Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gives first public remarks on LRA violence

On Thursday in a hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton gave her first public remarks regarding ongoing LRA violence and atrocities in central Africa, which surged in recent months.

"I have been following the Lords Resistance Army for more than fifteen years. I just dont understand why we cannot end this scourge. And we're going to do everything we can to provide support we believe will enable us to do that," the Secretary said.

She confirmed United States support for ongoing military operations against the LRA, but offered no specifics on how the Obama Administration would seek to address the failures of current regional efforts to end ongoing LRA atrocities.

Watch her exchange with Senator Russ Feingold, Chair of the Africa Subcommittee, here:

After the exchange, Senator Feingold issued a new statement calling for passage of the landmark LRA Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act. The bill is currently being blocked by Oklahoma Senator Tom Coburn, though dozens of activsts are currently been holding a round the clock "hold-out" outside his office in Oklahoma City calling for him to allow passage of the bill.