[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 37 (Friday, March 7, 2003)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E408-E409]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  THE PRESIDENT STILL HAS NOT MADE THE CASE THAT WAR AGAINST IRAQ IS 
                         NECESSARY AT THIS TIME

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. GEORGE MILLER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 6, 2003

  Mr. GEORGE MILLER of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise to express my 
grave concern over the Bush Administration's approach toward Iraq.
  I believe that this Administration is now, and has always been, 
determined to go to war and that it has never taken all the steps 
available

[[Page E409]]

to avert a war while also achieving its goals toward that country.
  This Administration's approach ill serves the American people and is 
dangerous for America's position in the world.
  Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein should adhere to the demands of the 
United Nations Security Council to destroy any weapons of mass 
destruction, to refrain from further development of such weapons, and 
to cease and desist from hostilities towards his own people and his 
neighbors. He has not yet done so.
  But the fact is that the United States has never given the United 
Nations process its full respect. The President's national security 
advisors have said they have intelligence to prove that Iraq is failing 
to comply with the United Nations' resolutions and is deceiving the 
weapons inspectors, but it has not fully divulged that intelligence to 
the inspectors.
  The President has said that the United Nations must vote to use force 
because the weapons inspections are not working. And yet he has never 
advocated for a robust weapons inspection regime. Even though chief 
weapons inspector Hans Blix is reporting that progress is being made, 
albeit slowly, the fact is that we could have made even more progress 
with a tripling of the inspections team and an early insistence on the 
use of U2 spy plane overflights.
  The President has an obligation to take every step possible short of 
war before determining whether or not war is necessary. I do not 
believe that the conclusion today can be reached that war is necessary.
  I believe that more time can safely be given to weapons inspections 
without risking a unilateral attack by Iraq against the United States 
or our allies.
  I do not believe that the facts indicate that Iraq poses a threat to 
the security of the United States.
  But perhaps just as important, I believe that the weapons inspection 
regime is keeping Saddam Hussein occupied and that an even more robust 
weapons inspection regime would cripple any offensive capability he 
might contemplate.
  Mr. Speaker, America's standing in the world is jeopardized by the 
President's position on Iraq.
  President Bush has stood by while North Korea becomes a nuclear 
nation, but he has badgered and bullied nearly every nation in the 
world to support his position against Iraq, whose military capabilities 
are far more limited than those of North Korea. The world community has 
rarely received such bellicose and belligerent treatment as they have 
from the United States on the issue of Iraq.
  The President weakens the international alliance against terrorism 
and other world threats as he bullies nations to support his march to 
war.
  These nations are not admirers of Saddam Hussein, but they are 
opponents of war when war has not yet been proven to be necessary.
  And the American people are not admirers of Saddam Hussein. But they 
too strongly believe that war must be the last resort and only when 
absolutely necessary and only with international support. This 
Administration chose war as its first response and has not changed 
course since.
  Mr. Speaker, I would hope that the Administration would strongly 
consider world opinion that advocates more time for weapons 
inspections. I would hope that this Administration would strongly 
consider the harrn to America's standing in the world as it deals with 
the members of the United Nations. And I would hope that this 
Administration would remember that America is a peaceful nation, it is 
a just nation, and a strong nation. America is not, and should never 
become, a nation that is proud to go to war.
  Should it be determined that war indeed is necessary, I have every 
confidence that the armed forces of this country will perform their 
responsibility with strength and character. I have always admired the 
men and women who choose to serve in the armed forces. I admire them 
for their hard work, their sense of duty to our country, and their 
sense of responsibility. But it is because of that very character and 
sense of duty to our nation that our government must exhaust every 
alternative to war before placing those men and women in harm's way.
  The measure of the strength of a nation is its ability to show 
appropriate restraint just as much as it is its ability to protect 
itself and its allies. Mr. Speaker, millions of Americans and people 
throughout the world support allowing more time for weapons 
inspections. I believe they are right and I believe our nation will be 
well served to allow more time for a rigorous inspections program.

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