[Congressional Record Volume 151, Number 147 (Tuesday, November 8, 2005)]
[Senate]
[Pages S12466-S12468]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
A NEW DAY AND TIME IN IRAQ
Mr. ALLARD. Mr. President, we are now less than a month removed from
the successful Iraqi referendum that was approved by more than 75
percent of Iraqis. This vote marked a new dawn in the Arab world, a
democratically created constitution written by Iraqis and approved by
the general electorate made up of Sunnis, Shiites, and Kurds. This is
quite a change from the decades in which a militant dictator ruled over
Iraq, with the threat of death hanging over the people for any harsh
word directed toward their central government. It is truly a new day in
Iraq and a new time.
Of course, some would rather ignore the strides that the Iraqi people
have taken. They would rather focus on grim milestones that neither
reflect the true sacrifice that has been made nor give a clear
indication of how far the Iraqis have come to independence. The men and
women of our Armed Forces have created an environment in Iraq that has
given Iraqis a chance for democracy.
This chance is born from the blood, sweat, and tears of our
servicemen and women. They deserve our gratitude and honor.
Friday marks Veterans Day and it is fitting that every year we take
time to pause and reflect on those who have served in the military to
protect our way of life and advance freedom around the globe. While we
celebrate this year, we do so with heavy hearts knowing that there are
many future war veterans who are currently serving in the theater
abroad. As they have done in the past, our armed forces have taken up
the challenge yet again to defend our freedoms from violent extremists
to ensure that future generations of Americans can continue to prosper.
Many of these war veterans have already served previous tours in Iraq,
and my thoughts and prayers go out for another safe return home.
Many thousands of troops who are engaged in Iraq are Coloradoans. For
example, the 10th Combat Support Hospital that left Fort Carson for
Iraq in October. This medical unit is being deployed not only to treat
our injured servicemen and women, but also any civilian that is brought
in to their trauma unit regardless of affiliation. I want to take a
minute to pause and reflect on that. Our trained medical doctors and
technicians will be using their skills to save the lives of not only
Coalition Forces, but anyone who is brought in--including insurgents.
They might be saving the very lives of those that would do great harm
to our soldiers. These are the types of actions that show what kind of
men and women serve in the armed forces. These are the types of actions
that show what freedom and democracy can bring to a region long devoid
of it.
The individuals in our armed forces continue to shine throughout the
country with remarkable levels of service. Individuals like Col. James
West of Palisade, CO. Colonel West recently received a Bronze Star
after distinguishing himself during two consecutive tours of duty in
Iraq. He served as a Senior Program Manager in the Project and
Contracting Office in Baghdad, Iraq from December 2004 to September of
this year. Because of the critical nature of his position and the need
to maintain the lines of communication and trust he developed with the
Iraqi Oil Ministry and the primary Iraqi owned operating companies,
Colonel West volunteered himself for two consecutive tours of duty.
During this time, his leadership in the field provided the foundation
necessary to achieve the goal of rebuilding the Iraqi Oil production
capacity to pre-war levels. The Department of Defense and the Air Force
believe that his professionalism and devotion to duty merit special
recognition. I honor him for his service to our country and
congratulate him on his well-deserved Bronze Star.
More than just being engaged in fighting the radical insurgents who
have polluted the country, our men and women like Colonel West are
risking their lives to reach out to the Iraqi people to show them the
heart that is behind the uniform. From the Army engineers throughout
the country helping to rebuild the infrastructure, to ordinance
disposal units helping to cleanse farmland from explosives left from
decades of neglect, our troops continue to make a positive difference
in the lives of Iraqis.
It is important to put our military's efforts into the proper
perspective. The enormous progress that has been made in Iraq is the
real story.
It was only 2 \1/2\ years ago that the Hussein regime was in power
terrorizing large portions of the Iraqi population. And now just 9
months after they elected their own leaders for the first time, the
Iraqi people have approved a historical referendum by an overwhelming
majority. These are the milestones we should be celebrating--the ones
that could only be achieved through the sacrifices of our soldiers,
sailors, airmen, and marines.
This Friday marks Veterans Day. Let us not forget our future war
veterans who are gallantly serving the cause of freedom abroad. And let
us remember those who have made the ultimate sacrifice to help bring
democracy to Iraq.
[[Page S12467]]
I yield the floor.
