A Look Ahead—November 16-20
Today, U.S. Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, announced the following upcoming Committee events:
Tuesday, November 17
Hearing: Women and Technology: Increasing Opportunity and Driving International Development
10 a.m. on Tuesday, November 17 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building
Committee on Foreign Affairs
Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman
Invited Witnesses Include:
Ms. Geena Davis
Founder and Chair
Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media
(Special Envoy for Women and Girls, International Telecommunication Union)
Ms. Joyce Warner
Senior Vice President and Chief of Staff
International Research and Exchanges Board
Ms. Sonia Jorge
Executive Director
Alliance for Affordable Internet
Chairman Royce on the hearing: “Technology is an incredible force for good in developing countries. As we’ve seen time and again, internet access means new opportunities for women to pursue an education, open a bank account, and learn more about fundamental rights. This hearing will review this important progress with accomplished individuals in the field, and consider additional steps to empower women, and their families, with technology to improve lives and better communities.”
Tuesday, November 17
Joint Subcommittee Hearing: Charting the Arctic: Security, Economic, and Resource Opportunities
2 p.m. on Tuesday, November 17 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building
Subcommittee on Europe, Eurasia, and Emerging Threats
Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA), Chairman
Subcommittee on the Western Hemisphere
Rep. Jeff Duncan (R-SC), Chairman
Invited Witnesses Include:
Admiral Robert Papp, Jr., USCG, Retired
U.S. Special Representative for the Arctic
U.S. Department of State
Rear Admiral Timothy C. Gallaudet, USN
Oceanographer and Navigator
U.S. Department of Defense
Vice Admiral Charles D. Michel, USCG
Vice Commandant
U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Chairman Rohrabacher on the hearing: “The Arctic is an area of the world with huge potential for economic growth. The United States should work with partners and allies to lead the effort to responsibly develop the Arctic. Earlier this year the United States assumed the Chairmanship of the Arctic Council, a high-level intergovernmental forum, and this summer President Obama made a visit to Alaska. This hearing will provide Members with an opportunity to hear what progress has been made in advancing our Arctic Council agenda and to question what specific steps the Executive Branch is taking to promote the economic development and prosperity for those living and working in the Arctic.”
Chairman Duncan on the hearing: “In the far north, the Arctic is home to tremendous resource potential and economic opportunity. There are also crucial strategic elements to this region, including increased military cooperation with our allies. As other nations, such as Russia and China, begin to show increased interest in the Arctic, the U.S. must show that it can be a leader there. The recent ascension to the Arctic Council Chairmanship earlier this year for a two-year term provides the ideal platform to ensure that U.S. interests are represented. Despite this opportunity, the Obama Administration has not yet made the most of it. In fact, the Administration has instead politicized the issue by focusing more on climate change instead of the vital energy and economic potential of the Arctic. This hearing will examine current issues for the U.S. Arctic agenda and explore opportunities to prosper in the north going forward.”
Tuesday, November 17
2 p.m. on Tuesday, November 17 in 2200 Rayburn House Office Building
Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation, and Trade
Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX), Chairman
Invited Witnesses Include:
Mr. John Cassara
(Former Special Agent, U.S. Department of the Treasury)
David Andrew Weinberg, Ph.D.
Senior Fellow
Foundation for Defense of Democracies
Ms. Diane Foley
Founder
James W. Foley Legacy Foundation Inc.
Michael D. Danti, Ph.D.
Academic Director of Cultural Heritage Initiatives
The American Schools of Oriental Research
Chairman Poe on the hearing: “ISIS made well over $1 billion in 2014 from a variety of revenue sources, making the group one of the best financed terrorist groups in history. Three ongoing and increasing sources of funding for the group are kidnapping for ransom, antiquities trafficking, and private donations. ISIS routinely kidnaps Western and local hostages, demanding exorbitant payments from governments that, when paid, serve as a substantial source of funding for its murderous activities. The terrorists are currently controlling thousands of archeological sites in Iraq and Syria which they view not as the cultural heritage of humanity, but rather as financial opportunities. Deep pocket donors, especially in Gulf countries like Qatar and Kuwait, have voluntarily sent terrorist groups millions, highlighting the grave terrorist finance problems in those countries. Members will have the opportunity to gain a better understanding of some of the important sources of terrorist financing and hear some new policy recommendations to ensure to cut off terrorist groups like ISIS from critical sources of revenue.”
