly as possible and china should end its economic intimidation of our ally, south korea, in response to this deployment. thad will serve as a vital first line of defense, protecting u.s. personnel in the region, protecting our allies from kim jong un. and as this resolution notes, china needs to do its part to implement the sanctions contailed in multiple u.n. security council resolutions. president trump should pressure this issue with president xi when the two meet this week. with these steps, i believe the united states can again exert effective pressure on the kim regime and as house resolution

92 emphasizes, congress stands ready to help counter korea's belligerent behavior to maintain peace and civility in the asia pacific. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. sherman. mr. sherman: mr. speaker, i rise today in support of house resolution 92, and i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. i'm the chief democratic co-sponsor. the gentleman from south carolina is the sponsor of this resolution condemning north korea's development of multiple intercontinental ballistic missiles and for other purposes. it should be noted that this resolution now has 120 bipartisan co-sponsors, including the ranking member and chairman of the committee, the chairman of the asia

subcommittee and myself as ranking member of the asia subcommittee. this resolution is necessary at kim e when the regime of jong-un is as belligerent as ever. it has missile tests and nuclear tests for the purpose of being in a position to intimidate the united states and the rest of the world. just this month, the regime in pyongyang released a fake propaganda video showing the imagined destruction of a u.s. aircraft carrier by its forces. in addition to the five nuclear weapons north korea has already tested, kim jong-un continues to test ballistic missiles, including submarine-launched ballistic missiles and is moving toward intercontinental ballistic missiles. these missiles have, as one of their chief purposes being able

to reach the continental united states and particularly the pacific coast of the united states. we used to have the luxury of saying north korea just wants attention. they just want this or that concession. but now their goal is clear. it is to threaten hundreds of millions of americans. it is clear that north korea is testing missiles and bombs for the purpose of developing warheads that can do just that. the resolution we are considering today, h.res. 92, condemns north korea's intercontinental ballistic missile tests, calls for the united states to apply economic sanctions on north korea and calls on china to pressure north korean leaders to cease their provocative behavior, abandon and dismantle their nuclear missile program and it calls upon china to curtail or at least threaten to curtail their economic support of pyongyang. president xi is coming to the

united states. he will meet with our president in florida, and i hope that the recent comments that we're going to do it -- that we're going to handle this issue on our own are not what comes out of florida because instead, we must demand that china pressure north korea. according to the u.s.-china economic and security review commission, china counts for over 90% of north korea's foreign trade, and approximately 95% of its foreign direct investment. beijing needs to know there are serious challenges to our -- to its relationship with the united states if it does not assist us in this effort. officials in beijing cannot assume that their companies will always have access to the united states market. there are those who say it's unthinkable to link our trading relationship with china to its position on north korea. i believe it's unthinkable for

us not to use all the tools at our disposal to try to prevent the least predictable leader in the world and perhaps the least stable from having the capacity to hit the united states mainland with intercontinental nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles. with that i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves his time. mr. royce. . royce: well, well put, mr. sherman. i'd like to yield four minutes to the gentleman from south carolina, mr. wilson, a senior member of the armed services committee and foreign affairs committee and author of this measure. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. r. wilson: i visited north korea with eliot engel on a delegation led by congressman kirk weldon of pennsylvania. while there we saw a regime

obsessed with preservation to the detriment of its own citizens who have been reduced to des tution and starvation. after seeing the devastation of the people at the hands of the totalitarian regime, i have been even more invested in the need to hold the regime of pyongyang from threatening neighbors. i introduced this bipartisan resolution in response to north korea's threat to test a intercontinental ballistic missile. the icbm has the capability of reaching the west coast of the united states. the rapid pace of their growing nuclear weapons development is alarming to the united states and our allies. in just a few short months, north korea has appeared to successfully test an icbm, launched a satellite, tested four simultaneous ballistic missiles, three of which landed in japanese territorial waters, have -- they have failed a missile test and launched a ballistic missile engine. the regime also claims to be planning another nuclear test

for later this month. sadly revealing, the regime in north korea released a propaganda video depicting a missile striking for a u.s. carrier and calling for the destruction of the american people. north korea is rapidly developing their capabilities, working to miniaturize nuclear technology to deliver a nuclear weapon in the world. sadly, eight years of strategic patients only enabled the dictatorship. we cannot stand by as this regime grows and threatens the united states and our allies. i'm glad that president trump is taking the threat seriously. jim mattis and secretary of state rex tillerson recently visited our allies in south korea and japan and the u.s. ambassador to the united nations has led the efforts for strengthening international sanctions against north korea. the administration has also demonstrated peace through strength by backing up our commitments to our allies with action. we've begun deploying the thaad

