[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 50 (Thursday, March 22, 2007)]
[House]
[Pages H2934-H2935]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  U.S. TROOP READINESS, VETERANS' HEALTH, AND IRAQ ACCOUNTABILITY ACT

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Pennsylvania (Ms. Schwartz) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Ms. SCHWARTZ. Mr. Speaker, tomorrow this body will vote on the U.S. 
Troop Readiness, Veterans' Health, and Iraq Accountability Act.
  After 4 years of failed policies from the Bush administration, and 
absolutely no accountability demanded by the previous Republican-led 
Congresses, this body has the opportunity to say enough. We say enough 
to continuing the open-ended war with no end in sight. We say enough to 
giving away hard-earned taxpayer dollars to the Iraqi Government 
without any real mechanisms for accountability. We say enough to 
ignoring the will of the American people who have overwhelmingly 
demanded a new direction and a new course in Iraq.
  This week the Iraq war will enter its fifth year. It has already 
eclipsed the length of the U.S. participation in the Civil War, World 
War I, World War II, and the Korean War. More than 3,200 American 
heroes have paid the ultimate sacrifice, while more than 24,000 have 
been injured, and tens of thousands of Iraqis have been killed, just as 
millions have been fleeing the country.
  Despite this immense sacrifice and hardship, the President's war 
strategy has not made the Middle East or our Nation safer.
  Today the Middle East is less stable than it was in 2003. An Iraq in 
chaos and an emboldened Iran has fundamentally changed the balance of 
power in the region in a way that undermines the security of our Nation 
and the entire region. The war has caused us to lose sight of the 
mission in Afghanistan where the Taliban is resurgent and Osama bin 
Laden, Ayman al Zawahiri, and other key members of al Qaeda, the 
terrorist group responsible for killing 3,000 Americans on 9/11, are 
still at large and still plotting against us.
  Our own National Intelligence Estimate tells us that the war in Iraq 
estimate has increased, and the threat of terrorism globally has 
increased.
  Just 2 weeks ago, I visited Iraq, and I met with the brave servicemen 
and -women. I deeply admire these individuals and their families. Out 
of pure selflessness and a profound love of our Nation, they have 
volunteered to serve. They do so humbly and honorably.
  The Bush administration owes them a strategy that is worthy of their 
sacrifice. When they failed to provide it, we must hold them 
accountable. Our Nation can no longer afford the failed policies put 
forward by President Bush.
  We must step forward, abandon the rubber-stamp policies of the 
previous Congress, and reassert our place as a coequal branch of 
government. Tomorrow we will have the opportunity to meet this 
obligation and put the administration on notice. The days of writing a 
blank check for the mistaken and mismanaged war are over.
  When we send our men and women into Iraq without the proper 
equipment, training and rest, as the President continues to, we expose 
them to greater danger. This legislation we will vote on tomorrow 
recognizes this fact by requiring the President to honor his own 
standards and the standards the Department of Defense has set for the 
troop readiness, training and equipment.
  When our own wounded warriors return to the United States, we as a 
Nation have an obligation to ensure that they are taken care of. There 
is simply no excuse for the deplorable conditions of neglect that our 
soldiers have faced at Walter Reed medical center. That is a national 
disgrace.
  This legislation addresses our veterans health care crisis by adding 
$1.7 billion to treat the growing number of veterans, to address the 
maintenance backlogs at the VA health care facilities, and to ensure a 
significant level of personnel to deliver quality services. This 
legislation recognizes that the only solution in Iraq is political and 
diplomatic.
  As General Petraeus, the top military commander in Iraq, has said: 
``There was no military solution to a problem like that in Iraq.''
  This legislation will hold the Iraqi Government accountable by 
requiring them to meet their own benchmarks for political progress.
  We are putting them on notice that they must take the political steps 
necessary to achieve stability, including disarming the militia and a 
plan that equally shares oil revenues around the country.
  We are also sending a strong clear message to the Bush administration 
that they must engage in tough diplomacy needed to ensure that Iraq's 
neighbors do not continue to undermine the efforts of our troops or 
they undermine the hope for stability in Iraq.
  Most significantly, this legislation will lead to the responsible end 
of our military engagement in Iraq through a phased redeployment of 
U.S. combat troops.
  Instead of continuing the President's policy of open-ended 
commitment, strategically redeploying combat troops from Iraq, while 
maintaining a small presence to train Iraqi troops and engage in 
counterterrorism operations is the most responsible strategy in Iraq.
  We will move our troops from direct engagement. It will require the 
Iraqis to protect Iraqis, and it will allow our Nation to be better 
prepared for other contingencies affecting the security of our Nation.

[[Page H2935]]

  Let there be no mistake: this is the President's war, and the 
President must be held accountable for its military and diplomatic 
failures. With this vote, we are demanding that the President meet his 
obligations to our men and our women and to our Nation.
  With this vote, we are fulfilling our promise to the American people 
that we set a new direction in Iraq.
  And, with this vote we are putting forward the leadership needed to 
bring the war in Iraq to a responsible conclusion and bring our troops 
home.

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