so we don't talk about it. we talk about other things. t these victims live quiet lives of despair. and i have known a lot over the years, some of them even in contact with me. just called to check with me. they don't get over it. we would happy they would and get their lives together and emotionally, a lot of them don't just get overit, for a lot of reasons, because they are shameful. their mom told them it was their fault, whatever. and we need to make it clear that congress is on their side. we are on their side. we are their only voice. we don't sp for them.

it doesn't get done. so we have a lot of to do. one thing i would like to mention. . the father and think mother of the rapist gave statements to the judge. i read those statements. i'd like to talk about the father he blamed the victim for the conduct of his son. he's wrong. and the problem is, he actually believes it's her fault. he didn't just say that to try to protect his son he believes it's her fault. that's what's really bad. most of us who are males in this house, we have sons, i do, have one, have grandsons, we have an in gation to raise our sons accordance with basic human

rights, and explain to them when they're very young, there are some things you just can't do. you're going to be punished for it. but also, it's wrong. and sexual assault is one of those. it's wrong. you cannot do that. we need to explain that. because we've got a generation of young males, every generation of young males has to be reeducated. we have that obligation in our families to educate our sons. that because you think you are somebody, you're not going to get off if you do that crime. whether you're an athlete, whether you come from pedigree, whether you're rich, famous. whatever. need to explain to our sons that sexually lly wrong to assault a person.

under any circumstances. because no always means no. it's not the fault of the victim. to do uld encourage dads this. this doesn't cost any money. it doesn't cost any legislation. but it's a moral obligation we have as fathers. i think if fathers did a better job, i've said this before, if fathers did a better job, we'd have fewer young males at the courthouse. most of the people who showed up to the courthouse when i was a judge were young males. mostly under 25 years of age. it's not because women get away with it, it's because young males commit most of the crime. we have that obligation and i encourage fathers to do that. i want to talk about two more cases that i was involved in. a ied this case as prosecutor, and this was a

nior citizen, say di-- sadie was her first name. in the trial, the victim has to state what happened to her. she would never say rape. she would certainly never say sexual assault. because we didn't use that term. but she kept testifying from the witness stand what happened to you, and she said, it was a fate worse than death. can you be a little more detailed. no. it was a fate worse than death. we went through this for a little bit. she kept saying that. t's a fate worse than death. she eventually said enough of the right words to meet the legal qualification for rape. and i asked her at the trial, why do you keep saying, it's a

fate worse than death, i don't know if you've ever heard that before or not. she said it's real simple. when you die, you die once. when this crime is committed against you, you die every day. it's a fate worse than death. and that's the way sexual assault victims view this crime and that's the way the law ought to view this crime. to many, it's a fate worse than death. and she had it perfectly because it is a fate worse than death. last case i'll talk about is one that i prosecuted as well. this individual, the victim in this case, i won't use her name because her family still lives in houston. she was leaving one of our major universities and driving home to a town north of houston.

all the lights come on on the dash board. she's having car trouble. she pulled into a service station. she thought it was open. it was not. she came in contact with who she thought was the service station attendant. he was not the service station attendant -- attendant, i'm not going to mention his name he, doesn't deserve it he kidnapped her he, had a gun. he took her from this area. put her into some woods, sexually assaulted her. beat her up. she survived because she was a remarkable lady. in fact, my understanding now after the trial, the defendant was mad that she did survive. anyway, he's tried. he's convicted. jury of 12 right-thinking houstonians convicted the defendant. and in texas, we have in some cases jury sentencing.

and the jury sentenced this individual, rapist, to 99 years in the texas penitentiary. that was the maximum. he deserved every minute of it. now we would hope that everything would be ok. that life would go on, bad guy, outlaw goes to prison. sexual assault victim gets justice in court. but it doesn't work that way. because that's not life. first thing that happened was, she started abusing alcohol. and then other narcotics. her husband left her. years ear, maybe two after the crime, i get a call from her mother, and she tells me that her daughter has taken her own life. and she left a note that says, i'm tired of running from the criminal in my nightmares.

see, she got the death penalty for what somebody did to her. and the cases that i mentioned tonight, and the many, many others that we've all received since last week, there's a lot of victims, survivors, and we really are judged by the way we treat the innocent folks in our community. not the rich. not the famous. not the athletes. but by the way we treat the innocent. the kids. the people who have no voice in our justice system except congress. so we speak for them. and we need to speak for them as well. so i would remind the people hat out listening to this to

se the hash tag, # survivorspeak, to weigh in on this conversation if they want. mr. speaker, the -- this subject, as i mentioned at the outset, is one we sometimes don't want to talk about, but we can't ignore it. ever. not anymore. not today. not in this town or any town. -- or any town in america. that's why the stanford judge needs to go. and that's why i commend the folks in california for having a recall petition. judges need to get their head on straight and know they've got to get it right every time when it comes to justice. the scales of justice are a balancing act. justice for defendants but also justice for victims and survivors of crime. because rape is never the fault of the victim.

and when a rapist commits a crime against, usually a woman or child, that rapist is stealing the soul, stealing the very soul of that victim. because that's what happens. let us not forget that. and that's just the way it is. i'll yield back. the speaker pro tempore: the gentleman yields back. under the speaker's announced policy of january 6, 2015, the chair recognizes the gentlelady from new hampshire, ms. kuster, for 30 minutes. ms. kuster: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to commend my colleague, judge poe, for his eloquent words tonight. i appreciate it and i appreciate the bipartisan sentiment. i rise tonight in solidarity with my courageous colleagues from across the country who spoke last week, and as judge poe joined us, we read the

eloquent words of the survivor in the stanford university case. we rise tonight to show our continuing support for the woman known to the world as emily doe. and to join with all of our sisters at stanford and on college campuses and in communities around the nation, with one simple message to america. we are all emily doe. i'm going to start my remarks tonight 40 years ago, on a cold winter night at a prestigious college campus, this time on the east coast. i was an 18-year-old student. i was going to a dance. the dance was at a fraternity and i intended to enjoy the evening with my friends. we danced. we listened to music. we enjoyed the evening and we enjoyed the party. until one young man assaulted me in a crude and insulting way and

i ran, alone, into the cold, dark night. i have never forgotten that night. i was filled with shame, regret, humiliation, while he was egged on by everyone at that party standing by. several years later, i was working as a legislative assistant right here on capitol hill. and i was assaulted again. this time by a distinguished guest of the united states congress. i was 23 years old. and as judge poe referenced tonight, i did not say a word to anyone. and in fact, until i wrote these words to share with you tonight, i had never told anyone this story. my family didn't know. my husband. my children. my friends. i was 23.

a few months after that evening, i was walking home from dinner, at a diner right here on capitol hill. if i named it, you all would know it well. i was mugged. i was grabbed in the dark and i fought free and when i broke free, i ran again. alone into the cold, dark night. i tell these stories tonight on the floor of the united states congress, not because they are remarkable or unique. sadly, i tell these stories because they are all too common. you see, all of us, members of congress, college students, soldiers and sailors, mothers and sisters, we are all emily doe. and the message we hear and the message that the courts -- that

the court sent in stanford is that we are not safe. we are not secure. and we do not deserve to be free. free from sexual assault. free from rape. free from rude, crude, obnoxious, offensive assaults on our bodies, on our beings, on ourselves. what we hear on college campuses, on military bases, in the workplace, and in the courthouse, is that he has a future. he has potential. he was drunk. he didn't mean any harm. he just wanted to have fun. to get some action. and then get on with his life. what about her? what about her future? the student, the soldier, the sailor, the mother, the sister?

we have been silent for too long. we also have potential. we also have a future. we are all emily doe, and tonight we will not be silent any more. tonight, we stand together, republicans and democrats, mothers and sisters, from across the country to take a stand for liberty and justice for all. we will fight for consequences, for the 3% of men on college campuses and in our communities who are sexual predators and a menace to women everywhere. we will fight for bystander education and sexual assault prevention, for the 97% of men on college campuses and in our communities who can be part of the solution. join us in taking a stand

against sexual assault. . we will reward college campuses that are open, transparent and not only change their policies and programs, but actually hold the perpetrators accountable and provide real and effective counseling and support for those students who have been assaulted. and we will impose sanctions on college administrators who fail to act, fail to change, fail to . event, fail to protect every student deserves to be safe, every student deserves to be secure, to live her life and to live her future. so remember, tonight we are all emily doe. she has given us our voice and we will not be silent any longer. with that, mr. speaker, i'd

like to yield to the gentlewoman from massachusetts, my good friend and colleague, ms. clark. ms. clark: thank you, mr. speaker. and thank you to the gentlelady from new hampshire for your personal story. it's moving, it's courageous, and it makes a difference. we so appreciate your words. your story is our story. it's the story of our daughters, our nieces, our granddaughters and ourselves. approximately 20% of women who go to college will be sexually assaulted. and according to the department of justice and the center for those policy, 95% of women will not report their crimes. because they don't think they will be believed, they think they will be humiliated and shamed.