system, the military training exercises with south korea and deployed attack jones to supported our service members stationed in the region. this defends the extraordinary people of south korea who have developed one of the most prosperous nations on earth. as we worked to check the growing influence and missile capability of north korea, congress has a role, starting with passage of h.res. 92, to forcefully condemn north korea for these actions and call for all available sanctions on the regime and individuals or businesses that sustain it. we are clear, the united states must stand strong against north korea for american families and our south korean allies. i appreciate the consideration i appreciate the consideration of this bill with 120 bipartisan co-sponsors. i knee america is fortunate to have the leadership -- know america is fortunate to have the leadership of ed royce serving on a bipartisan manner with ranking member eliot engel. i urge my colleagues to vote in support of the resolution.

the speaker pro tempore: mr. royce reserves his time. mr. sherman. mr. sherman: i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. mr. royce: i yield three minutes to the chairman emeritus of this committee, the gentlelady from florida, ms. ros-lehtinen, who chairs the foreign affairs subcommittee on the middle east and north africa, and has authored previous legislation to address the north korean threat. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you so much, mr. chairman. thank you to our ranking member as well. i commend the commitment that chairman royce and ranking member engel have shown in holding north korea accountable for its elicit activity. and it's a long list, mr. speaker. but i want to also commend my good friend and colleague, congressman joe wilson, for authoring this important measure, house resolution 92, condemning north korea's development of multiple intercontinental ballistic missiles, icbm's. recently north korea has made

the calculation that it either needs to flex its muscles through the test of ballistic missiles, or at the very least provoke an international response so that the regime can use it as propaganda against the west. we've seen dozens of missile tests over the past year, and just as troubling, at least two nuclear tests. and i know that this is a resolution condemning north korea's provocative action, but i do think this is an opportunity to call attention to the iranian nuclear and ballistic missile program. because what i and some of my colleagues have been saying for years now is that iran has been following the north korea playbook. we signed a weak and dangerous nuclear deal with north korea, and what was the result? a nuclear-armed pyongyang that is testing and upgrading its ballistic and nuclear program unchecked and possibly even proliferating these materials, or at least the know-how to iran. we concluded a weak and

dangerous nuclear deal with iran. and you can be sure if we don't do more to press iran, we will be welcoming another dangerous regime to the nuclear weapons club. so while we rightfully condemn north korea for its provocation -- provocations, we must be mindful that if we follow the same path and make the same mistakes, it will be iran in a few years that will have a nuclear weapon and ballistic missile program that can threaten global security. and that is in none of our interests. so i urge my colleagues to fully support mr. wilson's measure. mr. speaker, but i also urge them to realize that failures of past policies and what got us here to this point with north korea, and not to allow the same mistakes to happen with respect to iran. thank you, mr. chairman, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: mr. royce reserves his time. mr. sherman. mr. sherman: i continue to reserve my time. the speaker pro tempe: the gentleman reserves the balance

of his time. mr. royce. mr. royce: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield two minutes to the gentleman from ohio, mr. chabot, a senior member of the foreign affairs committee. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. chabot: i thank the gentleman for yielding. mr. speaker, i rise in support of house resolution 92, condemning north korea's development of multipreponderate -- multiple intercontinental ballistic missiles. without question, north korea's relentless efforts to develop ballistic missiles poses a serious threat to the security of the united states and especially to our allies in the region. and possibly all across the globe. for the past several years, kim jong un has made significant strides in their nuclear missile program. it seems like every few weeks we hear new reports concerning the growing north korean nuclear threat. north korea has conducted multiple nuclear tests and demonstrated that it is bound and determined to develop a ballistic missile capable of delivering a nuclear warhead to the continental united states.

it has also become abundantly clear that the kim regime will continue to work toward a nuclear warhead, no matter the cost. just today a senior north korean defecter stated that the young, irresponsible dictator will do anything to remain in power. and that kim believes nuclear weapons will help guarantee his rule. we must condemn these actions and begin taking concrete steps to mitigate the growing north korean threat. i also believe we must work closer than ever with our south korean partners and increase our already strong security alliance by assisting with technological developments, carry aring out more -- carrying out more joint exercises and quickly making the terminal high altitude area defense system in south korea operational. i commend my friend, mr. wilson of south carolina, for his leadership in putting house resolution 92 forward. i also want to thank chairman

royce and also the ranking ember, mr. eliot engel, for, again, using the format of the foreign affairs committee in a bipartisan manner. this is one committee in the house. and there are a few others that work very much in a bipartisan manner. and this is one we do need to be united. because the threat from kim jong un is serious. it's dangerous. it's a threat to world peace. we need to take it seriously. and this house resolution goes in the right direction. so i again want to thank mr. wilson for proposing it and i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: mr. royce reserves his time. mr. sherman. mr. sherman: i'll add just a comment about the upcoming visit of the president to florida. president trump's statement in advance of that, that, well, we don't need china to get tough on north korea. the fact ishat president

