[Congressional Record Volume 140, Number 38 (Tuesday, April 12, 1994)]
[House]
[Page H]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[Congressional Record: April 12, 1994]
From the Congressional Record Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]

 
              CONGRESS MUST STEP UP TO THE PLATE ON BOSNIA

  (Mr. BARRETT of Nebraska asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. BARRETT of Nebraska. Mr. Speaker, I have maintained that United 
States Forces should not be committed to Bosnia, unless there is a 
mission with clear goals and objectives.
  Over the past few weeks, United States military involvement has 
escalated, to the point that United States planes and bombs are making 
their mark on the troubled Bosnia/Serb political landscape.
  Congress must debate our future military role in this region, because 
the Constitution mandates that Congress raise and provide for our 
national defense.
  Yet, should our Nation's military personnel and assets, provided by 
the sweat and toil of our citizens, become a bargaining chip to 
reconcile ethnic and religious hatreds that have plagued this region 
for centuries?
  For too long, Congress justified not debating this question because 
of the President's role as our foreign policy leader. But, supporting 
our President should not mean blind or deaf justification.
  I call on the House Foreign Affairs Committee to bring to the floor a 
resolution, and for the leadership in this body to allow for open 
debate, on the future involvement of our military in Bosnia.

                          ____________________