House Proceeding on Feb 15th, 2007 :: 0:59:19 to 1:04:13
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0:59:02 to 0:59:19( Edit History Discussion )

Gary L. Ackerman: of a very serious issue. mr. speaker, as co-chair of the blue dog ur national security working group i rise to oppose the surge and support strategies including those outlined in h.res. 97

0:59:19 to 0:59:36( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: authored by the blue dogs, to end war profiteering and adopt a truman committee to make those who engaged in fraud and abuse in iraq accountable for their actions. as we conduct this historic

0:59:19 to 1:04:13( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Tim Holden

0:59:36 to 0:59:57( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: debate, however, i am mindful that eight time zones away, crouched in a tank somewhere in baghdad, a 19-year-old private is doing his best to restore order to a city descending into all-out civil

0:59:57 to 1:00:11( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: war. we owe this soldier, his mates and their families so much. they volunteered to put their lives on the line to keep this country safe. we in this chamber also want to keep this country

1:00:11 to 1:00:28( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: safe, but we do not share those day-to-day risks. only a handful here have relatives in iraq living the life of the soldier i described. mr. speaker, as we have sadly learned the intelligence

1:00:28 to 1:00:44( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: that took us to war was wrong. some of the most inaccurate claims that an operational relationship existed between al qaeda and saddam hussein that vast w.m.d. stock miles existed with locations

1:00:44 to 1:01:02( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: pinpointed were presented by the administration as fact. even though the intelligence community had discredited them. that was shameful. most intelligence agencies around the world thought,

1:01:02 to 1:01:12( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: however, that saddam had w.m.d. and the intention to use it against his people and u.s. interests. they believed it. and so did i. but they were wrong. and so was i. the actions taken four years

1:01:12 to 1:01:29( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: ago in iraq created a failed state. we took out its government and occupied the country unsuccessfully. about a year later, millions of iraqis courageously elected a government, but that

1:01:29 to 1:01:49( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: government barely functions and we continue to occupy iraq militarily. mr. speaker, there are no good military options left in iraq. to the soldier currently in harm's way, i say, you are a hero.

1:01:49 to 1:02:08( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: you are doing your best to follow orders and to serve your country. but i also say, we have given you a mission impossible. and that mission must change. we have a moral obligation to leave iraq

1:02:08 to 1:02:25( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: in better shape than we found it. and that will not be achieved by surging 21,500 more troops into baghdad. the surge will not work and i oppose it. but abandoning iraq is not a viable alternative.

1:02:25 to 1:02:40( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: we must invest in strategies to contain and ultimately reduce violence there in order to create stability in iraq and in the region. that must now be our focus. the iraq study group made

1:02:40 to 1:02:57( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: important recommendations to do this, including changing the military mission in iraq, tying u.s. support to measurable progress on national reconciliation, security and governance and aggressive

1:02:57 to 1:03:13( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: diplomatic outreach to syria and iran. this administration rejected them. two weeks ago a report by daniele buyman and ken pollack carefully assessed options to contain a spillover from an iraqi

1:03:13 to 1:03:30( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: civil war, they include not trying to pick winners between the sunnis and shiia, pulling back from population centers, providing support for iraq's neighbors and laying down red lines to iran.

1:03:30 to 1:03:40( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: all of these ideas have merit. further ideas from david schaefer, former u.s. ambassador at large for war crime issues, to put the iraqi government on an atrocity watch and warn its leaders they

1:03:40 to 1:03:56( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: can be prosecuted for war crimes if ethnic cleansing occurs. mr. speaker, the bush administration has made calamitous mistakes in prosecuting this war. the surge, i fear, is yet another one.

1:03:56 to 1:04:13( Edit History Discussion )

Tim Holden: with this resolution congress start action to force a change in strategy and to bring that soldier in downtown baghdad and his comrades home safely and soon. i yield back the balance of

1:04:13 to 1:04:32( Edit History Discussion )

Cathy McMorris: my time. the speaker pro tempore: the gentlewoman yields back the balance of her time. the gentleman from texas. mr. johnson: thank you, mr. speaker. i would like to yield five minutes to

1:04:13 to 1:09:11( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Cathy McMorris