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Westerman Issues Statement On Netanyahu Address to Joint Meeting of Congress

January 21, 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WASHINGTON – Congressman Bruce Westerman (R-Hot Springs) issued the following statement regarding the invitation by Speaker John Boehner to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to address a joint meeting of Congress on February 11, 2015:

"As a strong supporter of Israel, it pleases me that Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu has accepted Speaker Boehner's invitation to address a joint meeting of Congress. It is my hope that in spite of the weak foreign policy of the Obama administration in the Middle East, Prime Minister Netanyahu will leave Capitol Hill having a firm knowledge that Congress is committed to the bond between our two great nations, realizing that a strong Israel is in the best interest of America.

"It is also my hope that the prime minister, through years of first hand experience, will be able to convey to the United States Congress and Americans across our great country the dangers faced by Israel, France, and our allies around the world at the hands of radical Islam. Terrorism is a threat more real today than ever, and Prime Minister Netanyahu's words of wisdom about his nation's long fight against terrorists are most welcome in light of recent attacks around the world."

About Rep. Bruce Westerman

A lifelong resident of Garland County, Congressman Bruce Westerman was elected the 20th representative of Arkansas's Fourth Congressional District in 2014. In the 114th Congress, he will serve on the Committee on Natural Resources, the Committee on the Budget, and the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology.

Elected twice to serve in the Arkansas General Assembly, Westerman was Arkansas's first Republican House Majority Leader since Reconstruction, and an architect of the House Republican SIMPLE Plan which led to the 2013 Republican takeover of the Arkansas House of Representatives.

An engineer and forester for 22 years at Mid-South Engineering in Hot Springs, Westerman is a registered professional engineer and forester. He holds a Master of Forestry degree (2001) from Yale University. In 2013, he was named Engineer of the Year by the Arkansas Society of Professional of Engineers.

Westerman graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biological and Agricultural Engineering from the University of Arkansas in 1990. While at Arkansas, Westerman was a four-year walk-on member of the Razorback Football Team. He received the Outstanding Young Alumni Award in 2005 and the Distinguished Alumni Award in 2012.

Westerman is a former board member of the Fountain Lake School District and is a deacon at Walnut Valley Baptist Church. He lives in Hot Springs with his wife Sharon and their four children.

For more information on Rep. Bruce Westerman, please visit https://westerman.house.gov and follow him on Twitter at https://twitter.com/RepWesterman and Facebook at https://facebook.com/RepWesterman.

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