[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 87 (Monday, June 27, 2005)]
[House]
[Pages H5224-H5225]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          BRINGING TROOPS HOME

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Texas (Mr. Gohmert) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. GOHMERT. Mr. Speaker, as the right honorable gentleman from 
Nebraska (Mr. Osborne), a good friend, former coach, had indicated, 
there are Members of this body who believe the solution in Iraq is to 
set a date certain by which we will begin removing or have our troops 
removed from Iraq. When asked recently if such a strategy would not 
have been devastating if used in World War II and would not have left 
Hitler in power, one Congressman said, well, World War II is not really 
an appropriate comparison. He believed the more appropriate model was 
that of Vietnam, where we set a time and then we got out.
  I do not question anyone's motive here, but for freedom's sake, what 
in the world kind of a mission is that? The retreat from Vietnam 
created a vacuum that was filled by dead and mutilated bodies of those 
we ran out and deserted, and it is one of our darkest and most heinous 
hours in American history. It is rivaled, however, for its humiliating 
nature by the very war in Vietnam itself in which we sent soldiers to 
fight but tied one arm behind their backs and did not give them the 
equipment and backing to actually win. They were not authorized to win. 
They were told to just hold what they had. No war can ever be won 
unless there is a commitment by the government to win.
  If we did not learn anything from the wars of the 20th century, it 
would be obvious here, but in 1979, we had an attack on American soil. 
That is what it is when someone attacks an American

[[Page H5225]]

embassy, and they took hostages of our diplomats and we did nothing. We 
failed to defend our soil and our people and our diplomats and a 
terrible message went forward.

                              {time}  2015

  We failed to address the attacks properly of the first bombing of the 
World Trade Center and on the U.S.S. Cole and other attacks.
  We have sent a terribly erroneous message in the past that America 
does not have the courage or the stomach to complete the defense of 
ourselves or to finish what we start. That is what Osama bin Laden has 
been saying for years. If we just keep attacking, keep up the 
insurgency, America does not have the stomach to win. We will wear them 
down.
  And now I hear colleagues verifying they do not have the stomach to 
complete what we started. My colleagues, when I was in Iraq in March, 
one former general under Saddam looked me in the eyes, a Sunni, and 
said, If the U.S. will just stay behind us and back us until we get our 
constitution and have the next election, you will see most of the 
violence in Iraq stop. The terrorists know how critical it is that this 
battle go on. They know that if freedom and a free society take hold in 
Iraq, in a Muslim country in the Middle East, they lose.
  Some of the people who now are calling for a date certain to withdraw 
are some of the same people in 1991 who screamed at former President 
Bush, stop, stop, do not attack, they are surrendering. Get out. Do not 
go to Baghdad. And shortly after that, after he did as they implored, 
they said well, he is just too weak. He did not have the stomach to 
finish what he started. He was a weak President. He should have done 
what he started and gone on to Baghdad. Now they are doing the same 
thing to this President. I thank God he has the backbone to stay in 
there.
  Please, I would encourage my colleagues to not push for a date 
certain. It would not have worked in World War II or in any war. It 
tells the opponents, the enemy, that we do not have the stomach to stay 
in there. We have a plan. We are training policemen, we are training 
soldiers. They will be able to defend themselves. Let us ensure that 
Iraq will win the peace and that the terrorists lose.

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