U.S. Congress Continues to Oppose Candidacy of U.S. Ambassador to Armenia

15.01.2007

YEREVAN (YERKIR) - Armenian Caucus Co-Chairman Frank Pallone and New York Congressman Anthony Weiner today sharply criticized the White House's decision to resubmit the nomination of Richard Hoagland as U.S. Ambassador to Armenia, PanARMENIAN.Net reported.

The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) reports, Congressman Pallone remarked that Congressman Weiner has sent a letter to President Bush after Senator Bob Menendez announced that he has, once again, placed a "hold" blocking the Hoagland nomination's approval by the U.S. Senate, despite the fact that 97 percent of Armenian Americans oppose the Hoagland nomination. “His denial of the Armenian Genocide makes him unfit to represent American interests in Yerevan." says Weiner in his letter.

In remarks addressed to his House colleagues and the C-SPAN audience, Congressman Pallone stressed that, "the Bush Administration continues to play word games by not calling evil by its proper name in this case. Instead they refer to the mass killings of 1.5 million Armenians as tragic events. That term should not be substituted for genocide.

The two words are simply not synonymous. There are historical documents that show that the genocide cannot be refuted but somehow the Bush Administration continues to ignore the truth in fear of offending the Turkish government." He added that, The American people and this Congress deserve a full and truthful account of the role of the Turkish government in denying the Armenian genocide."

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