Pelosi,
House Democrats Call for Open Consideration of Supplemental Appropriations
Request
September
17, 2003
Washington, D.C. -- House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi spoke at
a news conference today with Assistant to the Democratic Leader
John Spratt and Congressman Ike Skelton held to report on Spratt
and Skelton's recent bipartisan trip to Iraq. The Members released
a letter sent today to Speaker Dennis Hastert by the Democratic
Leadership and Ranking Members of the relevant committees calling
for an open process for consideration of the President's supplemental
Appropriations request. Pelosi's remarks and a copy of the letter
are below:
"Democrats
have clear goals for the Presidents supplemental request for
Iraq. Democrats want to provide whatever is necessary for our troops
to do their jobs well, and to return home safely. As Congressman
John Murtha and I said yesterday, shortages of critical equipment
and supplies are outrageous and must be addressed immediately.
"There
is no question that a stable and secure Iraq is in the best interests
of the United States, other countries in the region, and the Iraqi
people. The Administrations current plan will not achieve
those goals and must be revised. Our evaluation of the supplemental
will be influenced by the degree to which it reflects changes in
that plan.
"Congress
has a constitutional responsibility to review spending requests
to ensure that they are justified. That responsibility cannot be
met if we give a cursory, closed-door review to the supplemental
request when it is received.
"The Democratic
Leadership and the Ranking Democrats on the national security committees
have written to Speaker Hastert calling on him to devote the time
and effort necessary to thoroughly review the supplemental.
"That
review must include, among other things, open hearings and open
mark-ups by the authorizing and Appropriations committees, and approval
of the supplemental in both an authorization and Appropriations
process."
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September 17, 2003
The Honorable
J. Dennis Hastert
Speaker
U.S. House
of Representatives
H-232 The Capitol
Washington,
D.C. 20515
Dear Mr. Speaker:
As the Congress
begins consideration of the Presidents request for an additional
$87 billion in supplemental funding for Afghanistan and Iraq, we
urge that the House proceed in a manner that provides all Members
with an opportunity to consider this legislation in a thorough manner.
Not only is $87 billion a very substantial sum given our nations
budgetary condition and urgent domestic and security needs, but
it comes in addition to more than $60 billion already spent for
the wars in these countries. Nor is it likely that this request
will be the last for supplemental funds for Iraq and Afghanistan.
Democrats always
have been, and we remain, united in support of our men and women
in uniform, and we will stand with all our colleagues on behalf
of all measures necessary to protect the citizens of the United
States and our national security.
We presume
that you agree that in order to ensure that the appropriate level
of funding is provided for sound policies, the Congress has a Constitutional
obligation to review the uses of past funding, and also to evaluate
the soundness of policies to be supported with the $87 billion in
supplemental funding requested by the President.
To ensure that
such a full public review occurs prior to consideration of this
very substantial appropriation, we call upon you and the House Republican
Leadership to establish open, fair and thorough processes for consideration
of the request, including -
- Open hearings,
to the maximum extent possible, by the authorizing committees
with jurisdiction, and the appropriations subcommittees on defense
and foreign operations, including appearances by witnesses from
the Administration and elsewhere, and provision of necessary background
materials as requested,
- An evaluation
of the militarys ability to sustain the level of troops
deployed to Iraq, with a full description of the impact of that
deployment on the overall capabilities of our armed forces to
meet other obligations at home and abroad;
- A description
of the timetable for the addition of international monetary and
personnel contributions to reduce the number of US troops committed
to Iraq, and the cost of post-war reconstruction;
- Approval
of legislation authorizing both the military and the reconstruction
portions of the funding request;
- Separate
consideration of the military and the reconstruction portions
of the request;
- Open mark-ups,
to the maximum extent possible, of both the authorizing and appropriations
legislation at the committee level, and open rules on the House
floor to permit the fullest debate and consideration of each bill.
We recognize
that the consideration of this legislation in an open, thorough,
and timely manner will require a significant amount of work by the
Congress, but we are convinced that the process we seek is in the
best tradition of our democratic system and a sign of the strength
of our democracy. We believe the security of our armed forces, the
future stability of the region, and the fiscal soundness of our
economy compel us to devote whatever effort is necessary to this
urgent task. We therefore urge you to reconsider both the weekly
schedule for the House, and the recess schedule, so that we will
have the time for a full public discussion of the supplemental aid
request consistent with the needs of our armed forces who remain
in harms way.
Sincerely,
Nancy Pelosi,
Democratic Leader
Steny Hoyer,
Democratic Whip
Robert Menendez.
Chair, Democratic Caucus
James Clyburn,
Vice Chair, Democratic Caucus
John Spratt,
Ranking, Committee on the Budget
Ike Skelton,
Ranking, Committee on Armed Services
David Obey,
Ranking, Committee on Appropriations
Tom Lantos,
Ranking, Committee on International Relations
Jane Harman,
Ranking, Select Committee on Intelligence
Nita Lowey,
Ranking, Foreign Operations Appropriations
Rosa DeLauro,
Co-Chair, Democratic Steering & Policy Committee
George Miller,
Co-Chair, Democratic Steering & Policy Committee
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