as emily doe said so eloquently and brutally frankly in her statement to her rapist, brock turner, the judicial system and institutions will blame the victim. she had her consent questioned even though she was unconscious. another college student recently in the news in massachusetts went to w.p.i. and when she was lured to a rooftop and raped by a university security guard, she was questioned in her courtroom on her so-called risky behavior. of drinking alcohol, not getting off the elevator when the guard followed her on, and that she had ignored training on personal safety. recently at harvard an alumni

group president of an elite men's club offered that the suggestion of making the club ce, -- coed was not a good one, because it would potentially increase sexual assault at the club, not decrease it. alcohol, trusting security guards, the mere presence of women -- none of it justifies rape. alcohol highlights the deeply rooted ideas of entitlement that we have. and in rapists and in too frequently mass shooters, it's what michael kimmel terms aggrieved entitlement. a powerful, toxic world view that justifies violent action against children, women, elderly, lgbtq community, because the perpetrator

believes they can act with impunity. so how do we begin to change this horrifying lands escape? first, we need to collect data. we need to understand who is perpetrating these crimes to understand how we can get to better solutions. a lack of accurate capture and analysis for understanding perpetration would help -- has caused us to not be able to frame the questions for better solutions. second, we have to look at funding. cuts to social services for domestic violence and sexual assault are ones that we simply can't afford and our very first line of defense. and the funding that is so necessary to build communities. we also need to talk to our children about sexual assault. a study very vealed 73% of

parent -- revealed 73% of parents with children under the age of 18 have never talked to them about sexual assault, domestic violence or even alcohol. and we certainly aren't talking about double standards, power imbalances, bias and bigotry. finally, we need to look at our institutions. higher education, our colleges and universities, community policing and our criminal justice system. we must enable transparency and accountability and counteract our deep cultural questions -- questioning and disbelief of victims and stereotypes that enable entitlements to flourish violently. the work that representative kuster has called for tonight begins with us. and i thank her again for her leadership and her bravery and her friendship, not just to me,

but to all women. ith that i yield back. cust cust -- ms. kuster: thank you, representative clark. with that i recognize the gentlelady from illinois, my good friend and colleague, mrs. ustos. the speaker pro tempore: for what purpose does the gentleman from texas seek recognition? mr. burgess: mr. speaker, i send to the desk two privileged reports from the committee on rules for filing under the rule. the speaker pro tempore: the clerk will report the title. the clerk: report to accompany house resolution 793, resolution providing for consideration of the bill, h.r. 1270, to amend the internal revenue code of 1986, to repeal the amendments made by the patient protection and affordable care act, which disqualify expenses for over-the-counter drugs under health savings accounts, and health flexible spending arrangements. report to accompany house resolution 794. resolution providing for

consideration of the bill, h.r. 5485, making appropriations for financial services and general government for the fiscal year ending september 30, 2017, and for other purposes. the speaker pro tempore: referred to the house calendar and ordered printed. the gentlewoman from illinois is recognized. mr. boustany: thank you, mr. speaker. -- bustbust thank you, mr. speaker. i want -- buftebufte thank you, mr. speaker -- mrs. bustos: thank you, mr. speaker. i want to thank the gentlelady from. and i want to thank both of you for sharing your stories and for having the courage, congresswoman kuster, to share your personal story, which i think will give hope and strength to women and survivors across the country. sexual assault is an epidemic that knows no boundaries. it's a crisis on our campuses that mandates the attention of very member of congress.

i was in college in the late 1970's and early 1980's and i know what happened back then is sadly still happening today. i know of a college gang rape that happened when i was in school. i know of men who would brag about taking turns on drunk or unconscious women who could not give consent. they were not in a position to give consent. we would hear about these experiences later, when a survivor was brave enough to nfide in her friends about what happened on that night. but every time, without exception, she felt powerless, with little hope, that justice would be on her side if she reported the -- with little hope that justice would be on her side if she reported the crime. that's because the rape culture is suffocating for women all across america. she knew then that they would ask her what she was wearing,

was she showing cleavage, were her jeans too tight? she knew they would ask her how much she had to drink, if she were asking for it, because she had a few cocktails, and she knew that they would ask about her sexual history, if she were promiscuous, if she egged him on. this is the rape culture that sexual assault survivors live through each and every day. all of these memories came rushing back to me when i learned about the brave survivor at stanford university. she courageously shared her vivid, graphic and horrifying story of what happened before and after she was raped. now, i didn't say during because she was unconscious. when she was raped behind stanford university's dutchster. -- dumpster. mr. speaker, i am sick, i am sick and tired about this

epidemic, while we have meaningful legislation that sits and dies in committee. those of us here tonight strongly support this legislation. that will reform the way sexual assaults are handled on our college campuses. but where's the movement? where's the vote on this floor of this congress? the silence and the inaction from congress is deafening and appalling. for example, the campus accountability and safety act only has 34 co-sponsors. that's right. 34 co-sponsors out of 435 members of the u.s. house of representatives. just as troubling is the halt act. the halt campus sexual violence act, which has only one republican co-sponsor. i repeat, one republican co-sponsor.

and why i bring that up is because rape is not a partisan issue. it does not have a label of republican or democrat on it. rape victims are not republicans, they are not democrats, they are human beings and they deserve better. at bare minimum they deserve a hearing and a vote on this floor of congress. let me just say this, if women made up more than our measly 20% of congress, if congress truly reflected the makeup of america, where 50%-plus of americans are women, i guarantee that sexual assault wouldn't be a back burner issue. because this has impacted all of us, our friends, our sisters, our daughters. they have lived this experience. as a woman in congress, i will

not stay silent. because why be a congresswoman, why be congress wimbledon, if we can't help other women? -- congresswomen, if we can't help other women? and do so vigorously and boldly? i will not stay silent while win in five college women -- one in five college women experiences sexual assault during her undergraduate years. as a woman in congress, i will not stay silent because every female staffer i work with knows of a woman who was raped in college. how many more college women will be raped before congress will act? we are here tonight for emily doe. who was sexually assaulted behind that dumpster while she was unconscious. we are all here for all survivors, because we see you, we hear you, we respect you. and as women members of congress, we will amplify your voice until there is action.

let me be clear, we will not be silent until meaningful action is taken. we will continue to challenge the status quo so all survivors are given the adequate justice they deserve. with that, i yield back the balance of my time. ms. kuster: thank you, representative bustos. representative clark. we had others who planned to join us and because of the weather their flights were not able to lands. but with these stories, we hope to show that emily doe is not alone. and in fact, we are all emily doe. these types of experiences happen to every type of woman across the country. not just students, not just young women. mothers, daughters, teachers, and, yes, even members of congress. and that's why we must all come out of the shadows and the silence and demand action be

taken to put an end to the victimization of women and other individuals by their abusers. so tonight, mr. speaker, we want to speak to america to say, we will be silent no longer, we hear you, we hear the stories of the survivors and we plan to make this congress take the action that needs to be done. with that, mr. speaker, i yield back, thank you for the time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back. does the gentlewoman have a motion? ms. kuster: i move to sgradjourn. the speaker pro tempore: the question is on the motion to adjourn. those in favor say aye. those opposed, no. the ayes have it. the motion is adopted. accordingly, the house stands adjourned until 10:00 a.m.

u.k. will decide whether they should stay or leave the european union. jeremy corbyn want the u.k. to remain the member of the eu but some members of the prime

minister's party and the independence party are part of the briggs it push advocating for the u.k. to split. i've still live simulcast at 5 p.m. eastern on c-span2 and c-span.org. >> you realize this is something that not only we would love to do but something that could be different from the kind of books have been written about mccarthy in past and the way in which to rethink and reevaluate who this person was, what his real significance was, his virtues that made him one of the most buted and educated figures also what were his flaws and what were the things that made ways unpleasant and even hated by millions. arthur hermant, takes a look at the life and career of u.s. army general douglas macarthur in his book

"douglas macarthur, american warrior." >> he saw the future more clearly often than he saw the present. whether it was america's role in asia, the rise of china, the split between china and the soviet union which he foresaw but also perhaps, too, the fate of american domestic politics. -- 8:00y night on east eastern on "q&a." >> hillary clinton criticized donald trump is this practices and economic policies at a can taint the right -- campaign event. mrs. about 45 minutes. minutes.s about 45 in advance of the speech, hillary for america released a new video.

it is: thank you all. thank you. thank you. thank you so much. thank you all. well, thank you. it is wonderful to be back here in columbus. i want to thank whitney for not just her wonderful introduction, but for all the hard work that she has done to build her career strong endorsement haysshe has given to fort career center. everyone associated with ford hayes, i want to thank you. this is exactly how we will create more good jobs more

opportunities for more people and it is exciting to be here in a place that does just that. i want to thank governor ted strickland by hope is soon to be senator ted strickland. [applause] clinton: all of you for being here with me, i have to say i am pretty thrilled to be here for the first time speaking to any group like this as a grandmother of two now. [applause] it was an exciting weekend. chelsea and mark had a little boy and where just truly over the moon.

i have to confess, i have talked so much about being a grandmother, now i am sure i'm going to be talking doubly about being a grandmother. new stories to tell. it is always great we back in ohio and i want to talk about a challenge that ohio families know well. throwing our economy and making it would for everyone, not just those at the top. haveore than a year now, i been listening to americans across our country. you have told me how the communities. your how jobs dried up, home values sank. and savings vanished. and i have seen how hard you have worked to get back on your feet. if we have learned anything about the economy over the past presidentit is that a

's economic decisions have real consequences for families. handed thebama was worst economic crisis since the great oppression. thinks to his leadership and hard work and the resilience of the american people we have seen more than 14 million private sector jobs created over the last six and a half years. here in ohio, the auto industry has made a strong comeback. [applause] clinton: and how appropriate as we are here in the area where students learn about autos. learn about how they are made and how they work so, we know people are working harder and longer. just to keep their heads above water.

