“Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you for holding this important hearing today.

“Mr. Chairman, before I begin my opening statement, I want to take a moment to thank our witnesses here today, and also inform the Subcommittee that the minority’s witness, Mr. Lanny Davis, was called out of town at the last minute and is unable to be with us today. I have a copy of his testimony, and I ask unanimous consent to submit his testimony for the record.

“Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

“A lot has changed in the past year in Honduras.

“We saw a Chavez crony and fellow thugocrat, Manuel Zelaya, try to change the Honduran Constitution to rule for life.

“We saw the Honduran Supreme Court and the Honduran Congress follow their constitution and the rule of law by removing Zelaya from power.

“We saw the OAS, the UN, and even the Obama Administration come out on the wrong side of history and call Zelaya’s removal a coup.

“And to top it off, we saw our own State Department threaten Honduras to reinstate Zelaya by withholding vital aid and revoking visas of Honduran officials.

“At this Subcommittee’s hearing last week, Assistant Secretary Valenzuela referred to the situation in Honduras as a coup. His reasoning: President Zelaya was not given “the most elementary due process of law.”

“Nothing could be further from the truth.

“It is important to note that the Honduran military never took control over any of the levers of power.

“The Honduran government institutions worked.

"And I'd like to read a timeline of what exactly happened.

•  May 2009: President Zelaya, working with his friend Hugo Chavez, ordered a referendum to take place on November 29, 2009, that would have removed presidential term limits. The Honduran Constitution specifically prohibits this, and thus Zelaya violated Article 239 of the Honduran Constitution.

•  On May 29, 2009, the Attorney General recommended that the Honduran courts hold that Zelaya’s referendum was illegal and unconstitutional.

•  In late June, the Supreme Court ordered the Honduran forces not to provide support for the referendum.

•  On June 27, in opposition to the Supreme Court order, Zelaya led a violent mob to seize and distribute the ballots for the referendum.

•  On June 28, the Supreme Court issued an arrest order for Zelaya and removed him as president.

•  On June 28, the Honduran Military, acting on a warrant from the Honduran Supreme Court, removed Zelaya from power. He was later put on a plane out of the country for his own protection, as well as other security reasons.

•  Later, the Honduran Congress, pursuant to the Honduran Constitution, voted Roberto Micheletti in as president. (Micheletti was constitutionally next in line for succession and assumed the presidency on an interim basis.)

•  President Micheletti never interfered with the ongoing presidential campaign nor interfered with the previously planned November 29th presidential election.

•  November 29, 2009: Hondurans voted in the presidential election. Porfirio “Pepe” Lobo won with 56 percent of the vote.

•  On December 2, in accordance with the San Jose/Tegucigalpa Accord, the Honduran Congress voted 111-14 to not reinstate ousted President Zelaya. The Supreme Court and Attorney General also recommended this outcome.

•  On January 27, President Micheletti stepped down from power, in accordance with the Constitution, and handed over power peacefully to democratically-elected President-elect Pepe Lobo.

“And while some have criticized the Honduran military for ushering Zelaya out of the country, his removal saved lives and prevented dangerous riots and violence in the streets.

“What happened in Honduras was not a coup, and the Administration needs to stop calling it one.

“Honduras did all we could ever ask of a country faced with an assault on its democracy. I am very proud of the Honduran people for standing up to the thugocrats of the region.

“And I want to take a moment to thank former President Micheletti for his commitment to freedom.

“When I traveled to Honduras last July, I had a chance to meet with President Micheletti. I have also spoken to him on the phone a number of times since my trip. I was struck by his dedication to the ideals of freedom and his commitment to the Honduran people. He was a proven leader in the face of great adversity, and he should be applauded for his leadership during the crisis.

“The people of Honduras did their part, and now we must do ours.

“I’m encouraged by the actions taken thus far by Secretary Clinton and the State Department. We have restored much of the military, humanitarian, and anti-drug trafficking assistance to Honduras. The Administration has also recognized the legitimacy of the November elections and President Lobo’s administration. But we must do more.

“Secretary Clinton has said earlier this month that the U.S. will be restoring aid to Honduras. This is welcome news, but it is my understanding that this aid will be restored incrementally. Any remaining withheld aid must be restored at once.

“The revoked visas of several Honduran officials and Supreme Court justices must be reinstated immediately by our State Department.

“And although I believe the OAS is dysfunctional, what message does it send to our allies in Latin America if we won’t even support normalizing relations with Honduras in international community?

“It’s no secret that some Latin American nations preferred to see Zelaya restored to power, and they still wrongly believe that recognizing the new government will endorse the great work of President Micheletti. The United States must not stand with these thugocrats. Instead, we should help our ally in Central America.

“We must support their continued struggle for democracy and freedom.

“We must support their democratic institutions.

“We must support the American businessmen and women in Honduras and ensure that they have a free environment to conduct their business.

“Honduras is a strong partner and a friend of the United States. And for the freedom, security and prosperity of the hemisphere, we must be a strong partner and friend to them.

“Thank you and I look forward to hearing from our witnesses today.”

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