H.Con.Res.63 Disapproving Of The Presidents Decision To Deploy More Than 20,000 Additional Combat Troops To Iraq

There is a concept from the people of West Africa called Sankofa, literally translated it means, “it is not taboo to go back and fetch what you forgot.” Today I want to use the premise of Sankofa and go back to some of the things that have occurred in the recent past with regard to Iraq so that we can learn from those lessons. In order to know where we need to go in Iraq, we have to evaluate what missteps have been made, that is our responsibility. As we look at the last 5 five years the President has shown no accuracy on the challenges we face in Iraq. While our soldiers are courageously carrying out their orders, it has become apparent that military action to bring security to Iraq has reached its limitation, but our President insists on escalating military force.

I recall over four years ago hearing the President and the Administration push for war with talk about a smoking gun that would come in the form of a mushroom cloud. The Administration pulled on the emotions of the public while our nation was still in shock from 9/11. Our President pushed for war with arrogance, “bring it on he said.” Coalition of the willing, deck of cards, freedom on the march, mission accomplished, a plan for victory those are just some of the promises that have been made, but the Administration has not been able to make good on those promises. It is fair to say that the President has defaulted on a promissory note.

Today, the question before us is, can the president make good on the promise of security in Iraq with an escalation of the combat operation? All of the facts point to a strong NO on that question. After reviewing the facts, I saw that increased troops did not work in the spring of 2004 when troop levels were raised by thousands but this did nothing to prevent the continued uprising and April of 2004 was the second deadliest month for American forces. I’ve heard from generals, former secretaries of state and a bipartisan commission – all saying that escalation will not work. I am vehemently opposed to an escalation of the Iraq War and an open-ended commitment to a failing effort. When will the President’s commitment to this war end?

The President only accepts the advice of those who agree with him. After months of threats and a long military buildup, the United States attacked Iraq on March 19, 2003. The Administration cut short UN arms inspections, after a war-sanctioning resolution failed by a wide margin to gain support in the UN Security Council. Because the President could not get the UN or the world public in support of an invasion, he developed his Unilateral Preemptive Doctrine. The President has had generals tell him that this war should end and an escalation is not the answer, but when he gets advice he doesn’t like he fires the generals. He has had a commission of experts advise him that a diplomatic political effort with all of Iraq’s neighbors would be the most effective way to enable the US to move its combat forces out of Iraq responsibly. However, the President does not like that advice so he has chosen to simply ignore it. When the President needed Congress to approve military action against Iraq, he cared about the perspective of the Congress. As Congress begins to conduct oversight of the combat operation, the President wants to ignore the voices of dissent that come from this body.

The cameras of history are rolling. I hope and pray that at the end of this debate history can record that this body, starting with this resolution as a first step, has taken the appropriate action to end a morally wrong war that threatens to irreversibly stain the fabric of Congress if we do not exercise our constitutional authority and patriotic responsibility to balance the President’s power.

To move forward and bring security to Iraq will require a bipartisan effort. It will require dialogue in Congress, dialogue between Congress and the Administration, and dialogue and diplomacy between Iraq and all of its neighbors, as the Iraq Study Group wisely recommended. I am reaching across the isle to my colleagues who also believe that military action has its limitations and a diplomatic offensive will bring a new and critical approach to securing Iraq.

This war has created a deep humanitarian crisis in Iraq and a deep political crisis in the international system. Based on all that has happened leading up to this war and since its commencement, I cannot in good conscience support any escalation of military force in Iraq, but I plan on moving forward with a strong push for a diplomatic effort to a problem that military action simply has not been able to solve. Some ask what will happen in Iraq if we leave, but the more fundamental question is what will happen to Iraq and the United States if we stay?

Dr. King when speaking on the Vietnam War once said, "A time comes when silence is betrayal…That time has come for us in relation to Vietnam.” I echo those sentiments today. If Congress stands silent while the President escalates the war in Iraq we betray the people, we betray American soldiers and we betray our constitutional responsibility.