trump has not given us a plan that would put effective pressure on pyongyang that does not involve china. there is no magic road to dealing with the north korea threat that does not go through beijing. so my fear is that in the guise of being the tough guy who doesn't need china's help, that in fact a president trump -- that in fact prup is preparing to fail -- president trump is preparing to fail to get china's help in controlling north korea. is preparing to be weak in dealing with china and to weakly accept their unwillingness to act. and then to disguise it all in oh, statement of strength, we don't need china. we do need china. there's no plan to control north korea that doesn't

involve china. and macho statements are not an excuse for real strength in dealing with president xi. i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. mr. royce. mr. royce: i yield two minutes to the gentlelady from california, mrs. walters. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. mrs. walters: mr. speaker, i rise today in support of house resolution 92. condemning north korea's development of multiple intercontinental ballistic missiles. the world has watched in fear as this brutal dictatorship has labored to minute tarize a nuke -- miniaturize a nuclear -capable warhead. across the 45th district, californians are anxious about the growing threat from north korea and its efforts to develop the capability to strike the west coast. orange county is home to a large koreanman -- korean american population who have spoken out forcefully against this rogue regime, fearing for the lives of their korean kin

and the safety of the entire world. as i tell all concerned constituents when i'm back home in california, i will repeat here today, i share your concern and we'll do -- and will do all i can to ensure we eliminate this threat. mr. speaker, just today, an interview with the most high profile north korean defecter in two decades was released. the man's warning was dire. unwill use nuclear weapons -- kim jong un will use nuclear weapons at the slightest sign of a threat to his rule. the time for the old strategy of strategic patience has passed. we must take serious actions now to prevent a nuclear weapon from ever threatening the united states or one of our allies. i urge the president to address this grave threat with the chinese president at their upcoming summit. i thank my friend, the gentleman from south carolina, for undertaking this effort.

and i am proud to join him in this fight. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: mr. royce reserves his time. mr. sherman. mr. sherman: i'll reserve the right to close -- mr. royce: i'll reserve the right to close, mr. speaker. the speaker pro tempore: mr. sherman. mr. sherman: seeing as neither side has any additional speakers, i would simply say that i want to commend the gentleman from south carolina, mr. wilson, for authoring this resolution, which has secured the support of 120 bipartisan co-sponsors, including the chair and ranking member of the full committee, and the chair and, in my case, ranking member of the relevant subcommittee. i again call on my colleagues to join me in supporting this resolution, h.res. 92, condemning north korea's development of multiple intercontinental ballistic missiles and for other purposes. we need an official congressional condemnation of north korea's continued

ballistic missile testing. and its related nuclear program. and we need to ramp up sanctions on north korea while applying pressure to china, hopefully later this week, for being north korea's economic life line. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: mr. sherman yields back his time. mr. royce. mr. royce: i'll yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. royce: thank you, mr. speaker. north korea, as we all know, poses an urgent threat to the united states. and to our alyles. experts say that -- allies. experts say that in less than four years, kim jong un will likely have the ability to make a reliable intercontinental ballistic missile topped by a nuclear warhead capable of targeting the continental united states. and they also expect that by then north korea may have accumulated enough nuclear material to build up to 100 warheads for those icbm's

they've been making. now, in an interview the president says he's going to discuss this growing threat with kim jong un, about kim jong un, he's going to discuss kim jong un's behavior with the chinese president. this week -- president this week. as he says, china has great influence over north korea. and china will either decide to help us with north korea or they won't. but if they do, that will be very good for china. it will be good for china because we've made it very, very clear that this is a key interest of the united states. we do not want to see north korea able to proliferate with this kind of weaponry. they have already tested this off of a submarine. it would be irresponsible for us and china and every member of the international community t to take steps now to cut

off all hard currency into north korea that allows that regime to continue down this path. this threat is real. and that and it demands real response and i appreciate joe wilson with this resolution because as he notes one other-month that i think we have to make -- one other point that i think we need to make. the president muss also use the economic tools -- must also use the economic tools that congress has given him with the act authored by myself and mr. engel to cut off funding for the regime of kim jong un and i would also encourage the administration to pursue all opportunities to strengthen our economic and security relationships with our partners throughout the asia pacific right now because as we know,

our allies there are equally concerned about this development. so i thank the author of this resolution, mr. joe wilson, and, of course, my committee's ranking member, mr. engel. i want to thank mr. sherman as well for working on this resolution, and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back his time. all time has expired. the question is will the house suspend the rules and agree to house resolution 92, as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 having responded in the affirmative -- the gentleman from california. mr. royce: with that i request the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the yeas and nays are requested. all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having arisen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this uestion will be postponed.

