[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 81 (Wednesday, May 16, 2007)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1064-E1065]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   U.S. TROOP READINESS, VETERANS' CARE, KATRINA RECOVERY, AND IRAQ 
                ACCOUNTABILITY APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2007

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                          HON. BETTY McCOLLUM

                              of minnesota

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 10, 2007

  Ms. McCOLLUM of Minnesota. Madam Speaker, we are here today because 
last week President Bush vetoed legislation supported by a majority of 
the members of the House and the Senate. The vetoed supplemental 
appropriations bill, H.R. 1591, would have provided funding for our 
troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, cared for the needs of our veterans and 
put forth commonsense benchmarks and timelines to hold Iraq's 
politicians accountable for achieving needed political results. 
President Bush rejected that modest requirement to the foreign policy 
disaster he has created in Iraq. Once again it would appear he has 
forgotten that the rubber stamp Congress he had grown accustomed to is 
no longer in power and the American people, along with the new 
Congress, expect cooperation, compromise and an exit strategy from 
Iraq, not more ``stay the course'' rhetoric that has cost our Nation so 
many lives.
  Today's bill, H.R. 2206, unfortunately does not set a timetable for 
bringing U.S. troops home, but it does provide President Bush with an 
opportunity to demonstrate his commitment to holding Iraq's political 
leadership accountable while providing the Department of Defense with 
$42.8 billion in immediate funding for our troops in Iraq. This 
legislation also provides Congress the ability to ensure that the 
President and the Pentagon are taking meaningful steps to achieve 
success in Iraq by ``protecting'' an additional $52.8 billion in 
military spending. This spending would be released when the President 
reports to Congress in mid-July that his stated benchmarks and goals in 
Iraq are being met. This legislation is not the blank check the 
President wants. But, it is a responsible, measured approach for a 
White House that has proven itself incapable of honest, forthright 
leadership in managing this war.
  H.R. 2206 is necessary legislation that puts the needs of U.S. troops 
and responsible accountability for a policy that now threatens

[[Page E1065]]

U.S. military preparedness and our national security. Congress has 
every right, and in fact every obligation, to hold President Bush and 
Iraq's political leadership accountable for their lack of results and 
complete lack of urgency while U.S. troops patrol in the midst of an 
Iraqi civil war.
  Madam Speaker, I strongly support H.R. 2206 and I urge my 
colleagues--especially my Republican colleagues--to take this 
appropriate and tempered step towards protecting our troops while 
demanding political accountability from President Bush and his Iraqi 
counterparts.

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