Iraq

This year will mark the fifth anniversary of the U.S. invasion of Iraq. I voted against giving President Bush the authority to send our troops into Iraq because I was not convinced that Saddam Hussein presented an imminent or direct threat to the United States. In addition, I was concerned that American soldiers and taxpayers would pay a very heavy price. All of these concerns have been born out, as weapons of mass destruction were never found in Iraq, and over 4,000 U.S. soldiers have been killed and over 30,000 wounded, while the cost of the war closes in on $1 trillion. We are currently spending $12 billion every month in Iraq.

At this time, it appears we will continue to incur these heavy costs in the weeks, months and even years to come. I do not believe that the Iraqis will make the tough political decisions necessary to truly unify their country as long as our servicemen and women are there. My goal is to continue to support our soldiers serving in Iraq and Afghanistan while seeking to bring them home as quickly as possible. To that end, I voted against President Bush’s troop surge last year and also voted to put a timeframe for troop withdrawal in place. I will continue to work with my colleagues to reassess our current war policies, and I ask you to continue to keep our troops and their families in your daily thoughts and prayers.

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