{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://zeldin.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/rep-zeldin-returns-congressional-delegation-visit-middle-east", "Rep. Zeldin Returns from Congressional Delegation Visit to the Middle East", "2016-12-29", "2016", "2016-12", "Republican", "House", "NY", "Lee Zeldin", "Z000017", "zeldin.house.gov", null, null, "legacy", "Washington, DC \u2013 Congressman Lee Zeldin (R, NY-1), member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, released the following statement after traveling with a Congressional Delegation (CODEL) to the Middle East from Christmas Day, December 25, 2016, to December 29, 2016. Congressman Zeldin traveled to multiple countries, including Afghanistan, within the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) area of operations.\nCongressman Zeldin said, \u201cIt was an honor to again spend the holiday season with \u00a0our service members deployed to the Middle East, including many New Yorkers. The briefings with top military and diplomatic leadership were most informative, and I will spend the next few days reflecting on this trip and processing all of the detailed information that I received. The ongoing fight against ISIS, Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups is constantly evolving, and being able to speak with top officials who are on the forefront of these military operations is critical. It was also such an honor to personally thank many of our service members in Afghanistan and other locations in the region who are currently deployed and missing the holidays away from their families. Spending a holiday away from family is never easy and they deserve to know how grateful we all are for their service and sacrifice.\u201d\nSome pictures from the CODEL were released in a media statement yesterday, which you can view here. Additional photographs are below:\nCongressman Zeldin is pictured below with New York service members within the CENTCOM area of operations.\u00a0\u00a0Congressman Zeldin is pictured below in Kabul, Afghanistan, meeting with General John W. Nicholson Jr., Commander of Resolute Support and U.S. Forces Afghanistan.\nCongressman Zeldin is pictured below at the United States Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, (from left to right) with Dennis Hearne, Deputy Chief of Mission in Afghanistan, Congressman David Valadao (R, CA-21), Congressman Coffman (R, CO-6), Hugo Llorens, U.S. Ambassador to Afghanistan, and Congressman David Cicilline (D, RI-1).\nIn December 2015, Congressmen Zeldin, Valadao and Cicilline travelled to the Middle East on a CODEL that included time spent thanking troops in Iraq and Kuwait on Christmas Day.", 1, "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z", "2026-03-30T12:14:52Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://zeldin.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/rep-zeldin-returns-congressional-delegation-visit-middle-east"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.5319229569286108, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}