CAUCUS CO-CHAIR SAYS HE WAS MISREPRESENTED BY TURKISH PRESS
By Ara Khachatourian
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Thursday April 2, 2009
A headline in the Turkish Hurriyet daily screamed: "Pro-Armenian
Lawmaker says US Congress Will Not Recognize Bill" for a news item
attributing comments allegedly made by Rep. Mark Kirk, the Illinois
Republican who co-chairs the Congressional Caucus on Armenian Issues
and a co-author of H.Res. 252–the Armenian Genocide resolution.
"Speaker of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi will not dare
pass the bill. She will not place Obama in a difficult position. The
bill will not pass, don’t worry," Rep. Kirk was quoted as telling
the Turkish language Aksam Daily.
"When I was translated from Turkish to English my comments had little
relation," explained Rep. Kirk, in a phone conversation with Asbarez.
"I made the mistake of predicting what Speaker Pelosi may or may
not do in the future," explained Rep. Kirk given President Obama’s
upcoming trip to Turkey.
Kirk explained that his intention was to shed light on the
importance of the Genocide Resolution, adding that his comments were
misrepresented by the Turkish press
Kirk explained that he had supported Genocide resolutions in the past
and is the co-author of the current one introduced last month.
"I think if we put it [the resolution] on the floor, a number of
members would back us. I’m just worried that the State Department
will pressure the Congress, as they have done in the past," Kirk told
Asbarez, urging Speaker Pelosi to resists the pressure.
"Speaker Pelosi should bring up the resolution and pass it," added
Kirk, saying that everyone should stick to their campaign promises
and vote on what they told their constituents.
Kirk said he believes if the Genocide bill were brought to a vote,
it would be "Tremendous victory."
Notorious for its long history of muckraking, the Turkish press
has a reputation for altering the truth and changing words to suit
their needs. Rep. Kirk was the latest victim of this brand of yellow
journalism.