and to deal with the cost, the everyday costs, the cost of basics like childcare and description drugs that are too high. college is getting more expensive every day. and wages are still too low. and inequality is too great. good jobs in many parts of our country are still too hard to come by. but iproblems are serious know we can overcome them together. i really believe in this country because i believe in the american people. yetica's economy is not where we want it to be but we are stronger and better positioned than anyone in the world to build the future that you and your children deserve. and i have spent my adult life working to even the odds for people who have had the odds stacked against them. i helped break down barriers to education for poor and disabled

children as a young lawyer. hot for health insurance for all and have been committed to that since my days as first lady. i worked to bring opportunity back to upstate new york in a lot of depressed communities there as senator and went to bat for american workers and businesses as your secretary of state. and everything i have learned and everything i have done has convinced me we are stronger when we grow together. [applause] saidlinton: and i have throughout this campaign that my mission as president will be to help create more good paying jobs so we can get incomes rising for hard-working families across america. it is a pretty simple formula. higher wages lead to more demand

which leads to more jobs with higher wages. and i have laid out a detailed this virtualpstart cycle. you can go to my website, hillaryclinton.com and read all about it. i admit it is a little wonky. [applause] have thisn: i old-fashioned idea that if you're running for president, you should say what you want to do. how you're going to pay for it, and how you will get it done. [applause] sweat the specifics because they matter. whether one more kid gets health

care may just be a detail in washington, but it is all that matters to that family worrying about their child. tomorrow in north carolina i will set out ambitious new goals that will help us build a stronger, fairer economy. we will work with those parties to make transformational investments in good paying jobs in infrastructure, advanced manufacturing, clean energy, and small business and we will track -- tackled the twin problem of college affordability and student debt. we will pursue innovative ideas like corporate profiteering because everyone who works hard should be able to share in the rewards of their hard work. and to pay for these investments , we will make sure it wall street corporations and the

superrich contribute their fair share. we will -- that is what i will be talking about tomorrow in north carolina and throughout this campaign but today, i want to talk about what donald trump is promising to do to the economy. after more than a year, it is important that he be held accountable for what he says he will do as president. we need to clear the way for a real conversation about how to improve the lives of working people. said hisks ago, i

foreign-policy proposals and reckless statements represent a danger to our national security. but you might think that because he has spent his life as a businessman should it would be better prepared to handle the economy. he is dangerous there, too. just like he should not have his finger on the button, he should not have his hand on our economy. [applause] ms. clinton: now, i do not say of to go political discriminant. liberals and conservatives say trump's ideas would be disastrous. the chamber of commerce and labor unions, mitt romney and elizabeth warren, economists on

the right and the left and the agree, trump would throw us back into recession. formerjohn mccain's economic advisers actually calculated what would happen to our country if trump gets his way. he described the results of a trump recession. we would lose 3.5 million jobs. incomes would stagnate. debt wouldplode -- explode and start prices would plummet. and to you know who would be hit the hardest? the people who had the hardest time doing back on their feet after the 2008 crisis. one of the leading firms that analyzes the top threat to the theal economy called

economist intelligence unit comes out with a new list of threats every month. it includes things like terrorism, and the disintegration of europe. and this month, number three on the list is donald trump becoming president of the united states. just think about that. every day, we see how reckless and careless trump is. he is proud of it. well, that is his choice. except when he is asking to be our president. then it is our choice. [applause] donald trump actually stood on the debate stage in november and said that wages are too high in this country. he should tell that to the mothers and fathers working two jobs to raise their kids.

he said and i quote, "having a low minimum wage is not a bad thing for this country at a time when millions working full-time are still living in poverty." back in 2006 before the financial crash, from said and again i quote, "i sort of that the housing market crashes money onhe would make the foreclosures. he has said all kinds of things about women in the workforce. he once called pregnant inconvenience." these are the words of -- not of

someone who thinks highly of women who work or cares about helping parents balance work and family but instead, he clearly does not know much about how we have grown the economy over the last 40 years wages largely thanks to women getting into the workforce and adding to family income. and he wants to end obamacare but has no credible plan to replace it or to help keep costs down. it really wouldn't be good for our economy, would it, if 20 million people lost their health insurance. and we were back to absolutely skyrocketing costs for everything. it would be devastating to

families and also the economy. first, there's his plan for wall street. after the 2008 crisis, president obama fought to enact the toughest most comprehensive set of wall street reforms since the great depression. they are designed to protect consumers and ensure that wall street can never again take the kinds of risks that crashed our economy the last time. so what would trump do? he said he wants to wipe out the tough rules we put on big banks. he says they created, quote, a very bad situation. well, he's got it backwards. the very bad situation was millions of families seeing their homes and savings disappear. he also wants to repeal the consumer financial protect bureau, the new consumer watchdog that senator warren helped create to protect families from unfair and deceptive business practices.

that new agency has already secured billions of dollars in returns for people who have been ripped off. donald trump wants to get rid of it. trump would take us back to where we were before the crisis. heed rig the economy for wall -- he would rig the economy for wall street again. well, that will not happen on my watch, i can guarantee you. [cheers and applause] ms. clinton i would veto any : effort to weaken those reforms. i will defend and strengthen them both for the big banks and the shadow banking system. and i will vigorously enforce the law because we can't ever let wall street wreck main street again. now, second there's donald trump's approach to our national debt.

now, i have a plan to pay for all my proposals because i take america's long-term financial health seriously. donald trump has a different approach. he calls himself the king of debt. his tax plan sure lives up to that name. according to the independent tax policy center, it would increase the national debt by more than $30 trillion over 20 years. that's trillion with a t. that's much more money than any nominee of either party has ever proposed. an economist described it with words like not even in the universe of the realistic. how would he pay for all this debt? well, he said, and i quote, i would borrow knowing if the economy crashed you could make a

deal. it's like, he said, you know, you make a deal before you go into a poker game. it's not like that at all. the full faith and credit of the united states is not something we just gamble away. that could cause an economic catastrophe. \[applause/] and it would break 225 years of ironclad trust that the american economy has with americans and with the rest of the world. alexander hamilton would be rolling in his grave. we pay our debts. that's why investors come here even when everything else in the world goes wrong. you don't have to take it from me.

ronald reagan said it. he said, we have a well earned reputation for reliability and credibility. two things that set us apart from much of the world. maybe donald feels differently because he made a fortune filing bankruptcies and skipping his creditors. i'll get to his business practices in a minute. but the united states of america doesn't do business trump's way. and it matters -- [applause] ms. clinton: it matters when a presidential candidate talks like this because the world hangs on every word our president says. the markets rise and fall on those statements. even suggesting that the united states would default would cause a global panic.

trump also said we can just print more money to pay our debt down. well, we know what happened to countries that tried that in the past like germany in the 20's or zimbabwe in the 1990's. it drove inflation through the roof and crippled their economies. the american dollar is the safest currency on the planet. why would he want to mess with that? [applause] we have to stand up for our history. democrats and republicans have always understood this. we can't let these loose, careless remarks get any credence in our electorate or around the world. finally the trump campaign said if worse came to worse we could sell off america's assets. really? even if we sold all of our

aircraft carriers and the statue of liberty, even if we let some billionaire turn yosemite into a private country club, we'd still wouldn't even get close. that's how much debt he would run up. maybe this is what he means when he says i love playing with debt. someone should tell him our nation's economy isn't a game. the full faith and credit of the united states is sacred. we know what sound fiscal policy looks like and it sure isn't running up massive debts to pay for giveaways to the rich and it's not painful austerity that hurts working families and undercuts our long-term progress. it's being strong, stable and making smart investments in our future. so let's set the right priorities and pay for them so we can hand our children a healthier economy and a better

future. third, there is donald trump's tax plan. when i was working on this speech, i had the same experience i had when i was working on the speech i gave about foreign policy and national security. i'd have my researchers and my speech writers send me information and then i'd say really? he really said that? and they'd send me all the background or the video clip. so, here goes. he would give millionaires a $3 trillion tax cut. corporations would get $2 trillion more dollars. that means he's giving more away to the 120,000 richest american families than he would to help

120 million hardworking americans. even in this era of rising inequality, this is like nothing we have ever seen. now, you and i know that the wealthiest americans and the biggest corporations don't need trillions of dollars in tax cuts. they need to be paying their fair share. now before releasing his plan, trump said, hedge fund guys are getting away with murder. and he added, they'll pay more. then his plan came out. it actually makes the current loophole even worse. it gives hedge fund managers a special tax rate that's lower than what many middle class families pay. and i did have to look twice because i didn't believe it. under donald trump's plan, these wall street millionaires will pay a lower tax rate than many working people.

and of course, donald himself would get a huge tax cut from his own plan. so we don't know exactly how much because he won't release his tax returns. every major presidential candidate in the last four decades has shown the american people their taxes. in fact, donald actually told mitt romney to do it. and he said that if he ever ran for president he would release his returns. my husband and i have released ours going back nearly 40 years. and now donald's refusing to do so. you have to ask yourself, what's he afraid of? maybe that we'll learn he hasn't paid taxes on his huge income? we know that happened for at

least a few years. he paid nothing or close to it. or maybe he isn't as rich as he claims. or that he hasn't given away as much to charity as he brags about. whatever the reason americans deserve to know before you cast your votes this november. and when it comes to other people's taxes, donald trump's got it all wrong. we need to do better by the middle class not by the rich, and that's why my plan will help working families with the cost of college, health care, and childcare, the things that really stretch a family's budget. that's where our focus should be. now, fourth, donald trump's ideas about the economy and the world will cause millions of

americans to lose their jobs. the republican primary featured the trump immigration plan. round up and deport more than 11 million people, almost all of whom are employed or are children going to school, then build a wall across our border, and force mexico to pay for it. now, this policy is not only wrong-headed and unachievable, it is really bad economics. kicking out 11 million immigrants would cost hundreds of billions of dollars. and it would shrink our economy significantly. some economists actually argue that just this policy alone would send us into a trump recession. so instead of causing large-scale misery and shrinking our economy, we should pass sensible immigration reform with a path to citizenship because

the youth -- [applause] ms. clinton: the youth and diapers city of our workforce is one of our greatest -- greatest assets. most of the rest of the world we compete with is aging. fresher,g younger and with talents that can be put to work, we are actually going to be in a stronger economic position. we have always been a country where people born elsewhere could work hard, start businesses, and contribute to our growth. that makes us stronger. and more prosperous. and then, there's trade. i believe we can compete and win in the global economy. to do that, we should renegotiate trade deals that are

not working for americans, and reject any agreements, like the transpacific partnership, that don't meet my high bar for raising wages or creating good-paying jobs. and i will be tough on trade enforcement, as well. dumps cheap china steel in our markets, or unfairly manipulates currency, we need to respond forcefully. at the same time, we need to invest more here at home. america""make it in plan to increase 21st century any factoring and energy jobs in america, and we will build on the great ideas of senator sharon brown and invest $10 billion in manufacturing communities. [applause] i agree with sharon that, with the right investments and a level playing field, american workers will out-hustle

and out-innovate anyone in the world. donald trump makes big threats, but he has no serious plan to encourage manufacturing, innovation, or job creation in our country. and there is a difference between getting tough on trade, and recklessly starting trade wars. the last time we opted for trump -style isolationism, it made the great depression longer and more painful. trump's owny, products are made in a lot of countries that aren't named america. are made in china. trump suits, in mexico. trump furniture, in turkey. trump picture frames, in india. barware, in slovenia. i could go on, but you get the

