Senator Boxer on Iraq

July 11, 2007

The Senate has just begun consideration of the Defense Authorization bill and what will be an unprecedented, two-week debate on the Iraq war.  To open this debate, I spoke out on the Senate floor and challenged those who have made statements against the war to follow it up by voting for real, binding measures to bring our troops home.

I am happy to share with you excerpts from my comments, which you will find below.  You can also view the full video by clicking here.

Sincerely,

Barbara Boxer
United States Senator

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“We are in a debate in this United States Senate between talk and action.  It’s very easy to talk… and call press conferences and say ‘we need a change.  It’s time for a change.’  But let’s see how people vote.  Will they vote for a Sense of the Senate that has absolutely no force of law—that says it is the Sense of the Senate that we should change course?  Or will they vote to start redeploying our troops out of the middle of a civil war, out of chaos? 

“It’s one thing to have an argument with someone and have pride and say you know, I’m not going to admit I made a mistake.  It’s another thing when people are dying because of your mistake every day.

“Now in November 2006, the American people voted against the Iraq war.  They elected Democrats.  They want this war to end… they don’t want our troops in the middle of a civil war.

“How many more explosive devices are going to blow up in the faces of our troops before we start bringing them home?  How many more Iraqis are going to die, women and children?  How many more faces are we going to look at on the front page before we get the guts to do the right thing?  

“The President doesn’t listen.  He didn’t listen after the election…he said he had a new strategy.  What was it?  The surge.  The surge is not a new strategy; it’s a military tactic, and it isn’t working.

“Today the Associated Press reports ‘Iraq fails to meet all reform goals.’  Not even one goal was met.  Our people are dying, and they can’t meet one goal.  The violence continues unabated.  Since the President made his speech on January 10, after the election, when he said there was going to be a new strategy, 590 U.S. servicemen and women have been killed, 107 of whom did not live to see their 21st birthday.  What kind of change is it that this President brought?   
 
“The Administration is failing on the security front, they’re failing on the political front.  They don’t listen to Senator Biden, the Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee; they don’t listen to Senator Lugar, the Ranking Member, who are all saying you have to have a political solution.  And the Administration is failing on the reconstruction front.  Iraqis living in Baghdad still receive an average of 5.6 hours of electricity a day.  The President can’t even keep the lights on, let alone succeed in this surge.

“I would say to the President: tell the truth to the American people.  Lay out what you expected and then lay out the reality and start getting the troops home.  We have not seen these improvements, and now our military’s at the breaking point.”

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