for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? mr. royce: mr. speaker, i move the house suspend the rules and pass house resolution 54 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: house resolution 54, resolution reaffirming the united states-argentina partnership and recognizing rgentinas economic reforms. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from california, mr. royce, and the gentleman from new jersey, mr. sires, each will control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california. mr. royce: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to evise and extend their remarks and to put any extraneous material in the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. royce: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. royce: thank you, mr. speaker. let me just start by thanking mr. sires, the author of this

measure, and i rise in support of it. it reaffirms the united states-argentina partnership and after over a decade of economic mismanagement and corruption and alliances with , well, we f iran and should say the ayatollah in iran and alliances with the regime in venezuela, the people of argentina used their vote and they used it to usher in a new era of what i would call economic common sense and a new era of regional leadership. and since assuming the presidency in december, 2015, president macri has undertaken difficult economic reforms to undo the damage caused by his predecessor's policy and taken reforms to return to global

markets. laughable up the reement that the president signed with iran to investigate the 1994 hezbollah bombing of the jewish community center injured of 85 and hundreds of people in the jewish community of argentina. he condemned venezuela's democratic and human rights violations. as the new argentine government has reforms, it needs the moral support of the allies in the region, including the support of this body. and this measure seeks to reaffirm the partnership, the friendship that we share with argentina and it commends the government's hard work in bringing argentina back from economic ruin.

this measure also encourages that the government of argentina to make good on its promise to finally bring the perpetrators of the 1994 bombing there of the community center, jewish community center, to justice while thoroughly investigating the special 2015, death of prosecutor alberto nismon. immediately before his mysterious death he was set to issue a thorough report on his findings that the government of shown a kershner has iran's role of the 1994 terrorist attack by the iranian proxy, in this case, hezbollah. mr. speaker, in south america -- let me just mention another subject here. in south america, we are

watching venezuela lose any semblance of democracy or human rights. last week their democratically national assembly was dissolved. the venezuelan people are greatly suffering. as argentina has dropped its support of these authoritarians and stands with the rest of the region in strong condemnation of authoritarianism in venezuela, the venezuelan government is now more isolated before. this resolution reflects our relationship with argentina and reflects our support in their economic reform. i reserve the balance of my time and, again, i thank mr. sires for this resolution. the speaker pro tempore: mr. royce reserves the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from new jersey, mr. sires.

mr. sires: mr. speaker, i rise in support of this resolution and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. sires: i'd like to thank by thanking chairman royce, ranking member engel and their staffs for working with me to bring house resolution 54 to the floor. i like to thank my friend from south carolina, chairman jeff duncan, who's in charge of the western hemisphere subcommittee and led a delegation to argentina less march to help restart relations with the marci administration. house resolution 54 reaffirms the strong u.s. partnership with argentina and acknowledges their president for his efforts to make the necessary changes in order to bring argentina back into the international community. president macri worked hard to stimulate growth and bring argentina back as a powerful player in the region after

years of isolationist views kirshners. i saw firsthand the changes the government was making and it was refreshing to see the progress already been made. most importantly, we received assurances from the macri administration that they will restart the investigation into the horrific 1994 bombing of the jewish center in buenos aries which left 85 dead and hundreds more injured. and the untimely and suspicious death of prosecutor alberto nismon who was found dead on the eve of delivering his explosive report which showed the connections between the mbing, iran and former 's link to rchner cover up these attacks. the eed to know the --

investigation will bring the perpetrators to justice. argentina is a great partner and friend and i believe we must continue to support our friends and continue to grow this critical relationship. once again, i thank my colleagues for their support of this resolution and urge members of this house to support house resolution 54, to further strengthen the great ties our country has with argentina. and i reserve the balance of my ime. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the gentleman from california, mr. royce. mr. royce: i yield three minutes to the gentleman from south carolina, mr. duncan, who chairs the subcommittee on western hemisphere, and he's the primary co-sponsor of this measure. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. duncan: thank you, mr. chairman. i briefly want to mention the country of colombia, tremendous flooding and mudslides there have taken more than 200 lives and colombia is in the prayers

of me, the western hemisphere subcommittee and others in america. i rise in strong support of h.res. 54. it applies economic reforms undertaken in recent years. i applaud ranking member sires for his leadership on this issue. last year he and i led a congressional delegation to argentina to see the differences in the country under the new leadership of esident macri and extend the hand of friendship. i saw new optimism that the new macri administration would right these wrongs. taking, for example, the organization of american states, argentina has been supportive of the actions of the secretary urging the venezuelan government to respect democracy, human rights and the rule of law. in addition, president macri is working to find justice for the 1994 bombing terrorist attack. the largest loss of life from an act of terror in this

