BURBANK–A reception co-hosted by the Armenian National Committee Political Action Committee (ANC-PAC), the U.S. Armenia Public Affairs Committee (USAPAC) and The California Courier newspaper, was held on Thursday to honor Congressman Joe Knollenberg (R-MI), the co-Chair of the Congressional Armenian Caucus and a staunch supporter of issues of importance to Armenian Americans.
Among the supporters attending the event, held at US-Armenia TV Headquarters, were members of the National Organization of Republican Armenia’s (NORA).
During his speech, Congressman Knollenberg thanked his supporters and vowed that he will continue to stand up for Armenian American issues, particularly recognition of the Armenian Genocide. He added that the State Department must change its policy and end its complicity towards genocide denial.
The Congressman also cited that the United States should no longer provide military aid to Azerbaijan; a country that poses a great threat to the freedom loving people of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.
"The ANCPAC is proud to support a man who has been a backbone for our cause in Congress. He is currently involved in a competitive race and we are certain that his constituents will reward his years of diligent service with another term," stated ANCPAC Representative Leonard Manoukian.
"ANCPAC would also like to congratulate NORA for its participation in this wonderful event," he added.
Congressman Knollenberg has been one of the Armenian-American community’s staunchest allies in Congress, on occasion even publicly opposing both his party’s President and leadership in defense of Armenian issues. He is in the political race of his life, one of the Top 5 most competitive Congressional races in the country and how our community responds will be watched closely.
Recently, Congressman Knollenberg introduced an amendment to cut all U.S. military aid to Azerbaijan due to its escalating threats of war against Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia. Although his measure was narrowly defeated in a committee vote of the U.S. House State-Foreign Operations Subcommittee, it was supported by each of his Republican colleagues on the panel as well as Congressman Adam Schiff (D-CA).
Congressman Knollenberg, who represents the 9th Congressional District in Michigan, has been an outstanding leader on Armenian issues since he was first elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 1992.
The ANC-PAC is a non-partisan federally registered political action committee established to support campaign committees for Members of Congress who share the values of the Armenian American community. The ANC-PAC is at the forefront of efforts to ensure that the voice of the Armenian American community is clearly heard in our nation’s capital. The ANC-PAC continues a century old tradition of Armenian American engagement on public policy issues facing national political leaders, both in the U.S. Congress and the White House.