Mr. ENSIGN. Mr. President, I rise to speak on the progress America is
making in the global war on terrorism and in particular on the progress
being made in Iraq.
Recently we passed a solemn benchmark. Two thousand of our servicemen
and women have paid the ultimate price in defense of freedom. A vocal
minority contend that these casualties were in vain. They claim we are
in Iraq for all the wrong reasons. Further, they say that since there
have been no weapons of mass destruction uncovered in Iraq that the
administration obviously lied to get Americans behind the initial war
effort. I think it is important that we take a few minutes to recall
the world in which we lived prior to taking military action against
Saddam Hussein in 2003.
The previous administration was quite clear in their belief that Iraq
possessed weapons of mass destruction. Then-President Clinton said:
Saddam rejects peace and we have to use force, our purpose
is clear. We want to seriously diminish the threat posed by
Iraq's weapons of mass destruction program.
Clinton's National Security Advisor, Sandy Berger, said of Hussein:
He will use those weapons of mass destruction again, as he
has ten times since 1993.
Even after he left office, Al Gore stated:
We know that [Hussein] has stored secret supplies of
biological and chemical weapons throughout the country.
Madeline Albright said:
The risks that the leaders of a rogue state will use
nuclear, chemical or biological weapons against us or our
allies is the greatest security threat we face.
Let us all remember, Iraq had been in blatant violation of 17
separate United Nations resolutions dating back to the first Persian
Gulf War--resolutions which required Iraq to reveal prohibited WMD and
missile programs to U.N. inspectors. American and British warplanes
were continually fired upon while enforcing U.N.-mandated ``no fly
zones'' in Iraq.
In 1993, terrorists detonated a bomb in the garage of the World Trade
Center in an attempt to topple this symbol of capitalism.
In 1996, the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia, housing an Air Force
Fighter Wing, were attacked by terrorists. Nineteen U.S. servicemembers
lost their lives. Hundreds were wounded.
In 1998, the U.S. Embassies in Tanzania and Kenya were bombed by
terrorists. Hundreds lost their lives.
In October of 2000, the USS Cole was attacked by terrorists while
refueling in Yemen. Seventeen sailors lost their lives. Many more were
injured. And, of course, we all remember the day the Pentagon was
attacked and the World Trade Center was leveled by terrorists crashing
commercial airliners into both structures on 9/11, resulting in more
than 3,000 of our fellow citizens being killed and America finally
waking up to the reality that is terrorism.
The terrorists had no reason to believe that we would respond to 9/11
because we had not responded in the past. At that time, every country
in the free world believed that Iraq possessed weapons of mass
destruction. Saddam Hussein did nothing to dispel those beliefs. He had
actually used chemical weapons on Iranians and on his own citizens.
President Bush could not risk America's future on the hope that a
dictator like Hussein, with a track record that included grotesque
human rights abuses, aggression against his neighbors, and the
harboring and funding of terrorists, could be reformed or indefinitely
contained.
In fact, the Senate chose not to risk America's future either. This
body voted 77-23 in favor of the resolution allowing President Bush to
use force in Iraq. Those voting in the affirmative included the then-
Democratic Leader of the Senate, the ranking member of the Foreign
Relations Committee, the ranking member of the Intelligence Committee
and the Democratic nominee for President in the 2004 election.
I have a few quotes I would like to read.
Senator Jay Rockefeller, Congressional Record, October 2002:
There is unmistakable evidence that Saddam Hussein is
working aggressively to develop nuclear weapons and will
likely have nuclear weapons within the next five years . . .
We also should remember we have always underestimated the
progress Saddam has made in development of weapons of mass
destruction.
He obviously had access to the intelligence that the President had.
Senator John Kerry, Congressional Record, October 2002:
When I vote to give the President of the United States the
authority to use force, if necessary, to disarm Saddam
Hussein [it is] because I believe that a deadly arsenal of
weapons of mass destruction in his hands is a real and grave
threat to our security. . . .
Senator Hillary Clinton, Congressional Record, October 2002:
In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence
reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his
chemical and biological weapons stock, his missile delivery
capability, and his nuclear program. He has also given aid,
comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists, including al-Qaeda
members . . . It is clear, however, that if left unchecked,
Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage
biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to
develop nuclear weapons.
Senator Carl Levin, Senate Armed Services Committee Hearing,
September 2002:
We begin with the common belief that Saddam Hussein is a
tyrant and a threat to the peace and stability of the region.
