[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 6] [House] [Pages 7813-7814] [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]NATIONAL SECURITY The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the gentleman from California (Mr. Rohrabacher) is recognized for 5 minutes. Mr. ROHRABACHER. Madam Speaker, I rise to express my concern over two critical national security issues: Iran and the ongoing Israeli- Palestinian conflict. As far as Iran, the extremist mullah leaders in that country continue to oppress and murder their own people. They, by providing armor- piercing weapons to terrorists, are also responsible for the death of hundreds, if not thousands, of American soldiers in both Iraq and Afghanistan. Yet the Iranian regime is being treated as a legitimate, if not democratic, government. Well, they are not legitimate nor are they democratic. They are a radical Islamic anti-Western dictatorship. We have long since passed the time when America should have been backing, verbally and otherwise, the Iranian people's struggle to overthrow [[Page 7814]] their radical Islamic oppressors. Let the Iranian people, with our blessings, rid themselves of this pariah regime. That would be the best option. But when it comes to the mullah regime obtaining nuclear weapons, doing nothing to prevent it is not an option. If we won't do what is necessary ourselves, we should not get in the way of Israel doing it. Obviously, Israel will be the first nation threatened with devastation and destruction by a nuclear-armed Iranian mullah dictatorship. Thus, if Israel is willing to act and does so, it should not be viewed as an outrage but it should be viewed with understanding and perhaps with a sense of relief. If other options fail, intelligence, logistical and political support for an Israeli operation aimed at preventing the construction of a mullah A-bomb is in our interest, is in the interest of peace and safety in that region, and it is in the interest of all of the people of the world. Then there is, of course, the Palestinian-Iranian quagmire. But let us recognize when we are looking at that issue, there has been major progress over the last decade. Israel has demonstrably reached out to offer an olive branch to the Palestinian people. {time} 2015 They have embraced a two-state solution, which they didn't do over 10 years ago. They have, in fact, withdrew their troops from Lebanon. And importantly, Israel has actually given up control of Gaza and substantial territory in the West Bank. And what did they get for it? Thousands of missiles launched into Israel itself. And when retaliating, they, of course, were condemned for a fight that they didn't even start. It's time for the Palestinian missile attacks to stop and for the Palestinians to reciprocate for Israel's tangible concessions in Gaza and on the West Bank. They should step up to the plate with a meaningful change of position. The Palestinians need to recognize Israel's right to exist. And to make it real, the Palestinians must renounce what they call the right of return. The Israelis have taken major steps. Now it's time for the Palestinians to move. And until the Palestinians make recognizable steps forward, as Israel has done, as I just pointed out, our government should not be urging Israel to give up even more territory or condemning them for prodding the Palestinians. For example, if the Israeli renovation of apartment complexes in Jerusalem gets the Palestinians to realize that they can't wait forever because Israel is just going to move on unless the Palestinians come out and try to reach an agreement, well, if it's got the Palestinians to understand that, and that they're going to have to act and step forward, then the widely condemned renovation of those apartment complexes in Jerusalem was actually something that furthered the cause of peace. To conclude, I urge the Obama administration to change course before it's too late, to stand up to the Iranian Islamic dictatorship, and to be realistic about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Peace can't come by trying to prove how sincere we are or by holding hands with thugs hoping they will be impressed with our sincerity, or by condemning a nation that is attacked for retaliating. It's time, as we say in California, to get real. Unfortunately, when it comes to these two important foreign policy challenges, it seems that wishful thinking and irrational optimism are what's guiding America's foreign policy. ____________________