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Writer's pictureArmenian Assembly of America
Sep 4, 20146 min read

The Assembly Agenda: This week in Washington, D.C. – September 4, 2014

Updated: Jul 30, 2021

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By Taniel Koushakjian (@Taniel_Shant)

AAANews Blog


HOUSE: The House is in the last week of the summer recess and will return next Monday, September 8th. Although Congress will only be in session for two weeks before the midterm election, there are many legislative issues left to address, most importantly: funding the government. Although both chambers have adopted fiscal year (FY) 2015 appropriations bills that cover funding for Armenia and Nagorno Karabakh, Congress has been unable to wrap up the annual appropriations process. The House has passed seven out of twelve appropriations bills, while the Senate has passed zero. As FY 2014 is set to end on September 30th, Congress is expected to pass a stop-gap spending package at current levels that, according to House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH), will fund the government until sometime in early December.


In addition to appropriations, some sort of immigration reform/child migrant crisis resolution, reauthorization of the Ex-Im Bank, and dealing with the growing threat of the Islamic State are all big ticket issues on the agenda.


– WHAT ABOUT PRO-ARMENIAN LEGISLATION?: In the 113th Congress, two pro-Armenian measures were introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives: H.R. 4347, the Turkey Christian Churches Accountability Act, and H. Res. 227, the Armenian Genocide Truth & Justice Resolution. Under Chairman Ed Royce (R-CA), H.R. 4347 passed the House Foreign Affairs Committee on June 26, 2014. It is now up to Speaker Boehner to schedule the bill for a vote. At this time, it remains to be seen if the Speaker will bring this important, international religious freedom legislation to the House floor before Congress adjourns for the midterm election. However, there is still the possibility that H.R. 4347 receives full consideration after the election. Congress is scheduled to return on November 12th for a lame-duck session to conclude the 113th Congress. Recall that in 2011, the House passed H. Res. 306, which similarly calls on Turkey to return confiscated Christian property – albeit on less stringent terms – during the lame duck of the 112th Congress. The Armenian Assembly of America continues to advocate for full passage of H. R. 4347, the Turkish Christian Churches Accountability Act of 2014.


The Armenian Genocide Truth & Justice Resolution, H. Res. 227, currently has 52 cosponsors and is still pending in the House Foreign Affairs Committee. This resolution differs greatly from previous Armenian Genocide resolutions that gathered close to 200 cosponsors and that which passed said committee in 2010, 2007, 2005 and 2000. These more recent resolutions were mirrored off the Assembly-backed S.J. Res. 212, a Senate resolution commemorating the 75th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide and reaffirming the U.S. record, back in 1990.

SENATE: Like the House, the Senate will return from recess next Monday. In addition to resolving the major issues mentioned above, the Senate will look to confirm a slew of ambassadorial nominations, including posts in Yerevan, Baku, and Ankara.


– FORMER SENATOR JIM JEFFORDS PASSES AT 80: On August 18th, the political world was saddened by the death of former U.S. Senator James Jeffords of Vermont. His death was widely noted as he represented a principled voice in United States national politics for over 30 years before retiring in 2007 because of health problems. For Americans of Armenian descent, however, Jeffords was also a part of a different political history. In the 101st Congress, Senator Jeffords was an original cosponsor of S.J.Res. 212, a bill marking the 75th anniversary of the Armenian Genocide and reaffirming the U.S. record.


– AMBASSADOR WATCH: Despite what some Armenian organizations would have you believe, the Senate adjourned for the month-long August recess without confirming John R. Bass as the next U.S. ambassador to Turkey, not because Senators believe he warranted additional scrutiny, but simply because they ran out of time. With over 50 posts vacant around the world, the Senate was only able to confirm one top-priority nominee prior to the recess, the U.S. ambassador to Russia. Some Armenian media outlets mistakenly reported that Bass denied the Armenian Genocide during his confirmation hearing, even though he faced no questions on the Armenian Genocide at that hearing. Bass’ nomination is likely to be confirmed in the coming weeks, according to sources familiar with his nomination. For more on Bass see here. You can also watch Senator John McCain (R-AZ) grill Bass (no pun intended) on Erdogan’s drift toward authoritarianism here.


