[Congressional Record Volume 155, Number 29 (Thursday, February 12, 2009)]
[House]
[Page H1278]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         HONORING OUR WAR DEAD

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. WOOLSEY. Madam Speaker, I rise to praise President Obama's 
decision to review President Bush's policy of banning the media from 
photographing the coffins of our fallen soldiers.
  The American people were not allowed to see the flag-draped coffins 
when they arrived from Iraq and from Afghanistan. It was said that it 
protected the privacy of the soldiers and their families. There was a 
group who didn't want the American people to see the terrible human 
costs of the war because if they did, they would be more likely to 
oppose it.
  Secretary of Defense Gates says he will now review the policy. He 
said this week that if the needs of the families can be met and the 
privacy concerns can be addressed, then the more honor we can accord 
these fallen heroes, the better.
  He also said that reviewing the policy ``makes all kinds of sense.''
  President Obama also addressed the issue at his news conference 
Monday night. He said he will make a decision about the policy after 
evaluating Secretary Gates' review and after he has an opportunity to 
understand all of the implications involved.
  The President and Secretary Gates are 100 percent right to proceed 
carefully because this is a very sensitive issue.
  Some families may not want pictures taken of their loved ones' 
coffins, and their privacy should certainly be protected. Other 
families will want photographs taken.
  For example, one father of a fallen soldier was interviewed recently, 
and he said, ``Looking back, I would have wanted to see the reverence 
and the honors given to him by the receiving military. I would have 
loved to have had that captured and to be able to hold it.''
  Madam Speaker, families should be able to decide on a case-by-case 
basis whether to allow photographs. If that can be done in a practical 
and respectful way, then I fully support changing the policy. But I 
also believe that the best way to handle the issue of coffins is to 
make sure that there are no more coffins in the first place.
  That is why I've called for a redeployment of our troops out of Iraq 
and Afghanistan and for a worldwide cease-fire or a timeout from war.
  The Taliban is resurgent in Afghanistan, and the Middle East is still 
as unstable as ever. It is time for us to use the more effective tools 
of diplomacy, reconciliation, and humanitarian assistance to build a 
lasting peace.
  President Obama has pledged to use these tools, and he has already 
talked about making diplomatic overtures to Iran.
  The people of the world love and admire Barack Obama, and I believe 
they will respond positively to an American President who reaches out 
to them with an unclenched fist.
  Madam Speaker, 4,238 brave American soldiers have died in Iraq, 
another 640 have died in Afghanistan. Tens of thousands more have been 
wounded, and their families are also suffering.
  We must also remember soldiers of other countries who died as they 
served alongside our troops. They returned to their countries in flag-
draped coffins.
  I support the Obama administration's decision to review the coffin 
policy. But the way to honor the fallen is to make sure that there will 
be no more coffins.

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