Congressman Davis Reports on Recent Trip to Middle East
By: U.S. Rep. Lincoln Davis

Recently, I had the honor of chairing a Congressional Delegation, or what is known as a CODEL, to the Middle East to meet with military officials and international leaders, assess the situation on the ground, investigate the financial institutions in this war torn region and, most importantly, spend some time sharing stories and listening to our brave men and women overseas. From this, I have much to report.

First, without question, our soldiers deserve our thanks and praise for their extraordinary sacrifice. When I was in school, our teachers graded us on a scale of 1 to 100, and our fighting men and women deserve a 100 for everything they have done. They are fighting heroically to turn the tide against a relentless insurgency, and are doing this thousands of miles from their homes and loved ones. Their valor cannot be overemphasized, and they have my deepest respect.

While our military is fulfilling their oath and duty to our country, there are other components of the war that are in desperate need of a change in direction. As I led our Congressional Delegation through Iraq and Afghanistan, I was pleased to see the progress taking place in the north of Iraq, in what is largely an autonomous Kurdish region. To the south, however, around Baghdad and other parts of Iraq, we are seeing a nation that is failing to shoulder its share of the burden.

On my trip, I asked a question of Deputy Prime Minister Barham that I hear so often in my district: when can we leave? Like a team on fourth down in their own territory with ten yards to go, he punted. He didn't have an answer.

Here is what we do know. We will have troops in Iraq for some time to come, just as troops remained to protect the DMZ from North Korea and in Germany to defend against Communist Russia after major operations had come to an end. However, our troops cannot be the police on the beat for the people of Iraq from now until the end of time. The time has come for the Iraqi people and the Iraqi government to begin taking more responsibility for their security, their economy and the country as a whole. How this happens will determine our level of involvement in Iraq from now on, but American troops and the American economy cannot bear the burden of this conflict indefinitely.