In addition, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee (SFRC), under Chairman Robert Menendez (D-NJ), has yet to hold confirmation hearings on President Obama’s nominees for ambassador to Armenia and Azerbaijan, Richard M. Mills, Jr. and Robert F. Cekuta, respectively. The SFRC is expected to schedule their confirmation hearings in the next two weeks. For more on Mills see here and for more on Cekuta see here.


– PENDING LEGISLATION: On April 10th, the SFRC passed S. Res. 410, the Armenian Genocide resolution. Introduced by Chairman Menendez, it currently has 10 cosponsors and awaits a vote on the Senate floor. Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), a long time advocate of Armenian American issues and a cosponsor of S. Res. 410, has not yet scheduled a vote on the bill. The Senate operates under different rules than the House, making it much more difficult to pass an Armenian Genocide resolution. A single Senator can place a hold on the measure, effectively blocking its passage.


WHERE THEY’VE BEEN – ANKARA, BAKU: Last week, Armenia’s Foreign Minister, Eduard Nalbandian, attended the inauguration of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, following his victory in the first direct election of that nation’s president. After the inauguration, Nalbandian walked over to Erdogan and personally handed him an invitation letter from Armenian President Serzh Sargsyan to attend the Armenian Genocide centennial commemoration in Yerevan on April 24, 2015.


As is customary in Turkish politics, the new leader is expected to visit the unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus and Azerbaijan in his first trip abroad. In Baku, Erdogan met with Azerbaijan President Ilham Aliyev. Among various issues discussed, the two Turkic leaders pledged to support each other in their international campaign to smear Armenians. According to media reports, Erdogan promised to raise the Nagorno Karabakh issue at the upcoming NATO summit taking place in Newport, Wales, September 4-5. At the summit, Erdogan is planning to “demand [of NATO] the fulfillment of promises to Azerbaijan” on Nagorno Karabakh. Which begs the question, what promises has NATO given to Azerbaijan on Nagorno Karabakh?


For more on NATO-Azerbaijan relations, see Gevorg Shahbazyan and Peter Kechichian’s analysis “NATO and Azerbaijan: an Unbalanced Partnership” here.


The two authoritarian rulers also promised to do their utmost to advance denial of the Armenian Genocide in the run up to the centennial anniversary next year. “Turkey and Azerbaijan work in a coordinated manner to dispel the myth of the ‘Armenian genocide’ in the world,” Azerbaijani ruler Ilham Aliyev tweeted after his meeting with Erdogan.


WHERE THEY’RE GOING – NEWPORT, ANKARA: As mentioned above, the NATO summit in Wales started today. President Obama was flanked by Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Secretary of State John Kerry. President Obama’s personal attendance comes on the heels of a trip to Eastern Europe. Armenian President Sargsyan announced this week that he plans to attend the summit and delivered remarks. It was just announced that Secretary Kerry held a tri-lateral meeting today with Sargsyan and Aliyev to discuss the Nagorno Karabakh conflict on the sidelines of the summit.


Following the NATO summit, Defense Secretary Hagel will travel to Ankara next week where he is expected to press the Turkish government to help confront the Islamic State.


HAPPY IN KARABAKH: Remember the “Happy in Yerevan” song? You know, the Armenian spoof of Pharrell Williams’ “Happy” song that was produced by the U.S. Embassy in Armenia? Well, it looks like happiness is contagious, and Karabakhtsis have no immunization. And if you still need more happiness in your life, check out the “Making of Happy in Karabakh,” which your Agenda writers found more entertaining than the actual music video.


UPCOMING EVENTS IN WASHINGTON:


LAST STATE PRIMARIES OF 2014 CYCLE: Voters in Delaware, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, and Rhode Island will head to the polls next Tuesday, September 9th to elect their respective party nominees, closing out the primary season.


DAYS UNTIL GENERAL ELECTION: 61


ARMENIAN CONGRESSIONAL TRIVIA: Who was the first Armenian American elected to the U.S. Congress? Bonus points if you can tell me what party and state he/she represented. The first person to correctly respond will get a shout out in the next edition of Assembly Agenda.

Send tips, suggestions, comments, complaints and corrections to taniel@aaainc.org. If you don’t already, please follow me on Twitter @Taniel_Shant and follow the Armenian Assembly of America @ARAMAC_DC.


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