idea. i would love for him to explain how all that fits with his talk about "america first." i honestly believe -- [applause] that the difference between us is not just about policy. we have fundamentally different views. of whether america is strong or weak. you see, i believe in the ingenuity and productivity of american workers. i know we can sell our products to the 95% of global consumers who live outside of our country. on the other hand, donald trump never misses a chance to say that americans, he is talking about us, to say that americans are losers, and the rest of the world is laughing at us. just the other day, he told a crowd that america is "not going

to survive." i do not know what he is talking about. i went to 112 countries as your secretary of state, and what i envy for our -- strength, values, diversity, the future we are making together. [applause] i can't imagine how someone running for president of the united states could ever think that that is true. how frustrating, fearful, and even angry many people are, especially if you are under-employed or making a lot less than you used to, or worrying that your kids or grandkids won't have the kind of good, solid middle-class like you did. and we haven't done enough to invest in our communities, and in our people, to make sure there are enough good jobs with rising incomes to create that

good future for all of us. the answer is to do that. a bring people along on america's ride to prosperity that we all can share. not try to turn the clock back, pretend we can't compete and decrease the jobs of the future. but those are his plans for the economy. now, you may have noticed there is a lot missing. the king of debt has no real plans for making college debt payable back, or making college debt-free. this is a crisis that affects so many of our people. he has no credible plan for rebuilding our infrastructure, apart from the wall he wants to build. personally, i would rather spend our money on rebuilding our modernizing our energy grid. [applause] ideas ofon: he has no

how to strengthen medicare or expand social security. in fact, his tax plan would endanger both. he has no real strategy for creating jobs. it is a string of empty promises. but then, maybe we shouldn't whose better from someone most famous words are "you're fired." he has no clean energy plan, even though that is where many of the jobs of the future will come from. it is the key to a safer, healthier planet. he says climate change is a hoax, invented by the chinese. i will give him this, it is a lot easier to say a problem doesn't exist, then it is to actually try to solve it. [applause] ms. clinton: and of course, he

has no plan for helping urban and rural communities facing entrenched poverty and neglect. every single one of these issues matter. they affect whether young people can go to college, whether single moms can support their kids, whether grandparents can have a dignified retirement. what could be more important? in the heat of a campaign, in a culture that rewards brevity and clever phrases on social media, it is tempting to give simple answers to complex problems. tempted.e, i have been but i am not going to do that, because it really matters that you know what i believe we can and should do, so you can hold me accountable in the election, and then, in the white house. [applause] ms. clinton: because whether we increase employment and distress

, rural communities, or get health care to people who still don't have it, that matters. and to me, that is the purpose of politics, to empower people in a democracy to have better lives. to make better choices. to seize opportunities to give themselves and their families that pathway to the future. and one more thing, i think donald trump has said he is qualified to be president because of his business record. a few days ago, he said, and i do for them going to country what i did for my business." let's take a look at what he did. for his business. he has written a lot of books about this this -- about business. they all seem to end at chapter 11. [applause]

ms. clinton: go figure. the -- hehe years, intentionally ran up huge amounts of debt on his companies, then he defaulted. notankrupted his companies, once, not twice, but four times. hundreds of people lost their jobs. shareholders were wiped out. contractors, many of them small businesses, took heavy losses. many went bust. but donald trump, he came out fine. here's what he said about one of those bankruptcies. it was the banks problem, not mine. what the hell did i care? " he also says, "i play with bankruptcy." everything seems to

be a game with him. well, it is in for a lot of us, is it? look at what he did in atlantic city. he put his name on buildings, his favorite thing to do. he convinced other people that his properties were a great investment, so they would go in with him. but he arranged it so he got paid no matter how his companies performed. so when his casino and hotel went bankrupt because of how hely he mismanaged them, still walked away with millions, while everybody else pay the the price.id today, his properties are sold, shuttered, or falling apart. and so are a lot of people's lives. here's what he says about that. "atlantic city was a very good cash cow for me for a long time ." remember that the next time you see him talking on tv. about how we will all win big if only we elect him president.

he is trying to say he has changed. somebody told him he needs to say that. that he is not in it for himself anymore, he is in it for america. but he is doing the same thing he has been doing for years. this is his one move. he makes over the top promises, that of people stick with him, trust him, listen to him, put their faith in him, he will deliver for them. he will make them wildly successful. then everything falls apart, and people get hurt. those promises you are hearing from him at his campaign rallies, they are the same promises he made to his customers at trump university. and now, now, they are suing him for fraud. the same people he is trying to are people for him he has been exploiting for years.

because it's not just other investors, other rich people that he took advantage of. .t was working people he has been involved in more than 3500 lawsuits in the last 30 years. number were filed by ordinary americans and small businesses that did work for trump, and never got paid. waiters, plumbers, people who needed the money and didn't get it. not because he couldn't pay them, that because he could -- them.cause he could stiff sometimes, he offered them $.30 on the dollar for project that -- projects they had already completed. have beenf liens filed against him by contractors going back decades, and they all tell a similar story. i worked for him, i did my job,

he wouldn't pay me what he owed me. my late father was a small businessman. if his customers had done what trump did, my dad would never have made it. so i take this personally. he says he is a businessman, and this is what businessmen do. well, cnn pointed out that no major company has filed chapter 11 more often in the last 30 years then trump's casinos. this is not normal behavior. there are great business people here in ohio, in america, brilliant hard-working men and women who care about their workers and the people they do business with. and they want to build something that last. they are decent, honest,

patriots. some may even make fine presidents. they would never dream of acting the way donald trump does. in america, we don't begrudge people being successful, but we know they shouldn't do it by destroying other people's dreams. [applause] ms. clinton: if i were not running against him for president, i would be saying exactly the same thing. we cannot put a person like this, with all his empty promises, in a position of power over our lives. we can't let him bankrupt america like we are one of his failed casinos. we can't let him roll the dice with our children's futures. leading an economy as large and growth as ours, creating

that is strong, fair, and lasting, is about as hard a job as there is. it takes patience and clear thinking, a willingness to work to levelrty lines, with the american people. it takes really caring about whether working families will be better off because of what we do . think of fdr leading us out of the great depression. imagine, all the work that required, although learning and patience come all the hard calls day after day for years. but he steered us right, and we emerged stronger and better-positioned to build the greatest middle class in history, and lead the world towards piste -- peace and prosperity. in 2000 president obama nine, newly elected, confronting the greatest economic crisis of our lifetimes. he had nothing to do with creating it. it landed in his lap, and he had

to be focused, he had to return to basics to get us moving again. he fought for the recovery act to get people working. he passed wall street reforms and relief for homeowners, and he saved the auto industry. today, we are on a surer footing, ready to seize tomorrow. just imagine, if you can, donald trump sitting in the oval office. the next time america faces a crisis. imagine him being in charge when your jobs and savings are at stake. is this who you want to lead us in an emergency? someone thin-skinned and quick to anger, who would likely be on twitter, attacking reporters or bringing the whole regulatory system down on his critics when he should be focused on fixing what is wrong? would he even know what to do?

now, i have a lot of faith that the american people will make the right decision. making donald trump our president would undo much of the progress we have made, and put our economy at risk, and beyond that, this election will say something about who we are as a people. donald trump believes in the worst of us. he thinks we are fearful, not confident. that we favor division, not bridges, and not yesterday, not tomorrow. he thinks the only way forward is to go back to a past prosperity that left a lot of people out. in fact, the only way forward is forward. --ards a 21st century of version of the american dream with a shared prosperity where no one is left out or left behind. i believe in an america always moving towards the future.

[applause] if you believe as i do, in an america that values hard work, treat people with dignity, offers everyone the chance to live their dreams, cares for those in need, well, the formula for america's success has always been that we are stronger, together. and we need to remember that now , and recommit ourselves to making that ideal real in our time. that is how we will build our economy, to make sure it does work for everyone and to make our families and our communities stronger. we will make sure that in our country, no one gets left behind . so let's carry that message across america, and let's fight hard. let's win in november, and then let's get to work. my friends, let's make america what we know it can be. thank you all very much. [applause]

this is my fight song ♪ take back my life song i've still got a lot of fight left in me ♪ a lot of fight left in me x innovate -- in advance of this speech, hillary for america released a web video detailing donald trump's business record at what it could mean for the u.s. economy. here is a look. >> i'm a businessman.

♪ >> ever heard of trump steaks? >> whatever happened to trump airlines? >> prompt travel, trump magazine, which folded. trump world magazine, which folded. >> it is a great time to start a mortgage company. >> corporations have declared bankruptcy four times, companies lost billions of dollars. >> i am the king of debt. i love debt, i love playing with it. knowing that if the economy crashed, you could make a deal.

>> with the political primary season over, c-span's road to the white house takes you to this summer's political conventions. watch the republican national convention, starting july 18 with live coverage from cleveland. >> we will be going into the convention no matter what happens and i think we will go in so strong. nationalthe democratic convention started july 25, with live coverage from philadelphia. >> let's go forward and win the nomination. in july, let's return. fight fore take our social, economic, racial and environmental justice to

philadelphia, pennsylvania. >> every minute of the republican and democratic parties' national conventions, on c-span, c-span radio and www.c-span.org. voters in the u cable decided their country should stay or leave the european union. ava cameron and labor party leader jeremy corbyn want the u.k. to remain a member of the eu. some members of the prime minister's party and the u.k. independence party are part of advocating for, the u.k. to split from the eu. what's the simulcast on thursday at 5:00 p.m. eastern on c-span2 and www.c-span.org. >> this or so security administrator will be on the capitol hill tomorrow before the house ways and means subcommittee on social security. deliver the board of trustees report on the program,

which is being released tomorrow, nearly 80 days past the deadline set by congress. you can see it live at 2:00 p.m. eastern on our companion network, c-span3. >> the terror group isis and their ideology was the focus of a hearing held by the senate homeland security committee. woman whorom a yazidi was captured by isis and escaped. members discussed how the group's ideology relates to and motivates so-called lone wolf actors, like the mass shooter in orlando, florida. from capitol hill, this is about two hours.

