[Congressional Record Volume 153, Number 94 (Tuesday, June 12, 2007)]
[Senate]
[Page S7536]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                  IRAQ

  Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, I wish to join the majority leader in 
marking a solemn milestone in the war in Iraq. Three thousand five 
hundred members of the armed services have died fighting in Iraq. Like 
those before them who died serving their country, those 3,500 men and 
women have served honorably. We are all indebted to them for their 
courage and patriotism, as we are indebted to the 25,950 troops who 
have been wounded.
  It has been just under a year since the 2,500th U.S. servicemember 
died in Iraq. With the toll of this war continuing to mount, 
particularly since the President decided to escalate our involvement, 
we must redouble our efforts to change course in Iraq. We owe it to the 
troops serving in Iraq. These brave men and women signed up to defend 
their country, not to police an Iraqi civil war. Many of these 
individuals chose to join the Armed Forces as a result of the horrific 
attacks of September 11. Yet they have found themselves fighting in a 
country that had nothing to do with those attacks. As they endure 
untold hardship in Iraq, al-Qaida and its extremist network are 
rebuilding in Afghanistan, northern Africa and around the globe.
  As I am sure my colleagues have done, I have been to the memorial 
services honoring the dead, I have handed the wounded their Purple 
Hearts, I have spoken to the parents whose children have returned from 
war with brain injuries they will live with for the rest of their 
lives. These experiences are a constant reminder of the responsibility 
we have to the brave individuals who have volunteered to defend their 
country. We have a duty to ensure that when they are asked to fight on 
our behalf, it is not on the basis of false premises and shifting 
rationales. We have a duty not to put them in harm's way when there is 
no exit strategy. Most importantly, we have a duty to bring them home 
because we know there is no military solution to the war they are 
fighting.
  We must help the Iraqi people rebuild their country and we must work 
to build the broad international coalition that is needed to help bring 
peace and stability to Iraq. But our servicemembers in Iraq have been 
asked to do the impossible--they have been asked to resolve political 
and other differences by military force. The Congress has the power to 
change this misguided policy by forcing the President to redeploy U.S. 
troops. Measures that express the need for a policy shift, and concern 
for the well-being of the troops, may be well-intended but they do not 
go far enough and they will not help the troops. Only binding 
legislation requiring redeployment will prevent further brave 
servicemembers from losing their lives for this administration's failed 
and self-defeating policies.
  Many soldiers serving in Iraq have written to me to express their 
support for my efforts to end this war. It is with them in mind that I 
will continue working to end this tragic mistake.

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