hemisphere prior to 9/11. with murder of the special prosecutor, alberto nisman, it's my sincerest hope he will find the perpetrators and find them accountable for these heinous acts of terror. in conclusion, we are thankful for president macri's courage to take unpopular and principled positions. i urge the trump administration to take the steps outlined in this legislation and advance a deeper bilateral relationship. with that i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: mr. royce reserves his time. mr. sires. mr. sires: mr. speaker, i yield two minutes to the gentleman from california, mr. sherman. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized for two minutes. mr. sherman: i rise in strong support of house resolution 54, and commend its authors and co-sponsors.

with the new administration of president macri, i think there will be a deepening relationship between the united states and argentina and this resolution recognizes that. it also encourages the argentine government to continue to investigate and prosecute those responsible for the 1994 bombing of the arn t.j. israeli association, located then in the center of buenos aries and the death of argentine special prosecutor alberto nisman, who died mysteriously one day before he was going to submit a report to the argentine congress regarding that 1994 bombing. i think it is apparent that that 1994 bombing was conducted by iran in cooperation with hezbollah and we all want to encourage the argentine government to find out whether there was foul play in the

death of alberto nisman, and if so, who was behind what has all the hallmarks of an assassination designed to prevent that report from bill submitted to the argentine people and congress. i commend the authors of its legislation, urge its adoption and yield back. the speaker pro tempore: mr. sires reserves his time. mr. royce. mr. royce: i yield three minutes to the gentlelady from florida, ms. ros-lehtinen, chairman emeritus of the foreign affairs committee and a co-sponsor of this measure. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you so much. i thank chairman royce for the time. mr. speaker, i'm so proud to be standing here in strong support of the measure of my very good friend from new jersey, mr. albio sires, house resolution 54 is so important. reaffirms the u.s.-arn -- u.s.-argentina partnership and recognizes argentina's economic reforms and as mr. royce said,

i am proud to be an original co-sponsor of mr. sires' important bill. up until the recent election of president macri, argentina was going in the wrong direction. but since macri came to office, he's made some tough but much-needed economic reforms and he's shown that argentina is willing to be engaged in areas of mutual interest to our two countries and expand our bilateral relations. president macri's commitment to these reforms should be commended, but he hasn't just shown strong leadership on economic reforms, president macri has shown strong character and leadership to the rule of law and pursuit of justice. he has done so by announcing his intention to continue to investigate and prosecute those responsible for the 1994 bombing of the argentine-israeli mutual association, amia, in buenos aries argentina. last month we marked the 25th

anniversary of the terrorist attack on the israeli embassy in buenos aries which was followed bit 1994 amia attack. it is no secret that the iranian-backed terrorist group, hezbollah, was responsible for these attacks. yet, to this day, mr. speaker, iran and hezbollah has evaded justice. the united states should support president macri as he continues the investigation and seeks to hold those responsible and make sure that he can bring them to justice for their deadly terror attacks. . we should also applaud his decision to investigate the suspicious circumstances involving the death of the special prosecutor of these cases. alberto had uncovered links between hezbollah and these terror attacks. and i would speak with alberto frequently about these troublesome ties. he was good man and a strong supporter of human rights.

we must help the president and the people of argentina continue the work and legacy by bringing those responsible for his death and for those dastardly terrorist attacks to justice. we can start by signaling to the people of argentina that we support their government and that we value our bilateral relationship and passing this resolution will do just that. we will send that message. i urge my colleagues to support this measure and thank you, mr. chairman. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: mr. royce reserves his time. mr. sires. mr. sires: mr. speaker, i yield myself such time as i may consume. for the purpose of closing. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. sires: in conclusion, let me say that the u.s.-argentina relationship is critical. and stand in strong support of house resolution 54. argentina's new president has

done a tremendous job reforming their outdated and isolationist economic policies. most importantly, the administration has been new in its efforts to find the long sought-after justice of the bombing of the jewish cultural center, whose perpetrators are still evading justice. these efforts have improved the lives of countless of argentines and i look forward to working with his government to continue building on the progress we have already made. i urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this resolution and thank you all for your support. i reserve. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. mr. royce: i'll reserve the right to close. the speaker pro tempore: does the gentleman from new jersey wish to close? mr. sires: i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. mr. royce. mr. royce: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the

