[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 8 (Tuesday, February 1, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H252-H253]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




          SMART SECURITY AND THE CASE FOR LEAVING IRAQ, PART 3

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey) is recognized for 5 minutes.

[[Page H253]]

  Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, I want to congratulate the courageous Iraqi 
people who voted in Sunday's Iraq election. My congressional district, 
Marin and Sonoma Counties just north of the Golden Gate Bridge, had an 
89.5 percent voter turnout in the last election. Believe me, we know 
how important elections are to a democracy.
  Sunday's election in Iraq was an important step for the people there, 
and it is also an important milestone for America's role in Iraq. With 
the elections completed, we in the United States must ensure that the 
people of Iraq control their own affairs as Iraq transitions toward 
democracy.
  Mr. Speaker, Mr. Bush and his team have not gotten much right when it 
comes to Iraq, and Sunday's election provides them with yet another 
opportunity to get back on course. Let us hope they take the smarter 
path this time, one that supports the Iraqi people with international 
cooperation to rebuild their economic and physical infrastructure.
  President Bush loves to talk about democracy. While elections are 
absolutely necessary to establish a democracy, they are not sufficient 
to establish a democratic government. Democracy cannot take root in 
Iraq when an occupying power remains in the country. Right now, the 
presence of 150,000 American soldiers in Iraq is an obstacle to the 
prospect of an Iraqi democracy because it is a rallying point for 
dissatisfied Iraqis and others in the Arab world. Plus, our first 
responsibility is to America and our American forces, which means we 
must not leave them in Iraq as sitting ducks.
  Last week I introduced legislation to secure Iraq for the future and 
ensure that America's role in Iraq actually does make America safer. My 
plan for Iraq is part of a larger SMART security strategy, which is a 
Sensible, Multilateral, American Response to Terrorism that will ensure 
America's security by relying on smarter policies. The withdrawal plan 
that I, with the support of over two dozen other Members, have proposed 
includes four components. First, develop and implement a plan to begin 
the immediate withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. More than 1,400 
American troops have died in the line of fire in Iraq. More than 10,000 
other soldiers have been injured. These soldiers leave behind grieving 
parents and grandparents, spouses and children, brothers and sisters, 
friends and neighbors all around the country whose lives will never be 
the same because of the war in Iraq. The best way to support our troops 
is to bring them home.
  Second, develop and implement a plan for the reconstruction of Iraq's 
civil and economic infrastructure. The United States has a moral 
responsibility to clean up the mess we made in Iraq. But that 
responsibility needs to be fulfilled not by our military but by 
humanitarian groups and companies that will help rebuild Iraq's 
infrastructure. That does not include no-bid contracts to companies 
like Halliburton and Bechtel. It does ensure that the Iraqi people will 
benefit in the rebuilding process of their country.
  Third, convene an emergency meeting of Iraq's leadership, Iraq's 
neighbors, the United Nations and the Arab League to create an 
international peacekeeping force in Iraq and to replace U.S. military 
forces with Iraqi police and national guard forces to ensure Iraq's 
security. Iraq's security problems are still the most serious cause for 
concern in the country, and Iraq requires an international peacekeeping 
force to address this problem, not the United States military. An 
international peacekeeping force, supported by other Arab countries, 
Iraq's neighbors and the United Nations will provide real legitimacy to 
a conflict that has flown in the face of international law from the 
very beginning.
  Fourth, take all steps to provide the Iraqi people the opportunity to 
control their internal affairs. The Iraqi people cannot truly control 
their own affairs until the United States military has ceded back 
authority to those very people. That is why it is essential for Iraq's 
police and national guard forces to manage Iraq's security, not the 
United States military.
  Mr. Speaker, let me be clear. We should not abandon Iraq. There is 
still a critical role for the United States in providing the 
developmental aid that can help create a robust civil society, build 
schools and water processing plants and ensure that Iraq's economic 
infrastructure becomes fully viable. In the end, this is the smarter 
option. And we must begin always taking the smarter path if we are to 
succeed in Iraq.

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