Wednesday, November 18
10 a.m. on Wednesday, November 18 in Room 210 of the House Visitors Center
Committee on Foreign Affairs
Rep. Ed Royce (R-CA), Chairman
Committee on Homeland Security
Rep. Michael McCaul (R-TX), Chairman
Invited Witnesses Include:
The Honorable Michael Chertoff
Co-Founder and Executive Chairman
The Chertoff Group
(Former Secretary, U.S. Department of Homeland Security)
Mr. Peter Bergen
Vice President and Director
New America
The Honorable Matthew G. Olsen
Co-Founder and President
Business Development and Strategy
IronNet Cybersecurity
(Former Director, National Counterterrorism Center)
Chairman Royce on the hearing: “Islamist terrorist groups like ISIS and al Shabaab are recruiting and radicalizing foreign fighters at an alarming rate. In Syria and Iraq, ISIS has welcomed tens of thousands, including more than 250 Americans, to join their brutal campaign. The two Committees are combining expertise to press the administration to better deny safe havens to extremist movements, disrupt foreign fighter travel, and confront the grave threats posed by these fighters as they seek to return home.”
Chairman McCaul on the hearing: “We are witnessing the most rapid spread of Islamist terror sanctuaries in history, but still have no viable strategy to combat this national security threat. The brutal Assad regime, with its Iranian support, continues to fuel radicalism. ISIS is using its base in Syria and Iraq to expand globally. And a destabilizing Russia is flexing its military muscle in the region in the absence of American leadership. Meanwhile at home, the FBI is conducting ISIS-related investigations in all 50 states. ISIS alone has inspired or directed 18 terrorist plots in America since 2014 and the group has been linked to more than 60 plots around the globe. This hearing is necessary to examine how instability abroad creates dangerous safe havens for Islamist terrorists to train and recruit, as well as how our lack of a strategy to deal with these ungoverned spaces leads to a greater threat to Americans at home.”
Wednesday, November 18
Subcommittee Hearing: Assessing the President’s Strategy in Afghanistan
1 p.m. on Wednesday, November 18 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building
Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa
Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), Chairman
Invited Witnesses Include:
Frederick W. Kagan, Ph.D.
Christopher DeMuth Chair and Director
Critical Threats Project
American Enterprise Institute
Mr. David. S. Sedney
Senior Associate
Center for Strategic and International Studies
Andrew Wilder, Ph.D.
Vice President
Asia Programs
United States Institute of Peace
Chairman Ros-Lehtinen on the hearing: “This hearing presents a good opportunity for members of the subcommittee to examine the Administration’s foreign policy toward Afghanistan nearly a year since the conclusion of the U.S. combat mission. In light of recent events, such as the takeover of Kunduz by the Taliban, as well as the emergence of ISIL, it is appropriate to analyze the effectiveness of the Administration’s policies. Since the President recently announced a halt to the scheduled withdrawal, it is of vital importance to reevaluate the President’s strategy and ensure that we are helping build the Afghan government’s capacity to combat the Taliban, corruption, and narco-trafficking in order to secure Afghanistan’s future as well as protect U.S. national security interests.”
Thursday, November 19
11 a.m. on Thursday, November 19 in 2172 Rayburn House Office Building
Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights, and International Organizations
Rep. Christopher H. Smith (R-NJ), Chairman
Invited Witnesses Include:
Panel I
The Honorable Michele Thoren Bond
Assistant Secretary
Bureau of Consular Affairs
U.S. Department of State
Panel II
Mr. David Goldman
Co-Founder and Director
Bring Sean Home Foundation
(Father of Child Abducted to Brazil)
Captain Paul Toland, USN
Co-Founder and National Director
Bring Abducted Children Home
(Father of Child Abducted to Japan)
Chairman Smith on the hearing: “The Sean and David Goldman International Child Abduction Prevention and Return Act (P.L. 113-150) was passed unanimously by Congress because the status quo approach of talk without action was bearing poor results. Less than half of the American children abducted to foreign countries ever return and some countries—such as Brazil, Japan and India—have almost no returns at all. With the Goldman Act, Congress called on the State Department to take actions that would incentivize countries to cooperate in the return of abducted American children. It has been more than a year since the law’s passage, and the initial reports from the State Department on the law’s implementation create serious questions regarding whether the State Department is taking sufficient actions to bring American children home. Thursday’s hearing will take a close look at whether the State Department is actually applying the reforms and actions required by the Goldman Act. I look forward to hearing from David Goldman himself, who is scheduled to testify.”
***See foreignaffairs.house.gov for updates.
***All Committee proceedings are webcast live HERE.
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