gentleman is recognized. mr. royce: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to thank my colleagues, i want to thank mr. sires, ranking member of the subcommittee, for the western hemisphere. and i thank the chairman of that committee, mr. duncan, for their leadership in bringing this measure to the floor. this important resolution reaffirms our relationship with the people and the government of argentina. and it calls on the state department to develop an interagency strategy to maximize our cooperation with argentina. as our countries work together to promote democracy, to promote human rights, to promote economic freedom across the americas. so i urge all of my colleagues to support this measure and yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back the balance of his time. all time has expired. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and agree to house resolution 54 as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 of those voting having responded in the affirmative,

the rules are suspended, the resolution is agreed to and, without objection, the motion to reconsider is laid on the table. for what purpose does the gentleman from california seek recognition? mr. royce: mr. speaker, i move the house suspend the rules and pass h.r. 479 as amended. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title of the bill. the clerk: h.r. 479, a bill to require a report on the designation of the democratic speech's -- people's republic of korea as a state sponsor of terrorism and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from california, mr. royce, and the gentleman from california, mr. sherman, will each control 20 minutes. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. royce. mr. royce: i ask unanimous consent that all members may have five legislative days to revise and extend their remarks and to include any extraneous material into the record. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. royce: i also ask unanimous consent to place into the

record an exchange of letters with chairman brady of the committee on ways and means. the speaker pro tempore: without objection. mr. royce: thank you, mr. speaker. i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. royce: mr. speaker, last month i was pleased to hear secretary of state rex tillerson say that the state department is considering a ange of measures to respond to kim jong un's dangerous provocations in northeast asia. one immediate step should be listing north korea as a state sponsor of terrorism, a status it should have never lost. in 2008 north korea's designation as a state sponsor of terror was rescinded following the regime's promise to dismantle its nuclear weapons program. well, north korea got its de-listing. but it kept its nuclear program , as proven by its fourth test, as proven by its fifth test

last year. and since 2008, not only has north korea's nuclear weapons program advanced, so too has its support for terrorism. and let me explain that. the kim regime has continued to supply surface to aramisles and explosives to -- air missiles and explosives to terrorist groups like hezbollah. and in addition to that, the actions taken by north korea, cluding shelling, the firing of repeated rounds on south orean civilians, on the island . they've carried out targeted assassinations of north korean defecters, including, of course, the recent -- defectors, including, of course, the recent assassination of kim jong un's half-brother who had been living in compile. recall that this murder, which took -- exile. recall that this murder, which took place in broad daylight in

an airport, involved the use of v.x. nerve agent, which is a chemical weapon banned under international law. now a leader of this substance -- liter of this substance contains enough lethal dose to kill one million people it. has no other purpose than -- people. it has no other purpose than being an instrument of death. and this they used as an assassination against the president's own half-brother. mr. speaker, the foreign affairs committee has focused extensively on the urgent threat by north korea to the u.s. and our allies in asia. it is critical that we use every tool at our disposal to ramp up the pressure on the kim regime. and i know just how aggressive north korea can be. saw a ship in the south korean navy that had been lifted from the bottom of the .ea

it had been split in two by a torpedo fired from a north korean submarine. over 40 sailors, south korean sailors, were killed in that attack. so, this is the kind of behavior we've seen from kim jong un. so this is why i rise in support of judge ted poe's resolution, house resolution 479. which pushes the state department to relist north korea as a state sponsor of terrorism. the state sponsor of terrorism label is a very powerful one. in addition to imposing sanctions and other restrictions, the designation itself earns a state pariah status internationally. and that's deserved, after all these, our countries whose governments back the killings of innocent people, innocent civilians, as a matter of policy. frankly, the department should never have removed north korea's designation in the first place. but i am glad that this

legislation demands a re-evaluation. i think i know what that result will be. and i thank the bill's author, judge ted poe, who has a deep sense of -- as a former judge, of justice and has pursued this issue for a long, long time. and also thank the ranking member for working with our offices on this important and timely measure. the flawed delisting of north korea has also been a particular focus to the chairman emeritus of the foreign affairs committee, ms. ros-lehtinen, and so i want to recognize her contributions as well. and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. the chair recognizes the gentleman from california, mr. sherman. mr. sherman: mr. speaker, i rise today to support house resolution 479, the north korea state sponsor of terrorism designation act of 2017. i yield myself as much time as

i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. sherman: i want to associate myself with the chairman's remarks. he summerizes well the need to adopt this legislation. i want could commend judge poe for introducing this legislation and i was very pleased to introduce it alongside him. we earlier considered house resolution 92. in that debate we discussed the nuclear and missile program of north korea. now it's time to focus for the next few minutes on their use of terrorism. we need to consider north korea's obvious state support of terrorism around the world. north korea has engaged in kidnappings, target assassinations, cyberattacks, and support to terrorist organizations. in various regions.

