Mr. President. the late Arthur Helton. perhaps our countrys greatest advocate for the rights of refugees. wrote: Refugees matter . . . for a wide variety of reasons. . . . Refugees are a product of humanitys worst instincts. the willingness of some persons to oppress others. as well as some of its best instincts. the willingness of many to assist and protect the helpless. . . . A year after he wrote those words. Arthur Helton was killed in Baghdad in 2003 when a bomb destroyed the U.N. headquarters in Iraq. His words still resonate today. especially when we consider the immense human cost of the war in Iraq and its tragic effect on the millions of Iraqismen. women. and childrenwho have fled their homes. their country. to escape the violence of a nation at war with itself. These brave and heroic Iraqis work with the American military. staff our embassy. and work with American organizations to support our mission in Iraq. They are among the 4 million Iraqi refugees who have been forced from their homes. They are the people we have an obligation to help. Instead of protection. we have offered them bureaucracy and doublespeak. false words and dubious hopes. Despite the overwhelming need. the U.S. has resettled less than 2.000 Iraqis this fiscal year. Last night. the Senate acted and stood up to help Iraqi refugees. I thank Senator LEVIN and Senator McCAIN for adopting our amendment. the Refugee Crisis in Iraq Act of 2007. I thank Senator WARNER as well. This was cosponsored by a bipartisan group of Senators: Senators SMITH.
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Refugee Refugees refugees