He has ignored the mandate of the United Nations and is
building weapons of mass destruction and the means of
delivering them.
I could go on. We have lots of quotes, but let's stop for now.
On March 19, 2003, 2 days after our President's televised ultimatum,
a 35-nation coalition launched operations to disarm Iraq.
In a matter of weeks, Hussein's decades-old regime had been removed,
liberating 25 million Iraqis from one of the world's most brutal
tyrannies.
That was 2\1/2\ years ago. Now, because things aren't quite as
antiseptic as some would like, there are calls for American troop
withdrawal. Again, I think it is important for us to review just how
far we've come over the last 2\1/2\ years.
As far as security is concerned, the initial 35-nation coalition that
liberated Iraq has increased to include 72 countries.
Iraqi Security Forces are continuing to take a more prominent role in
defending their country. One hundred sixteen Iraqi battalions are
currently conducting military operations. That's 22 more battalions on
line than there were just 3 months ago.
As President Bush has stated numerous times:
Our task is to make the Iraqi units fully capable and
independent. We're building up Iraqi security forces as
quickly as possible, so they can assume the lead in defeating
the terrorists and insurgents. Our strategy can be summed up
this way: As the Iraqis stand up, we will stand down.
Our assistance to the people of Iraq is not limited to the military.
There have been infrastructure improvements as well, including almost
3,500 schools.
Also, there were no commercial TV stations in Iraq before the war;
today there are 44.
There were no independent newspapers or magazines in Iraq before the
war. Today there are more than 100.
In January of this year, 8 million Iraqi citizens, in the face of
violent threats, voted to establish a parliament. Last month, the
Iraqis again returned to the polls in large numbers, and almost 10
million this time--more than 60 percent of the registered voters--voted
to approve their constitution. This coming December, they will return
to the polls to elect a fully constitutional government.
Because of America's leadership, compassion, and sacrifice, the world
has witnessed the end of Saddam Hussein's regime and the beginnings of
an energetic democracy in Iraq. This fledgling democracy has the
ability to transform a region that has been a breeding ground for
terrorists.
The world is a safer place because Qadhafi saw the fate of Saddam
Hussein and decided Libya was better off with its weapons of mass
destruction program under lock and key.
We are safer because the AQ Kahn network has been shut down and is no
longer supplying materiel support to Iran and North Korea's nuclear
efforts.
We are safer because terrorists and the countries that harbor them
know if they threaten the United States, they could be the next ones to
feel the force of the U.S. military.
Our word means something now because the President laid a marker down
in the sand and stood behind that marker when it was time--when Saddam
Hussein did not come forward and
[[Page S12468]]
agree to the resolutions that the United Nations had passed.
I believe the more than 2,000 members of our military who have died
in service for our Nation in Iraq--and others will surely follow them--
have made our country safer.
I believe history will show in the fullness of time that America was
involved in a noble effort that transformed a region and indeed the
world.
I yield the floor.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Georgia.
Mr. ISAKSON. First of all, I want to associate myself entirely with
the remarks of the Senator from Nevada. I wanted to rise for the same
purpose--to talk for a minute about our men and women in Iraq, the
successes that have taken place there, and how proud I am of it.
But I can't help but, at the outset of my remarks, for a second,
respond to the remarks of the Senator from Illinois a few minutes ago.
I had a flashback as I listened to that speech--a flashback to my
generation's war in the 1960s in Vietnam, a flashback that reminded me
of what happened when American politicians began to slowly but surely
question America's intentions in a war while our people were deployed,
which slowly resulted in the end of withdrawal of a military that never
quite had the support anymore that it deserved while in harm's way.
I would like for a moment to talk about what we do know. We have had
lots of questions raised about what we don't know, what we should have
done, what somebody may or may not have done. Let us talk for a second
about what we do know.
Senator Ensign has done a great job talking about what we knew
leading up to going into Iraq. I would like to remind us of a few other
things.
We know that war was declared on America in the 1990s by Osama bin
Laden, and we were attacked seven times without responding. It was
finally with the attack on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon that
this President changed America's policy to one of preemption, committed
himself to going after terrorism wherever it existed, and doing
everything we could to liberate the world from the tyranny of
terrorism.
