[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 26 (Wednesday, March 3, 2004)]
[House]
[Page H806]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




 GREAT WORK BEING DONE BY THE 10TH MOUNTAIN DIVISION OF FORT DRUM, NEW 
                                  YORK

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Burgess) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. BURGESS. Mr. Speaker, we hear so much information here in this 
House, and this evening is no exception. I wanted to pick up a little 
bit on the point that the gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Osborne) made in 
his remarks here a few moments ago.
  Mr. Speaker, of course both sides of the House have not only the 
right but they have the obligation to speak up when they believe things 
are not right. And it is an election season, so we are hearing a lot of 
political discourse and rhetoric. The gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. 
Osborne) got up and spoke very eloquently to that fact, that perhaps 
what we hear is not always aligned with what in fact is happening on 
the ground.
  The gentleman from Nebraska spoke about his travels to Iraq and 
Afghanistan. And, indeed, just 2 weeks ago I took a trip to Iraq and 
Afghanistan. It was my second trip into the country of Iraq, but my 
first to the country of Afghanistan. And, Mr. Speaker, I want to point 
out that as far as the talk we hear going on here on the floor of the 
House, yes, it is our right and indeed our obligation to speak out, but 
we know or at least we should know that words have consequences. And 
the words spoken here in this House do resonate around the country; and 
in fact they resonate around the world, and they are picked up 
frequently by our troops fighting for our freedom overseas.
  Now, Mr. Speaker, I would never question anyone's motives or question 
anyone's patriotism, but at the same time I just cannot help to point 
out how a few weeks going to Iraq and Afghanistan I did have the chance 
to see what was happening there on the ground. The 4th Infantry 
Division captured Saddam Hussein in December, and in an effort to 
minimize the importance of that singularly important feat, we will hear 
people say, well, it is not that important; it, in fact, does not make 
us any safer here at home. Mr. Speaker, let me say tonight that I 
firmly believe that that event was important and indeed we are safer 
here at home because that man is in custody. But, again, in an effort 
to minimize the importance of that event, we will hear the talk over 
and over again that it does not really matter.
  The other thing we will hear is that we have not finished the job in 
Afghanistan. Well, Mr. Speaker, just like the gentleman from Nebraska, 
I want to take a minute tonight and talk about what I saw going on in 
the country of Afghanistan and the great work that is being done by the 
10th Mountain Division out of Fort Drum, New York.
  Mr. Speaker, General Austin in Afghanistan, the commander of the 10th 
Mountain Division, spoke to us there as part of our briefing, and he 
shared a picture with us. He shared a picture with us that was so 
dramatic and so impressive that I asked their permission to bring it 
back and show it on the floor of the House, and we can see it here 
beside me.
  In fact, Mr. Speaker, I was anxious to share this picture with the 
whole country. This is a picture of what our guys in Afghanistan are 
doing to end the war on terror in that country, to reclaim that country 
for its people, and, in the end, make us safer here at home.
  Here we see some of our young soldiers and a man that is being 
escorted into a helicopter. This man, I do not remember whether he was 
a Taliban or al Qaeda or just a member of one of the warlord tribes 
there, but he thought he was relatively safe on that house on a steep 
mountainside. He could see anybody coming up after him, and he was 
pretty comfortable there in his belief that there was no way he could 
be apprehended.
  So sitting by his campfire one morning and taking his morning meal, 
he was visited by our troops from the 10th Mountain Division. They were 
able to encircle him and surprise him. And then to get him back to 
where he needed to be, they landed half a helicopter on his house. And 
we see him there being helped into the back of the helicopter to be 
brought back to face whatever charges awaited him.
  Mr. Speaker, this is a dramatic photo, and it shows what lengths our 
fighting men and women will go to in order to end the conflict in 
Afghanistan. And I believe they are well on the way to ending that 
conflict. In fact, Mr. Speaker, I would go so far as to say as soon as 
the snow melts out of the passes in the mountains on the border between 
Afghanistan and Pakistan, we are very likely to see the beginning of 
the end for those groups who mean to harm our troops and harm innocent 
Afghan citizens and those individuals who want to prevent the return of 
civil society to Afghanistan.
  So, Mr. Speaker, I know it is a little off the point from what we 
hear here on the floor of the House night after night after night, but 
in fact there are some good things going on in the world. Our troops 
are doing a masterful job on the ground both in Iraq and Afghanistan. I 
am proud of them. I am proud of our country.
  Once again, I want to point out the dramatic aspect of this photo. 
Think of the risk that that pilot is taking to apprehend that 
individual and bring him to justice, the loadmaster in the back of the 
aircraft that essentially landed that half a helicopter on that man's 
roof. I can imagine the surprise of this individual as he was brought 
into United States custody.

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