>> good morning, this hearing will come to order we have one witness who parked at reunion station it is making his way over. you can -- he can join us when he gets there. i want to thank the witnesses for your time and your testimony.

statement of this committee, you have heard it repeatedly but i will repeat it again, is to enhance the economic and national security of america. side, homeland security one of our top four priorities is certainly, doing whatever we can to keep our homeland safe to counter islamic terror. the goal for every hearing, from my standpoint, coming from a background that solved a lot of problems, the first step is admitting you have a problem. identifying it and defining it, but really, facing reality. the goal of every hearing is to lay out a reality, so members of the committee, people in the audience, understand what we are dealing with with a particular problem. today's hearing is our eighth hearing dealing with some form of the threat we face from islamic terror. it is a harsh reality.

it is one i wish was not true. it is what i wish we did not have to face. but we have to. we will be hearing testimony today that will be hard to hear. it will be hard to year. think is testimony that i is incredibly important for us to hear. i think the witnesses for appearing. i would ask that my written or -- written statement be on the record. as is -- it is important to understand the terrorists declared war on the united states. honestly, it islamic terrorists declared war on the civilized world. we didn't declare war on them, they declared war on us. to the exactly point date, but certainly, one that is visible was the first attempt to bring down between trade towers, on february 26, 1993. the fact that we didn't face the full of reality right there and then eventually led to the fact that we then faced the tragedy

of 9/11. almost 3000 americans were slaughtered in that attack. there are two ways to end a war. only two ways. either one side to feeds the other, or both sides decide to lay down their arms. anotheric events of yet isis-inspired terror attack on this country, in orlando, has proven islamic terrorists are not laying down their arms. the only way that we will end this war, the only way we will keep our homeland safe, return peace to the civilized world, is if we defeat islamic terrorists, if we defeat isis. on september 10, 2014, president obama laid out america's school as relates to isis -- goal as it relates to isis. to degrade and ultimately defeat them. that was 22 months ago.

22 months ago. testimony last week before the senate foreign relations committee, the cia director john asnnan laid out the reality success, oro our lack thereof, in our war on isis. he testified, and this is a quote, isis remains a formidable, resilient, and largely cohesive enemy. and that our efforts have not reduced their terrorism capability and a global reach. that is a depressing reality, after 22 months. but it is a reality we have to face. i want to thank the witnesses. don't hold back. lay out the reality. make sure that the senators on this dais and the american

people realize the threat we face and why it is crucial we defeat them. i wish they would lay down their arms and declare peace, but it doesn't seem like that is going to happen. ranking member.ber >> thank you for delaying this hearing a week so that our wenesses could be assembled welcome each of you. thank you for sharing with us your stories and your perspective. we are delighted you could come. i want to follow up on the fight against isis is going. i went over a map today of that part of the world. the u.s. and our coalition forces have recaptured almost 50% on the land that isis once held. i think we ar eup t-- are up to

47%. isis has also lost land in syria. last friday, iraqi ground forces captured the city of falluja and are clearing up the last pockets of resistance in that city. it was only 25 miles west of baghdad. the democratic forces backed by the u.s. special forces are making preparations to recapture key isis stronghold. we have killed some 25,000 isis fighters. we cut isis funds by a third or more. we destroyed hundreds of millions of dollars in cash. toreduced their amount realize profits from oil reserves and resources in that part of the world.

flow ofically slow the foreign recruits. from 2000 a month in 2014 to 200 a month today. it also goes for young americans who saw to travel to join isis. one year ago every month about 10 americans were leaving this country to join isis. today that number is 1 per month. cracking down on recruits as well. the fbi has arrested 88 individuals. served five years in southeast asia. i know a little bit about fighting wars. one of the ways we will win this fight is not by ourselves. there is not an appetite in this country for boots on the ground. but there is an appetite for working with a coalition around the world.

that is what you're doing. i believe we're making progress. is this wehere we want to be? no it is not. what are we making progress? yes. nine days ago, 10 days ago, my wife and i went to new york. for- our son took us father's day to the 9/11 museum. location where the twin towers once stood. thes reminded, as we saw faces and names of family members of some 3000 people who died that day, of the way we responded to that tragedy. wethis room, in this room helped create the 9/11 commission. in this room we received some 40 recommendations, a bipartisan group, presented to us by the former governor of new jersey.

it was presented by lee hamilton. they presented to us after 40ths of work some recommendations. what we could do to reduce the likelihood that these attacks would occur again. we adopted maybe 80% of them. d and letting them. the response to that tragedy was bipartisan. it was a unified approach. ultimately, it has been successful. when you compare that to the response to the tragedy in orlando, it could not be more different. i i hope today that we have the kind of conversation with all of you that will enable us to better improve this fight. this is a fight we will win. we have a lot of allies, not just folks in this country. faiths, including

the muslim faith. together, we will prevail. i asked the rest of my statement be entered into the record. chairman johnson: without objection. we will swear in witnesses so if you will rise and raise your right hand. do you swear the testimony you will give before this committee will be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you god? please be seated. witness is an tahiriate fellow at the institute for middle east policy. dhabi8 you worked in abu focusing on syria, iraq, and the gulf states.

>> thank you, chairman, and ranking member. of introduction i want to add that i come from an isis controlled area. o interviewed isis members for my book. i want to say this -- this is not a sectarian war. the people isis claims to represent our victims of its brutality. just as much as everyone else. is reality felt on a daily basis. family and friends go to the market and see severed heads on pikes. when isis condemns its sunni opponents. they burn them alive. they stabbed their hearts before they shoot them. they display their dead bodies for days.

matter if you pray, or fast in ramadan, or turn your face towards mecca, they will still kill you if you don't pledge allegiance. from,r from where i come in my area, isis killed 700 sunni villagers and a matter of days. they dared to stand up against the group. i want to move on to say that those that system, believe in the islamic state onlyogy are a minority not in the muslim world but also in the group. i found that members come in six categories. one, long-standing religious radicals. believeple, they

there is no sanctity of life of the unlike al qaeda, which justifies killing civilians but only as collateral damage. kill civilians itself as the preferred outcome. a month ago, the spokesperson for isis said, when he called for sympathizers in the west and the united states to launch he receivedsaid complaints from sympathizers that couldn't find military targets. he said there is no such thing as innocent civilians in the west. prefer to to say they kill civilians. i don't have time to justify that, he didn't even have the justification during the statement. and, the second category of arele are young zealots who victims of the first category.

arele between 12-17 who drawn to this idea of a caliphate. they are brainwashed. they are told islam, in a way that isis understands. it distorts a lot of things. it don't have religious knowledge. they hear those and the relatesns that isis for the first time. there's a third category, people 'so are drawn to isis political ideology first of this is a major problem not only within isis, but in the region. people who are trying to this political ideology. is politicalere stagnation in the region. they think only these groups can shake up the political order. teen belong'sma

that category. people who are only superficially influenced by this organization. he did not follow their way of life. he still was animated by this idea of the islamic state. the other categories are those who are drawn to the group because of its militaristic success, model of government, attraction to brutality, or are profiteers. of group is in a sea political failures in the region. it is not a surprise that isis emerged in iraq and syria. countries have suffered emagin -- unimaginable brutality. the group has built its narrative around sunni victimization. it benefited to say that sunnis are systematically under attack

by iran and other governments. the two greatest superpowers in the world are helping both of them. in their traitors midst to help them. it is important, without playing the genocidal act of isis, to highlight that the regime in damascus had carried out almost all of the atrocities without exception that isis has committed even before they arrived in syria. in 2012, pro-government militia stormed villages, slaughtered heads of and smashed condemned people. i want to conclude by saying that isis thrives in this context was that it should be defeated in this context to stem the international appeal. this can only happen at the

hands of the people that isis claims to represent. thank you very much. chairman johnson: thank you very much. -- our next serves as the codef corporation. he has a phd from princeton in islamic law. he said he traditional islamic sciences in cairo, egypt. johnson, and other members of the committee, thank you. i would like to make brief introductory remarks and save the other discussion points for questions and answers. i would like to add that before declared war on they declared war on is lumped of this is not only

a threat to our homeland, or national security, but our religion. both the expressions are by interpretive methodology. that is what you go to seminary to be trained in. is requires want to understand the divine text. and to understand the text of n, and the various statements of the profit. 60,000 prophetic texts. 100,000re over narrations of these texts. understanding the divine text means understanding a dozen different sciences. it begins with arabic grammar, these, logic, interpretive tools were used to understand what does the text actually mean in the context in which it was revealed? the second thing is to understand the context we live in now.