We must remember that today we are not in a war like past wars. We
are in the ultimate war between good and evil. The terrorists don't
want to beat us, they want us to lose our resolve so they can rule the
world through intimidation. Terrorists don't want what America has.
They do not want America to have what it has: the first amendment,
freedom of speech, the right to worship as we see fit, the right to
bear arms--all the things that stand in the way of the tyranny they
would like to employ around the world, and have employed in a couple of
places very successfully, in Afghanistan that we liberated and now in
the nation of Iraq.
There are those who would have you believe, by their speeches, that
we are fighting the Iraqi people. We are fighting terrorism in Iraq.
This war is about Iraq, the United States of America, our soldiers, the
future of our generation, and our way of life as we have known it.
I commend and respect anyone who would raise a question or a doubt
and seek an answer. But we must not forget that the truths that we know
are compelling, that we are fighting the right war in the right place
at the right time for the right reason.
For those who say we never found a weapon of mass destruction, I
would submit to you that Saddam Hussein himself was a weapon of mass
destruction. In 1990, when he went into Kuwait and we went in and
liberated, it was Saddam Hussein who rained missiles upon Israel that
wasn't even in the fight. It is Saddam Hussein who gassed his own
Kurds. It is Saddam Hussein who systematically ordered the deaths of
tens of thousands of Iraqi people and buried them in mass graves.
It is no coincidence that al-Qaida operates today as the head of the
insurgency that fights our troops in Iraq because this is their war--
their war against what America stands for, and what the future of the
world can be if we are successful. We have some tough days ahead, but
we must stay the course.
In one year, we have caused the Iraqi people to have an interim
resolution, to draft a constitution, ratified, and to seek a permanent
election to elect permanent representatives, something that would have
been unthinkable just 2 or 3 years ago.
But we did it because of the resolve of these men--the American
soldiers and the Iraqi soldiers fighting shoulder to shoulder with them
today in the final stages in Iraq.
Yes, we have battles to fight. Yes, there will be more terrorist
attacks. And, yes, there will be tragic losses that all of us grieve.
But we cannot, as a nation, lose our resolve, or have politicians
quibble on the edges while our men and women are standing in harm's
way.
I commend our troops and our soldiers. I commend our country. I
commend our citizens to look to the future and appreciate that
everything we enjoy and have today is because of those who have
sacrificed in the field of battle, those who have led in this Congress
and in this Nation's Government in the past to defeat dictators and
tyranny wherever it existed.
We are in the ultimate battle between good and evil. Compromise and
quitting is unacceptable. Seeing it through to its course is essential
for our men and women in harm's way and for the children of the United
States of America and the children of the world because, you see,
unlike history under Saddam Hussein in Iraq, the children of Iraq now
understand that there is a future, that there is the potential for a
bright future, and success and good times with no fear. They do so
because this brave Nation, when attacked by the tyranny and the evil of
terrorism, decided it would follow it wherever it took us and we would
preempt it so it could not stand and it could not exist.
On behalf of our men and women in harm's way, the children they
protect, the dreams and aspirations of Americans for a bright future,
as bright as our past, I commend our men and women in harm's way. I
stay the course as a Member of this Senate to support them in the war
on terrorism, and I ask all of us to be careful when we raise questions
that must be raised to never raise them in such a way that would
compromise this effort or compromise the commitment and dedication of
these brave men and women.
I yield the floor. I suggest the absence of a quorum.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The clerk will call the roll.
The assistant legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for
the quorum call be rescinded.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, what is the pending order?
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senate is in a period of morning business.
All time held by the majority has expired. The time remaining on the
minority side is approximately 9 minutes.
Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent I be allowed to
present a second-degree amendment to the Harkin amendment number 2438
for the purpose of debate only.
The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Ensign). Is there objection?
The Senator from Virginia.
Mr. WARNER. Mr. President, this is a little bit of a complex
situation. We are anxious to get started on the bill. We want to honor
the 9 minutes on the other side of the aisle. I am wondering if the
Senator from Oklahoma could proceed as in morning business until such
time as there is recognition sought on the other side to utilize the
remaining 9 minutes.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oklahoma.
Mr. INHOFE. Mr. President, I would be happy to accommodate that.
However, our time has expired so it would take unanimous consent. I ask
unanimous consent to speak as in morning business.
The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
The Senator from Oklahoma is recognized as in morning business.
Mr. INHOFE. Thank you, Mr. President.
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