Van Hollen Statement on the Senate Amendment on Iraq War Funding to the Omnibus Appropriations Bill
Washington,
Dec 19, 2007 -
Congressman Chris Van Hollen today released the following statement on the Senate amendment on Iraq War funding to the omnibus appropriations bill.
"Madam Speaker, I rise today in opposition to the Senate amendment to the omnibus appropriations bill for an unconditional $70 billion for the war in Iraq. This amendment gives the President a blank check to continue a flawed strategy that has no end in sight. It does nothing to bring home our brave men and women of the armed forces serving faithfully in Iraq, many of them on their third tour of duty in that country, at considerable sacrifice and strain to them and their families. Nor does this amendment place any conditions on the Iraqi government, which has continually failed to pursue political reconciliation. Our intelligence community has publicly concluded that the political situation in Iraq is getting worse, not better. Moreover, the indefinite presence of American forces has sadly contributed to Iraq’s political stagnation because it has allowed the different factions there to postpone making the difficult compromises necessary to achieve stability and reconciliation. Meanwhile, our men and women of the armed services continue to die every day in Iraq’s ongoing civil war. A strategy of more of the same is no strategy at all.
"I have and will continue to vote to ensure that our troops in Iraq receive the support and equipment that they need. That is why in November I voted in support of the House measure to provide our troops in Iraq with an additional $50 billion. At the same time, this House legislation required the safe and responsible redeployment of our troops in Iraq. That legislation aimed to transition the U.S. military mission in Iraq. It would redeploy our combat forces out of Iraq by a target date of December 15, 2008. The House proposal, modeled after the approach recommended by the bipartisan Baker-Hamilton Commission of the Iraq Study Group, would focus the remaining forces on the more limited missions of training Iraqi security forces, providing logistical and intelligence support for Iraqi security forces, and engaging in targeted counter-terrorist operations against Al-Qaeda and affiliated groups. The House bill also called for a “comprehensive diplomatic, political, and economic strategy that includes sustained engagement with Iraq’s neighbors and the international community for the purpose of working collectively to bring stability to Iraq.
"Instead of supporting the sensible approach passed by the House, the Senate Republicans, taking their cue from the White House, threatened to filibuster it. Now these same political elements have collaborated in sending us an amendment for more war funding with no accountability and no plan to redeploy our combat forces. This irresponsible approach will have the effect of prolonging the war, not bringing it to an end.
"While I am opposed to another blank check for war funding in Iraq, I support continued military operations and reconstruction activities in Afghanistan. Moreover, my opposition to the Senate amendment does not extend to the underlying Omnibus, which –while far from perfect—was at the end of the day the best that we could do this year."
Congressman Chris Van Hollen