the current moment. understanding full well that people change, times change, circumstance changes, and location and place change. the month offast ramadan in the northern latitudes? usury in thel with light of fiat currency not backed by gold or silver? that further adds that one needs understand the current moment we live in. the third aspect of this interpretive paradigm is how do we link the divine text into the current moment in which we live? that, as we were taught, is a talent. everyone is endowed with that kind of talent. violent and extremist groups like isil have no interpretation whatsoever. nor do they have a fundamental understanding of islam's. haveare warmongers who

created a parallel religion. this parallel religionis no more islamic than a pool with one lemon squeezed in it is lemonade. because of the gross misunderstanding of the primary use of that, we can identify what is so long -- wrong with their thinking. i have been able to deduce about half a dozen or so main concepts that they have. i have traced them for certain cluster of sources that are used by every single islamist extremist group from the middle of the 20th century until our time today. in that, i can isolate those concepts. we can provide a counter narrative. don't have an army at my disposal. i don't own any weapons. i leave that to law enforcement. my intellect and my scholarly training. i can employ that to provide a counter narrative to inoculate

our youth. to make it absolutely, unequivocally clear that what isil represent has nothing to do with the religion whatsoever. chairman johnson: thank you. witness is an activist for lesbian, gay, i sexual rights who fled syria in 2012 after receiving threats from soldiers and jihadists because of his sexual preference. he fled first to lebanon then turkey. he was granted refugee status after a year and a sense moved to the united states. he testified before the united nations security council summit on lgbt writes in syria. mr. nahas? reporter: mr. nahas: members of the committee, thank you for offering me the honor to share

my story. in the context of the larger events happening in the world and here in the united states. my story mirrors the story of many other lgbt individuals. heading to the university, and organized group of militants accosted me because they perceive me as gay. had announcedue they would cleanse the city of all sodomites. isis had not yet been formed. gay manme targeted all in the country. i fled from my home country of syria in 2012. after living in a country of lebanon for six months, i moved to turkey. activism meant that even in turkey i once again found myself in danger. extremist groups like al qaeda and isis were gaining strength

and access there. i was not safe because of my sexual identity. a syrian friend informed me i had been targeted for death. the director helped me with a un refugee agency. iior to my resettlement, completed an extremely thorough screening process. that included testifying under a and front of an officer from the dhs security checks and cultural orientation. wasr this process, i relocated to san francisco. in august of 2015, a few months after resettlement, i spoke before members of the un security council about the threat to sexual minorities in the middle east. as i stated during the meeting,

isis with ambassadors, was just one of many threats to the lgbt community in the middle east. report from recent refugees from syria say isis and other groups actively target gay people. it is enough just to be perceived as gay by them to be arrested, tortured, or raped. this person can be thrown off a building. a cheerful crowd will stone them to death if they are not dead. the publicis seen by as the most notorious group in syria, and iraq. when it comesogy, to the treatment of lgbt people, is similar to many other groups including governments themselves. we know that many groups target people in syria.

the just use different methods to kill. good fortune allowed me to begin a new, safer life. recent event in orlando show that lgbt people still face huge challenges here. the new york times reported on june 16, even before the gay,ing rampage, lesibian, bisexual, transgender will already be most likely targets of hate crimes in america. according to analysis of data collected by the fbi. put simply, efforts to discredit the poisonous ideology of isis areother extremist groups insufficient to completely erase pilotseats of lgbt either here in this country or abroad. also commit to combat the, phobia, xenophobia,

and bigotry in all of its forms regardless of the source. in order to do with these issues or recommend two things. the bridges and convening power of the united nations, support actions that promote not only human rights for lgbt persons but also gnclusion, tolerance, amon communities. this requires continued u.s. he human rights council and supported funding. statements such as the one issues by the security council on monday condemning the orlando attack are critical. this statement denounced, for , violencetime targeting people as the result of their sexual orientation. it has received support from russia, and egypt. this will make it more difficult for those countries, and others, to argue that it is not

recognized as an international human right. two, we need partnerships across communities that can address the negative consequences. including assisting the communities affected by it. ar example, i launched special project into the middle east. that is providing shelter and education, while promoting in the u.s. and abroad, a more positive image of the algae bt people.- lgbt chairman johnson: thank you. is a rightstness activists in one of the thousand yazidi women of by isis. she is drying attention to the on -- drawing attention to the ongoing genocide.

murad is hern, interpreter. >> senators, i'm grateful and happy to be among you. thank you for the opportunity. language]foreign >> the first thing i would like i wasl you is that heartbroken when i witness the crying in orlando. for the same reason, they were abused, just the way i was. [speaking foreign language.

i wasn't surprised by this, i knew that they were not stopped it would deliver the crimes everywhere. [speaking foreign language] >> when i was captured, i was 19 years old. i was one of the 6000 children taken into captivity. >> [speaking foreign language] >> this happened on august, 2014. for oneacked htethem

reason, you considered infidels. their interpretation is that the women in the children must be replaced. >> [speaking foreign language] >> this is what they applied to us. thousands of men, women, and children were killed in the first a of the attacks. >> [speaking foreign language] >> in the hottest day of the summer, more than 100,000 were stranded on the mountain. >> [speaking foreign language] >> it is true that crimes were committed. what happened to the yazidi's was different. >> [speaking foreign language] >> i was one of the girls who

were enslaved in mosul. i was among the thousands of women take into mosul. >> [speaking foreign language] >> the first thing they did in mosul was to, after distributing us, was taking us to the court and having is converted by putting our hand on the qu'ran. >> [speaking foreign language] >> it is true that i was raped, and abused. but i wish that everyone from a 6000 women was like me. because girls at the age of 9 were raped as well.

>> [speaking foreign language] >> only in two hours, more than 700 men were killed. among them, my brother. the same day, my mother was killed for no reason. >> [speaking foreign language] >> i am not saying that isis represents islam's. to commiting islam these crimes. >> [speaking foreign language] >> this needs to stop as an ideology. >> [speaking foreign language] >> many people in the area had

the choice to leave, when isis came. they were happy to join the islamic state when it came. >> [speaking foreign language] things for meny to testify about. at the time is limited and i don't speak english. i wish i could tell you more. >> [speaking foreign language] >> i would like to give me one more minute, if possible. chairman johnson: take your time. take whatever time it takes. >> [speaking foreign language] >> this was committed against the yazidi's, and was continuous until now. >> [speaking foreign language] >> i deliver this message to egypt, what is happening has been happening under the name of islam. >> [speaking foreign language]

>> people have a sympathy. they said this does not represent us. >> [speaking foreign language] not seen that they have been labeled as an infidel group within islam from any muslim country. >> [speaking foreign language] ask the leader in cairo to say that isis is an infidel group. he is not committed to do that yet. >> [speaking foreign language] >> many families in iraq and syria were escaping. they could have helped them.

but no, they seized them and give them back to the militants. >> [speaking foreign language] give up onld not their weapons. >> [speaking foreign language] >> before all the arab countries prevent thems and from joining. >> [speaking foreign language] to prevent the supply of weapons and money to them. l notevent that oil wil be sold. we have to fight thema fter that. >> [speaking foreign language] yazidi's are

unable to protect themselves in iraq and syria. >> [speaking foreign language] >> if a country a strong is your country cannot protect its citizens in orlando, or france, a small minority like us can protect ourselves in the heart of the land where the radicals are? >> [speaking foreign language] >> there are many things for me to ask you. we have been waiting. the list is too long for me to ask you. >> [speaking foreign language] >> i know what is going on now di womene than 3000 yazi still in captivity.

>> [speaking foreign language] >> when i was held for every hour that passed, i was happy that i was not sold, raped, one hour was counted for me. every hour was counting for me. >> [speaking foreign language] >> i was freed but did not enjoy the freeing -- feeling of the freedom. have not been held accountable. what happened to the yazidi people was a genocide. >> [speaking foreign language] >> the first day, thousands were killed. >> [speaking foreign language] >> the displacement of 80% of

the yazidi people who do not have the joy to have a tent to live in. >> [speaking foreign language] >> and, for holding more than 1000 children in syria to be trained to have the same ideology. >> [speaking foreign language] >> because of the children who were at the age of nine became slaves. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> for the people who drowned in the sea, they escaped because of isis. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] our children have

been prevented from going to school. this is all because of them. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> today, i am saying this is like theminorities yazidis. if they are not protected, they will be wiped out. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language]> we wan -- >> we want to live with dignity whatever we are. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language]

>> as a little girl, i had a dream. that dream was to open a beauty salon. was prevented from accomplishing that dream. that is the sex same story with thousands of children, and exact like me who were -- same story with thousands of children and people who were like me. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> it should not be practiced against islam. but these crimes have been committed in the name of islam. they must be the first to resist this. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> i don't like anyone to be attacking an entire religion. the family that liberated me in mosul. at the same time, this is being committed under the name of islam.

ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> there is so much time that is my entire me to tell story. now i will stop and give you the opportunity to ask any questions. chairman johnson: thank you. thank you for your courage and coming forward and testifying. let me just ask, did any of your family survive? ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> yes, two of my sisters, two of my brothers, and some nephews and nieces. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] 18 people from my family and extended families are either killed or missing. chairman johnson: could you tell us how you escaped? ms. murad: [speaking foreign language]

>> i never believed i would be able to escape. areas that were fastly occupied by isis. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> the first couple of days i tried to escape. i could not hold on more on the was committed against me. i could not take it. i decided to escape. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] intended to escape. but i was not successful. i became a subject of rape by multiple people. collective rape/ . ms. murad: [speaking foreign language]

>> the second time i attempted to escape was successful. andmily and mosul held me made for me an islamic id. with that, i could escape from mosul. chairman johnson: you mention the 30 do hundred additional girls who were captured. are they dispersed throughout syria, and iraq at this time? ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> yes, they are everywhere. they are not in a specific place. they are being stored, and their places will be changed from one

place to another. dingrman johnson: we are hol questioning to five minutes because you have so many members attending this. i do want to go to the doctor, a real scholar in islam. tothere any way for us understand, how did this violence get to that point? what happened? you, she mentioned -- she was saying that they don't represent islam, but use islam. but they are using islam wrong. they brought her to the court a meter swea -- and made her qu'ran, but that is

not how you are converted to islam. the prophetic texts say "fear the supplication of the oppressed." he never mentioned it is a muslim or not a muslim. defenderaid "i am the of the religious minority against the muslim that t."gresses agains it is a big question for the way i see it is there taking certain concepts or phrases and adding to it and appropriating new meanings that don't exist. for example, one of the things i'sy told her is that yazid don't count. the concept of the people of the book in islamic law is not prescriptive. it describes an organized

religion that has a legal code, and a book, meaning a sacred text. eastward, expanded they encountered yazidis. these communities have coexisted with muslim since the first generation of islam until now. scholarsese religions, understood these people of the book because it is a description. these differences is how they misunderstand certain things. the basic access around which this exists is a concept of declaring people to be apostates. according toate, them. therefore they can be aggressive towards me. i don't pledge allegiance to them. with this tactic, they go on. last thing, she mentioned that in cairo, why doesn't the senior

leadership of sunni islam declare isis as non-islamic? our understanding of organizations like isis is even worse than apostasy. there was no capital punishment for apostasy. they are outliers. in all of his mercy, and love, idd beautiful teachings, he sa oft they are the dogs hellfire. tidings to those that fight them, and kill them, and are killed in the process of killing them. a derogatoryre of statement than being an apostate. it is an obligation on all of us, and the family of islam, to do what we can to combat it with whatever tools we have.

