[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 140 (Friday, October 28, 2005)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2212]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E2212]]
              IRAQ: RESPONSIBLE WITHDRAWAL PLAN NEEDED NOW

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. MARK UDALL

                              of colorado

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, October 28, 2005

  Mr. UDALL of Colorado. Mr. Speaker, the recent referendum approving a 
new constitution for Iraq has raised hopes for political stability and 
an improved security situation. But even with this incremental 
progress, very few informed observers believe there is light at the end 
of the tunnel.
  The Bush administration's decision to wage war in Iraq was 
constitutionally flawed, poorly planned, ineptly managed and the result 
has been a strategic national security blunder that promises to haunt 
our country for decades to come.
  The war has devolved into a quagmire that threatens to leave America 
isolated in a military struggle that is dangerously perceived as a 
conflict with Islam. It has drained our treasury, stretched our Army to 
the breaking point, taken over 2,000 American lives, and resulted in 
more than 40,000 American casualties. It has toppled an evil and 
sadistic dictator, but at a cost of more than 100,000 Iraqi lives.
  The legacy of this war, and its unbelievably poor civilian direction, 
also threatens to mark George W. Bush as a failed president--a thought 
I take no great comfort from because a failed presidency hurts America. 
By taking our democracy into a war of choice, and not a war of 
necessity, President Bush will have to answer to history. Those in 
Congress who gave him their trust and vested him with the authority to 
wage this war will also have to answer for their part in what looks to 
be a major strategic mistake.
  Those of us in Congress who voted against this war must also answer 
to history. I felt so strongly that I authored my own separate 
resolution that would have required international support for coercive 
inspections in Iraq--a plan that would have uncovered false claims 
about WMD before American blood was spilled in the deserts of Iraq. I 
stand by my vote as a vote of conscience and believe the wisdom of my 
cautions about the unintended, but foreseeable consequences of this war 
have been tragically borne out.
  An increasing number of Americans have come to view the war in Iraq 
as a mistake. I believe strongly that it was a mistake to go to war in 
the way we did.
  However, I am not prepared to say that it has been a mistake for the 
Iraqi people, because they now have a glimmer of hope that they can 
create a stable democracy, even though they would have an even greater 
chance of success had the Bush Administration taken the time to secure 
international support for their Iraq policy before plunging into war.
  I will never believe or say that American soldiers have died and 
sacrificed in vain--they may rightly claim that their efforts have 
given hope to the Iraqi people. Sadly, their sacrifice and the 
excellence of our armed forces have not been matched by the civilian 
political leadership of our nation.
  As it stands now, the Iraqi people are largely dependent on American 
soldiers for security, and it is this fact that has caused a number of 
us who opposed the war to reflect on what our future course must be.
  For some, the answer is a simple call for ``immediate withdrawal'' 
and hopes that a bloodbath and civil war will not follow in the wake of 
our departure. This is a perfectly understandable response to quagmire, 
and the terrible price the Bush Administration has exacted for not 
being completely honest with the American people about the costs or 
long-term consequences of waging a largely unilateral war to transform 
the politics of the Middle East.
  Let me be absolutely clear. America must withdraw from Iraq. We need 
a plan that is designed to bring our troops home and make clear to the 
Islamic world that we harbor no ambitions for permanent bases, Iraqi 
oil revenues or any military occupation. But how we withdraw is as 
important as when we withdraw. This means giving the Iraqis time to 
form a permanent government and establish the means for international 
support.
  We must exercise care in the way our country withdraws, not just to 
keep faith with promises made to the Iraqi people, but even more 
importantly because leaving a failed state in Iraq will deeply endanger 
our country.
  Many of the essential elements in a responsible withdrawal plan are 
clear: holding down the costs to the American taxpayer; transferring 
security responsibilities to Iraqi forces; preventing Iraq from 
becoming a bigger breeding ground for terrorism; restoring America's 
reputation internationally; and honoring the sacrifice of our men and 
women in uniform. In the coming weeks, I will be laying out my specific 
proposals to chart a new course for a withdrawal strategy in Iraq.

                          ____________________