Mr. Speaker:

I speak today, not as a Democrat, but as an American who shares the belief with President Bush that once and for all it is time to stop the threat of Saddam Hussein and his weapons of mass destruction. For that reason, I intend to support the authorization of military force against Iraq, even as I hope and pray for peace.

Saddam Hussein has been responsible for the deaths of hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children. How many more innocent people must die at the hands of this madman before the world says enough is enough? Saddam Hussein has started wars against his neighbors. He has lobbed scud missiles into neighborhoods in Israel. He has gassed and tortured his own people. He has even ordered the execution of his own son-in-law. How many more victims of Saddam Hussein must be there be before the world says enough is enough?

Saddam Hussein has built chemical and biological weapons. He has pursued the ultimate weapon of terror—a nuclear bomb. How many more weapons of mass destruction must Saddam Hussein build before the world says enough is enough?

There comes a time when a person’s repeated disdain for the rules of civilized society makes it necessary for society to protect itself. I say that time is now. Some of my colleagues in Congress say let’s continue to try diplomacy with Saddam Hussein. I respect their right to that view.

Eleven years ago, I, too, had hoped diplomacy would have worked, in that case to persuade Saddam Hussein to retreat from his unprovoked invasion of Kuwait. The Arab League tried diplomacy and failed. The European Community tried diplomacy and failed. The United Nations tried diplomacy and failed.

For eleven long years the world community, acting through the United Nations, has tried to use diplomacy to convince Saddam Hussein to destroy his weapons of mass destruction. Once again, the world community has failed. Is that failure the fault of the United States or the United Nations not having tried diplomacy? The answer is “no”. The fault lies squarely with one person- Saddam Hussein. He is the guilty one, not us.

The reality is that Saddam Hussein is a terrorist of historic proportions who has gassed his own citizens and killed his own neighbors. Now, with his weapons of mass destruction, he is a real threat to his declared enemy, the United States. Nothing, absolutely nothing Saddam Hussein has done since his invasion of Kuwait would suggest that his disrespect for the rules of civilized society has changed one iota. If anything, that disrespect has grown as he has arrogantly ignored one U.N. resolution after another, year after year. Do I hope for peace without war? Yes, fervently so, because I represent over 40,000 Army soldiers who might be sent to that war. And, I represent their families.

However, 11 years of actions suggest Saddam Hussein has no respect for the principles of diplomacy and peace. The responsibility to only use war as a last resort does not negate the profound obligation of the president and the Congress to protect American citizens from weapons of mass destruction. The United States, as the one superpower in the world, also has a deep responsibility to ensure that the terrorists attacks of September 11th do not become a prelude for chemical, biological, or nuclear terrorism here or anywhere in the world.

I respect President Bush, as I do his father, for standing up to the menace of Saddam Hussein. I applaud the President’s recent challenge to the United nations. The interests of our nation and all nations will be served if the U.N. enforces its resolutions against Saddam Hussein and Iraq. But, if the U.N. does not take firm action, the threat posed by Saddam Hussein does not go away.

Tigers don’t change their stripes and Saddam Hussein has not changed his… not in 11 years… and not now. He was a dangerous, brutal dictator a decade ago, and he is a dangerous, brutal dictator today, and with weapons of mass destruction. Sadly, diplomacy has failed and delay could be dangerous. The time to act is now.