chairman johnson: one quick question. population?muslim billionllio this?, how many adhere to >> isis does not need a lot of numbers. they can hold territory with 200 people. they are a small minority even within the syrian rebel groups. they are still a smaller group than others. i think because of the violence and brutality they deter people. they use a word which means deterrence with extreme

violence. when they kill one person, they make sure that when hundred or 1000 people see that person being killed. carper: did you say we have five minutes? chairman johnson: there are so many people. sen. carper: again, our thanks to each of you for joining us today. for sharing parts of your life not easily shared. we are deeply grateful for each of you. the united states, people of many different religions. the a protestant, catholic, jew, muslim, buddhist, and other religions as well. one of the reasons why our country was established was because of the concept of freedom of religion. people yearning to not just be free but to be free to worship god as they saw fit. there are some who take the

in america people are probably protestant and catholic. ke verses ofta scripture out of the bible and crashed them into things in ways that are not meant to be. there are people in our own faith who bastardize our faith. a great example is an eye for an eye. say allows you to go read revenge. but that's a passage says revenge is mine, said the lord. when i was a stranger in your land, did you take me in? we have some political leaders in this country, i don't know if they read matthew 25. thee are some who argued united states needs to stop accepting not just syrian

refugees, but in some cases all muslim refugees. in the case of the syrian refugees, that includes people who are not muslim. the could be different faiths, christian, a variety of other religions. and just ask what are your opinions about a ban on all syrian refugees? or all muslim refugees? how would such a ban affected this country to counter isis propaganda? really trained as a politician. >> neither are we. [laughter] >> at the risk of making a political statement, i think as an american i understand -- r: what are your

thoughts about how a ban on all syrian refugees or muslim refugees -- how does that affect our ability to counter isis propaganda? is on america not to accept refugees. legal, political, and moral authority to take people in that we can. that is what makes our nation great. from a social cohesion standpoint, societies that are more plural are stronger. i think that by bringing in refugees we will be able to understand the problem. we will see how we can help them more. i think some form of isolationism, or rejection only increases the problem. that makes it faster more.

sen. carper: other witnesses, same question. i triedirst one is that to keep in touch with people that were from syria. i've seen how the european recently, they accepted them. that was a positive. you only hear good things from refugees. it plays the germans -- they praise the germans. we recognize in the united states that thousands of syrian refugees who left syria and are now in turkey and europe or the united states have been instrumental in providing intelligence, mapping, guidance. areas inates in these eastern syria and northeastern

syria. beenese people have affected the most by the violence. there is a reason why they were helpful. sen. carper: thank you very much. mr. nahas: from my experience as a refugee, i went to the process list of i can say that it is very unlikely for the process to let any terrorist -- it is a highly intense process. it takes security checks, background checks, waiting for over a year or at least a year. they ask you a lot of personal questions. for the slightest chance to let a terrorist, or a guy or a girl that believes in these ideologies to get through is

highly unlikely. carper: could you briefly respond to my question? ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> i would like first to say that every country has the right to protect itself, and to protect its borders. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> but to the people who are escaping religious discrimination and genocide should not face closed doors before them. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> i would like to say of the terrorists want to go to someplace, they can go. the process, some of them have already immigrated.

sen. carper: i think we have a moral imperative here. we need to be true to those words written on the statue of liberty. tohave a moral imperative matthew 25. a moral imperative to the people that live here. they want to live in safety. i think our challenge is to make sure that while we need to be alloto our faith, wing people on the run to be welcoming to them. he also at the same time have to be mindful of the need to protect our safety. sometimes those are in conflict. the last thing you want to say, my understanding is every religion, including islam, has

the golden rule. is that true? is that not true of islam? >> yes, it is. wouldarper: if all of us abide by that we would all be a lot better off on this planet. chairman johnson: we went over, we need to keep five minutes to be respectful. senator ayotte? ayotte: i want to thank the chairman, and for all of you being here. we are so sorry for what you have gone through. courage in coming forward today is very important for us to hear what you have endured. it is horrific. i want to follow on the issue that you raised. i would like to have the dcotor comment on it -- doctor

comment on it. he said what they are doing is beyond and apostate. you describe it as the dogs of hellfire. i would agree with that. what i want to understand, to what ms. murad asked, as we look at how the reaction should be -- for example, she may have identified the seminary in cairo. i believe you started at that. that is a very important seminary. do you believe that leaders in others in the and muslim world, have described, and called out them in the way as have described it today forcefully as they should? >> just a correction, i was quoting the prophet muhammad. i happen to, and

agree with that. to answere: i want her question. do you think that leaders in a position to influence what isl do youy stands for, think you have an forceful enough and calling out, however you call them, how they are testified as you today -- your religion? >> yes and no. are very those who outspoken. one is written a very extensive nonbinding religious opinion in english against isis. he makes the argument, which is valid, that isis is outside of

the folds of hiislam. scholars are a little bit slow on the uptake. sen. ayotte: we need leaders. ak that is one of the wee points is the communications capacity. i helped establish communications in egypt before it went to princeton. when i asked them how you deal with journalism they said we call the police and arrest them. i said no, you have to work with the media. what you're trying to say will not get out there. there is a lot of training that can happen. i believe with you, there is more to be done. sen. ayotte: thank you. i. murad, i wanted to say, engagedthat daesh has

in what crimes and crimes against humanity and genocide. you believe ito is -- you put in your written testimony today and told us, how important is it for the united states to formally recognize the actions as genocide? i mean, with reference to the yazidis, and how they are treating them? ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> it is very important for us that what happened to be acknowledged as a genocide. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language]

>> on the 16th of this month, the u.n. acknowledged in the who are for the yazidis been hopeless for the past two years. this is the first time they started having some hope. ms. murad: [speaking foreign language] >> i would like these crimes to be legally recognized. i would like to be acknowledged. i would like you to look into the crimes, and things i have said today. there are things that daesh has publicly said they will do it. and they did it. i would like you to look at this. want to thank all of you for being here. i would just say there is a senate resolution, 340, which

would call this for what it is, a genocide. i hope you can come together and to see -- i would like the administration declare this a genocide. i would like us in congress to come together and declare this for what it is. thank you. >> i want to thank all of you for your testimony. i came in toward the last half of your comments. you said, i want to confirm this, >> isis has nothing to do with islam, is what i believe i said. >> tell me the difference real quick. >> i begin by saying that normal islam is defined by interpretive methodology. i walked through a little of what that is. the texts lived in time.

there is a tradition in how we interpret these verses. unlettered in the fundamentals of the religion. it is based on their own whims and desires prima facae. >> i keep coming back to why these guys exist. criminal element that we saw in paris and brussels. engineers,octors, that are part of it, that frankly, should not be part of a twisted ideology as this. can you tell me what about their ideology appeals to that broad professionals and

and everything in between? >> he would know more. intellectually or academically, the first thing i point out is that i do not know they necessarily believe that what isis is saying or they are coerced. >> by force? >> by isil. >> believe this, or you are going to die? >> exactly. as we have heard of stories that have come out of isil- controlled areas. there is a spectrum of extremism. it can start a something innocuous. there is something wrong with that way of thinking. when they find somebody that are frome -- like they central casting, they can pull them to that side. >> there are a lot of folks in that group. would you like to comment on

that briefly? >> i mentioned in the testimony before that the people who isis believes in our of two categories. radicals book -- that believe in declaring fellow muslims on apostates. they rely on two books that come to mind. i do not want to get into much detail. there is 1000 pages of a man who appears on tv and explains thatethodology of fatwah says it should not be done in the same way muslim clerics have done it over the centuries.

i can declare you as an apostate. you, my interpretation of so on and so forth. doctor.to you, steps the u.s. has taken that might encourage people to be a part of isil? >> no. honest, that is a tough question for me to answer. i think that the rhetoric that comes out of isil sometimes makes us think that, if it were not for the u.s. invasion in iraq, u.s. policy doing this or that. but the fact of the matter is that one can make that argument for any other country. one could make that argument for

any other regional player in the region. politics is all based on geopolitical interests and things like that. i do not think it is really fair. because america is so dominant in the world, it is an easy target. if america stopped doing this, we will stop doing that. we know they are not going to change. >> my time is up. i want to thank you all for your testimony. thank you. >> thank you so much, mr. chairman. thank you for such thoughtful comments and thoughtful words, such courage and bravery, especially our last two witnesses. everyone here who spends time on their smartphones during testimony really listened. you moved us all. thank you for your courage and for the fact that you are survivors and are willing to provide testimony as to the

horror and the imperatives that we, as good people, need to engage. i want to, for a minute, turn to our first two witnesses and engage in a discussion about message and messengers. or, i have fascinated about the work you have done ofponding to the perversion islam being done by these radical groups. obviously, having met with people who have been radicalized , you have a good sense of the messages we could deliver that could make a difference. especially in this country, when our greatest threat is radicalization of young men and women. we have seen that twice. parts of the

message, the right message and the messenger. i want you to respond to what you think the right message is and the right messenger. are you familiar with what the department of homeland security is doing today to try to provide a countermessage and offer advice to us as we review that in our role of oversight? that will be the last question i ask. >> thank you. in terms of message, it is different. it is complicated. --s should be treated us two as two organizations. the local one that operates in libya and iraq. they also have their own messaging. there is the international one, which is close to al qaeda. they are trying to reflect and regather the networks of al

qaeda that were dispersed after the terrorist attacks of 9/11. they're trying to do that in europe, the united states, and north africa. the messages should be different because they are different organizations. on the ground, there is the danger that its appeal has become international appeal. it has presented itself as an idea that everyone is fighting. the enemy of the organization is the last or something else. this organization stands for something. messageost effective against this is to not talk much about only the victims of isis outside the group it claims to represent, but rather what really happened on the ground. on a daily basis, the group kills fellow sunnis, a group it

claims to represent, and we do not see that in the media. next to my village, they killed 700 people. only the washington post did a story about that. that was the single most horrific massacre at the time. they killed a lot of people. they killed 700 people. that needs to be the message. look, this is not a sectarian organization. west.not islam versus the it is an extremist organization that recast itself in terms that people of that faith rejected. that needs to be hammered again and again. >> as far as messaging, i think there needs to be an unequivocal counternarrative from muslim

religious leaders. stuff.y-washy yes, no, black, white. what i have been trying to do is i conduct a monthly traditional class. i try to take one of the concepts that organizations like isil uphold and try to deconstruct it in a detailed way. ,y audience is primarily muslim but my goal is for young muslim people to understand why it is wrong. i am not saying i am the example, but that kind of effort is what we need more of. the english language is important in this regard. the media we see coming out of isil is in english. as far as recommendations, some of the things that come to mind, for example, in montgomery county in maryland, we have

noticed a drastic increase in bullying towards muslim students in the montgomery county public schools systems. anti-bullying work is important so children are not pushed to the side, isolated. in our organization, we work with helping refugees resettle. those services are important so people like nadia have something to plug in to. sorry, one less thing. training formedia muslim leaders abroad is important. there are a lot of people, a lot of good leaders, that are making the right argument. they need to know how. you cannot write a 40 page legal opinion and expect that to be trending on twitter.