north korea was designated as the state -- as a state responser in terrorism in 19 -- sponsor of terrorism in 1988 but was take ever off after commitments to dismantle its nuclear weapons program. we dismanltled their status as a state sponsor of -- dismantled their status as a state sponsor of terrorism. north korea certainly has not dismantled its nuclear program. kim jong un has increase -- has only increased the pace of his nuclear and ballistic missile testing and is nowhere near dismanltling that program -- dismantling that program. so now it is time to focus again on north korea's terrorist actions around the world. we can go back several decades, when the north korean government kidnapped japanese civilians. some because of their talents in making movies, most in order o force them to teach japanese

etiquette to north korean spies . you would say, well, that was decades ago. why are we designating them as a terrorist -- as a state sponsor of terrorism now? well, those people still have not been released to this day. and if they've passed on, their bodies have not been returned to their families. we're all aware of how north korea engaged in cyberterrorism against sony pictures because sony pictures made a movie they didn't like. we know that just a month or so ago a north korean agent killed jong nk nam, the -- kim nam, the half-brother of kim jong un. this act of terrorism took place at the airport in alaysia and was summarize -- summarized by the chairman. and a united states district

court found that in 2014 the north korea -- that north korea materially supported terrorist acts by hezbollah, a designated foreign terrorist organization. finally, and this list is incomplete, but last on my list is north korea's assistance in helping assad try to develop nuclear weapons of his own. we're aware that assad's nuclear facility, built almost entirely based on north korean technology, and using north korean equipment, was destroyed in 2007. assad has murdered hundreds of thousands, it looks like the figure is now half a million of his own citizens. imagine the destruction assad would have engaged in. had he been able to develop nuclear weapons with the support and technology of north korea.

so, h.res. 479, the north korea state sponsor of terrorism designation act, expresses the sense of congress that north korea likely meets the criteria to be designated as a state sponsor of terrorism and requires a determination by the secretary of state within 90 days as to whether or not north korea meets that standard. this bill is an important step in confronting north korea's support for terrorism around the world. and for the danger that it poses to the civilized world. i call upon my colleagues to join me in supporting this bill and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves the balance of his time. mr. royce. mr. royce: yes, mr. speaker. i'd also like to recognize the contribution here of mr. sherman, who is the ranking member on the committee. and to acknowledge also the force of that argument.

this is an individual who not only kidnaps his neighbors, but also in the past, in rogue regime has become expert at transferring the methods to kill civilians to other rogue regimes around the world. and based upon its past behavior, it is only too plausible that if they get this weapon, they will do it again. i yield five minutes to the gentleman from texas, judge poe, the dogged author of this bill who has pushed this issue for a long time. judge poe. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. poe: thank you, mr. speaker. i thank the chairman and the ranking member, mr. sherman, for his co-sponsorship of this legislation. north korea was on the state sponsor of terrorism list for 20 years. it was taken off in 2008 for

just political diplomatic reasons. north korea agreed to freeze and disable its nuclear program in the international efforts known as the six-party talks. in exchange, the united states decided to remove north korea from the state sponsor of terrorism list. north korea remain thafse list while it races toward capability to send a nuclear warhead to american shores. there's been no secret about this little kim has said he wants to send intercontinental ballistic missiles to the united states. north korea has conducted four nuclear tests since 2008. recent satellite images suggests he's preparing for yet another nuclear test. north korea is also doing all the things that got it place odd then state sponsor of terrorism list in the first place. north korea harbored japanese red army terrorists who participated in the hijacking of a jet in 1970.

these rifts are still living happily in north korea today. press reports suggest that little kim is even arming and training hamas and hezbollah terrorists. a u.s. district court actually found in 2014 that north korea materially supported terrorist attacks by hezbollah against israel. north korea has also moved toward a new form of terrorism, cyber warfare. we remember the cyberattack against sony pictures that included direct threats against its employees and a warning to remember the 11th of september, 2001. in march of 2015, north korea launches a cyberattack against nuclear power plants in south korea. north korea is not just active over cyber, it has a long history of actually killing folks, dissidents in particular, all over the world. in february, north korean agents killed little kim's half brother

in malaysia using a chemical weapon, d.x. nerve agent. north korea has helped assad develop chemical weapons. thankfully israel took out those weapons some time ago. north korean actions have not gotten any better. they've only become more dangerous and more treacherous. in addition, north korea is working with iran, the world's number one state sponsor of terror on developing nuclear weapons and intercontinental ballistic missiles. it's clear that north korea is a state sponsor of terrorism. at the very least, the state department should go back to the drawing board and assess whether or not north korea meets the criteria for designation as a state sponsor of terrorismful that's what this bill does, h.r. 479. the north korean state sponsor of terrorism dez egg nation act. it's high time we call out little kim, the loose cannon of east asia, for what he is. a terrorist and a terrorist state.

