FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, February 16, 2007
Contact: In DC - Brandon MacGillis (202) 225-4431
In CO - Chris Arend (303) 844-4988 
 
WASHINGTON – Chief Deputy Whip Diana DeGette (D-CO) delivered the following remarks today opposing President Bush’s plan to escalate the war in Iraq.

DIANA DeGETTE
UNITED STATES HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
WASHINGTON, D.C.
FEBRUARY 16, 2007

“Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

“I rise in strong support of the Resolution.  I fundamentally disagree with the President’s plan to add thousands of troops to the Iraqi conflict.  It’s time for a new course in Iraq… a rational course… a more humane course of action.  It is long-past time to start a phased withdrawal of our troops from Iraq. 

“Mr. Speaker, this debate is about policy and direction.  Surely, the facts on the ground cannot be used to support continued or increased combat involvement in Iraq.   Iraq is in a civil war.  That is the truth, and it’s time we accept the implications of that fact.  Our soldiers have no business acting as unwanted umpires or surrogate police officers.

“The latest National Intelligence Estimate concludes, ‘the term ‘civil war’ accurately describes key elements of the Iraqi conflict…’  If this is the state of the current conflict, what do we expect the U.S. military to do about it?  Settle centuries of theological or religious disagreement?  Become diplomats?   Whose side do they chose?  What would their mission be? 

“I do not believe combat forces permanently stop such conflicts.  The troops themselves tell us they are untrained for this role – a role that puts them at extreme risk. 

“Yet, the President mistakenly continues to believe we are fighting illusionary battalions on phantom battlefields.  So, in his mind, we need more troops for victory – a surge that will overwhelm and destroy. 

“Well that’s how he sees it.  He ignores – ignores – the evidence and reports of our generals, our troops, our Iraq Study Group, our diplomats, most of our allies, the views of the Iraqi people, and anyone else who actually tries to find out the nature and state of the conflict. 

“He rapidly and recklessly proceeds ahead, with one policy shift after another. 

“He searches for the light at the end of a tunnel.  But, there is no light; it was extinguished long ago.  There is only darkness and despair.  The chaos deepens daily, and the President sits in the Oval Office hoping, that somehow, it will turn out right in the end. 

“This is neither policy nor leadership.  The Administration’s policies are the stuff of dreams and fantasies, not hard-core determinations of our nation’s interests or the best course for addressing strategic threats.  

“Mr. Speaker, hope is not a strategy.  The escalation of troop levels makes no strategic sense.  We must not hesitate to describe the President’s policy in words that are honest and clear.  We confront a policy that is wishful thinking, not realistic assessment.  The Administration’s policy is like a conjuring trick of denial, delusion, and determined folly, which will only deepen the disaster.  We are given the vision of a make-believe story instead of a responsible and realistic policy.

“Civil wars are solved through diplomacy, negotiation, and political compromise.  These are the types of developments identified by the NIE that will make a difference in Iraq.  While the NIE warns against the rapid withdrawal of coalition troops, American forces can come home in a careful, safe, and deliberate manner.

“As the nation’s representatives, it is our constitutional duty to stop this madness.  It is our constitutional mandate to conduct oversight.  And it is our constitutional imperative to act.  That is what our Founding Fathers wanted.  They constructed the Constitution to provide checks and balances.  They did not give the President a blank check.  The Constitution is a sacred document to this body.  We swear to uphold it and to defend it.  We do just that when we demand accountability from the President.  We honor our Constitutional requirement when we scrutinize policy.  We defend our Constitutional process when we demand that the President listen to the American people and end unilateral actions that undermine our nation’s strength and place our troops in an untenable, lethal, and unwinnable situation. 

“Mr. Speaker, I did not come here to ignore my oath to the American people.  I did not come here to watch our Constitution be rewritten by Presidential arrogance and disregard.  And I did not come here to relinquish my sworn duty to protect and defend this sacred document.  I did not come here to ignore the American people, who want this war stopped now!

“Mr. Speaker, support this resolution and begin a phased withdrawal.  Thank you.”

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