what we are seeing is the dumbed -down version of what our teachers said. we need to think about how media works. media training is important. social media, that kind of thing. >> thank you. i want to be sure everyone gets a question. i will be ask everyone to be mindful of the five-minute limit. >> thank you, mr. chairman. thank you for our witnesses here today. thank you for your compelling testimony. your journey to this country is very important as we discuss refugees and folks like yourself who have been fleeing intense persecution and terror, that people see your face. your presence is important. will be aseople moved as i know everyone on this panel has been moved. thank you for your courage to be here today.

ctor, i would like you to respond to what seems to be a debate back and forth we are hearing in the political realm as to whether or not we should call isis radical islam. when you hear someone calling it andical islam," is that accurate description of what we are seeing? >> you seem to be intent on getting all the difficult questions. we are taught at seminaries there is no -- i'm trying to translate. there is nothing wrong with labels. a lot of times, we get stuck on labels. why are you saying this? labels are what their definition is. when someone says, i use that term, radical islam. what i mean by it is people who look muslim doing horrible

things. they are terrorists for sure. but they are different from neo-nazi groups. i personally do not have a problem with that when people say that in congress or the white house or in the media. i understand. however, i fear that can easily of reinto any form ligiosity from a muslim. that is the fear. >> that is a good question. personally, when i was in the year, i was an advocate of using these terms. saudi king.he late he admonished high clerics for the first time in public.

he said, you are not speaking up against isis when it came out. when i moved to the u.k. last year, i felt there is a question of messenger. who says the term and why? it is important to keep this in mind. isis didhe thing that in the middle east and trying to do elsewhere. it wants to polarize its enemies. they want to divide their enemies. they succeeded in the middle east. they are probably succeeding here by getting people talking about what to call it. what is clear is that the organization has declared war on islam. this is how it should be seen. it is a problem in the islamic world and needs to be dealt with there.

here, what can be done is helping muslims fight the organization. >> i appreciate that. the issue we face in the united states in dealing with this wolves.is lone is it safe to say the folks that might be inspired by this are folks that have little understanding of islam? is there a correlation? does that have something to do with this recent shooter who was claiming allegiance to isis and bollah? law -- hez can you maybe address things going on in the minds of lone wolves as to how we respond? >> absolutely. people that are self-radicalized, just like the radicals we have been speaking about this morning, they have little to no understanding of the religion whatsoever. that is the danger. part of that is they had no training, no living teacher they

can sit with and ask questions. tradition itive described earlier takes place. surfinga fear, people online and finding a lecture , formingtatement there a conclusion, and acting on it. i think more instruction and religious literacy for muslims will help in that regard. chairman.ou, mr. my words ofd appreciation and thanks to our panel. very powerful testimony. thank you for being here. -- i know theart hearing is about the ideology of isis, of daesh.

yet, it was cold in the wake of a horrible tragedy in orlando that was at once a terrorist inspired attack and also a hate crime. in this case, against members of the lgbt community. it was also latin night at the club. it is unclear if that was contributed to the targeting of the club on that particular night. , when you are testifying, you shared with us that attacks against lgbt syrians preceded the formation called forat it was bytolerated or perpetrated the regime as well as militants

who opposed the regime in syria, that they too perpetrated violence against lgbt syrians. bullying,., violence, intimidation, discrimination against members of the lgbt community has a long history also. days, you could certainly argue it was sanctioned at one point in our nation's history by the government also. but things have changed. and i want to just draw attention to something you highlighted in your testimony about the un security council acting very recently to aregnize that lgbt rights

human rights, a first in that international forum. you highlighted it as something important in moving forward. i guess i want to ask, in terms oryour proposals, recommendations to this committee and to others, how important it is for governments, for authorities, to regimes, to say lgbt rights are human rights. to dangerous is the silence that? >> thank you, senator, for this important question. as my own experience growing up syria, i knewn from an early age the government and mys against us, existence was not legal.

i was not allowed to say it out loud. i was not allowed to be in the open. it was punishable by three years in prison. i could be persecuted by your own community members. it is very important for us to get the words out there, to say to the government, hold them accountable, tell them that lgbt rights are human rights. my community tradition say that are sexual rights. to make this message clear to government and communities is very important to at least start to elevate the consequences that i witnessed in my country. we were being bullied all the time, persecuted, thrown out in the streets, verbally and

physically abused. we could not go anywhere. we cannot tell our families. we do, they will persecute us more. up andy, you have to man defend your self. platformsnternational were used in a proper way to deliver the message and tell the governments these rights should be addressed, it delivers a very strong message. >> thank you. i want to follow up. i am out of time. >> do it for the record. >> question for the record, then. sen. peters:'s asking questions radicalization and lone wolves. in the case of orlando, it is not clear how deep an

understanding the perpetrator had. ask an evennt to broader question about self-radicalization. we have seen in recent instances of mask and violence in the u.s. u.s.ss gun violence in the people who were radicalized but inspired by different types of hatred. hatred of minority religion, as we saw in wisconsin, when a gunman entered the sikh temple in oak creek. the gunmen in charleston. what can we learn about self

radicalization and studying those who have been self-radicalized by isil when dealing with self-radicalization for people who hold different types of hatred? >> the witnesses can answer in written responses. >> thank you, mr. chairman. thank you all for being here. appreciate your bravery in coming forward and your courage in being able to speak out. these are important days, and we need clear, articulate voices. isis?s the end goal for what do they see on the horizon? they say they want a caliphate that dominates the world. this is their stated mission. i think they are -- their realistic objective is to control syria and iraq and become leader of a global jihad.

that is why they spent so much effort on being more critical of al qaeda. they see them as competitors and rivals. their goal is regional dominance. obviously, they want to expand in the west and elsewhere. >> you are talking about regional dominance. yet they are trying to motivate people in western countries, whether it be europe, australia, the united states, to attack in those locations as well. why try to motivate people in australia or the united states or europe to fight for them if the goal is the caliphate there? >> listening to them and how they talk, reading the books they say they read, they talk about the war today. and this is important for the anti-isis campaign.

there is a tendency to think about technical defeat as strategic defeat against isis. itself as as long-term project. about exhausting the west, exhausting everybody else. 10 years ago, the americans were in iraq and had appetite to fight us. 10 years later, president obama had less appetite. in 10 years time, it will be even less. mostlyve a core that is consistent of security officials. these are the most dangerous people. most of them are member of saddam hussein's security apparatus. they shaped the organization and how it works and ensure its survival. will not go away.

you can defeat the members who joined it two years ago and so on, but they think of their strategy as a war of attrition. >> go back 15 years ago, 10 years ago, the united states was challenging leadership in islam to call out al qaeda and say it was not consistent. now it is a challenge towards say, that-nusra to does not line up with the theology. we see this springing up in multiple areas around the world, twisting off. it is not just around isis. it is mostly around isis today, but it could be others. it is a broad system. a confront isis?

confront a larger set of teachings? >> that is the difference between defeating the organization tactically. you can launch an effective military campaign and defeat it. you can expel it from falluja. the organization's appeal and spectrum, the broader appeal, like-minded groups like al qaeda that believe in violence as a strategic goal rather than violence just because they're pushed to violence. >> does the worldwide movement of isis diminish if they do not have a functioning caliphate in syria and iraq? >> it will, but we have reached the point today that what happened on the ground in iraq and syria does not affect the international appeal of isis.

this is because the campaign against isis has not been done properly. using the wrong forces to fight isis in towns that these organizations are viewed suspiciously is a disastrous campaign. state department officials sayingned in document allowing the ypg, an organization affiliated with the using thatey, organization to fight isis and other terrorist organizations in sunni-arab areas is wrong. i think the campaign today is allowing ices to convert -- isis to convert territorial losses into legitimacy. that is why i have been warning the campaign is only making isis stronger. >> thank you. >> i think senator langford's

line of questioning is right on. you say in your testimony you or defeat the group in raqqa falluja, but could you go a little deeper? what are you advising for us to do as we get these -- we are shrinking territory, clearly, but it seems like you are saying we are giving them more strength in the way we are doing it. isis,hink we defeated isis was defeated in iraq in 2006 but came back and took to 2010.m 2006 it was a marginal organization in iraq. that worked.

the policies that followed in -- when theaq united states pulled out of iraq before it was able to govern itself and there was perceived support between the u.s. and aliki despitewith m the fact he was weakend and there is another rival that is , the mistakes that success, the ,uccess between 2006 and 2010 led to circumstances that sunnis inis to tell these areas to say the only way forward is to work together.

they were able to mobilize people against the government. that is why they were able to take mosul in the summer of 2014. iraqi army toe flee. they took american weaponry and marched back to syria. they fortified raqqa and so on. they became a strong organization because of political failures. is so muchthat there focus on the military component rather than on the political and social and religious issues. >> i see your point. i appreciate your testimony discussing how we in the west should be trying to discredit or have islamic voices discrediting daesh. maybe that gets me to your testimony,