and that's just the way it is. i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: mr. oyce reserves. >> i would like to note this resolution passed our committee without any opposition and i reserve the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman reserves. mr. royce. mr. royce: i reserve the right to close. oh, let me recognize the gentlelady, ms. ros-lehtinen, for three minutes and thank her again for her contribution on this legislation. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlelady is recognized. ms. ros-lehtinen: thank you, mr. speaker. thank you, chairman royce. i stand in full support of judge poe's bill, h.r. 479, the north korea state sponsor of terrorism dez egg nation act of 2017. over the years, as the chairman has said, i have repeatedly and explicitly called for pyongyang to be redesignated as a state

sponsor of terrorism. i stood in ar dent opposition to the bush administration's decision to remove north korea from the s.s.t. list and in years past, introduced similar legislation to my good friend judge poe's, which would see pyongyang back on the list where it belongs. the removal of the list -- off the list was a failure of the nuclear negotiations with north korea, a concession given for nothing but empty promises in return. in much the same way that the obama administration removed cuba from the s.s.t. list two years ago, only at least the bush administration got empty promises. in return for these terrible concessions, while the obama administration couldn't even get empty promises. these designations are much more important than just tools for negotiation, mr. speaker. they are there because these countries actively support

terror, or they support or facilitate countries that do support terror. they pose a very serious risk to our u.s. national security and global stability. this is not something to take lightly and removing north korea from the s.s.t. list was a very serious error in judgment. it is far pastime, mr. speaker, to correct this mistake and it has to start by having an honest and transparent determination made on pyongyang, its support for terror, and its ties to other state sponsors of terrorism states like iran. i support judge poe's bill and i urge my colleagues to do the same. thank you, mr. chairman, and with that, i yield back. the speaker pro tempore: mr. royce reserves his time. mr. sherman. mr. sherman: in closing, this bill is an important step in confronting north korea's support for terrorism around the world. we should not stand sidele while north korea engages in terrorism including kidnappings, target

assassinations, cyberattacks, support for other terrorist organizations and nuclear proliferation. i again call upon my colleagues to join me in passing this bill, house resolution 479, the north korea state sponsor of terror act of 2017 and i note this bill passed our full committee without a single opponent. i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. mr. royce. mr. royce: i yield myself such time as i may consume. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman is recognized. mr. royce: thank you, mr. speaker. i again want to thank judge poe for his determination to have north korea labeled as a terror state and as judge poe notes, that's just the way it is. with the passage of this bill today, we're going to take another step, i think, toward pushing backed on that regime's destructive ambitions and i think also it's worth noting

that we have a recently published u.n. panel of experts on north korea. they've put out this report that says that north korea continues o ill listly ship dual-use items to both syria and i-- and iran. those are two terrorist regimes. i hope that the new administration will move quickly to relist north korea and continue to seek ways to increase pressure on the regime through the sanctions bill that we passed out of here today and other measures and i urge my colleagues to support this important measure and i yield back the balance of my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. all time has expired. the question is, will the house suspend the rules and pass the bill h.r. 479, as amended. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. in the opinion of the chair, 2/3 being in the affirmative --

>> on that, i request the yeas and nays. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman requests the yeas and nays. all those in favor of taking this vote by the yeas and nays will rise and remain standing until counted. a sufficient number having risen, the yeas and nays are ordered. pursuant to clause 8 of rule 20, further proceedings on this uestion will be postponed. the chair lays before the house a communication. the clerk: the honorable the speaker, house of representatives, sir, pursuant to the permission granted in clause 2-h of rule 2 of the rules of the u.s. house of representatives, the clerk received the following message from the secretary of the senate on april 3, 2017, at 4:32 p.m., that the senate passed senate 544. with best wishes, i am, signed, sincerely, karen l. haas.

the speaker pro tempore: the chair lays before the house a message. the clerk: to the congress of the united states. i transmit here with principles for reforming the military select i service process in accordance with section 555 of the national defense authorization act for fiscal year 2017, public law 114-328, which calls for the president to establish principles for reform of the military selective service process in support of the national commission on military, national, and public service. signed, donald j. trump, the white house, april 3, 2017. the speaker pro tempore: referred to the committee on armed services and ordered printed. pursuant to clause 12-a of rule 1, the chair delairs the house in recess until approximately 6:30 today.

israel has a major upgrade that will take down the next giant. amen. he david shrinking miss i will ystem and the american defense contractor. >> they are available at c-span.org on our home page and searching the video library. >> at today's white house accepted ayan sinkey check signed by president trump. not toicer saying it his accept a sale as. mr. spicer took questions