[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 123 (Tuesday, September 14, 2010)]
[House]
[Pages H6649-H6650]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  WITHDRAWING COMBAT TROOPS FROM IRAQ

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from California (Ms. Woolsey) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Ms. WOOLSEY. Mr. Speaker, beginning in January 2005, speaking from 
this very spot just about every single night that I could on the House 
floor, I've declared again and again my conviction that we must bring 
our troops home from Iraq. I was actually the first Member of Congress 
to bring legislation to the House floor to end the war in Iraq, and now 
at long last it is finally happening. Eighty-eight months after 
President Bush declared ``Mission Accomplished,'' President Obama has 
kept his promise to redeploy our fighting forces out of Iraq.
  To be sure, however, there is still a long way to go before we can 
declare that this war is over. There are still Americans in harm's way 
in Iraq--50,000 servicemen and -women as well as countless contractors, 
but they are remaining behind to train Iraqi Security Forces, and it is 
expected they will leave by the end of next year.
  Every single American, Mr. Speaker, has sacrificed for this policy of 
invading a sovereign nation without provocation and under false 
pretenses. The Iraq war has drained the American people of nearly 
three-quarters of $1 trillion. This is money, much of it borrowed from 
foreign creditors, which we are essentially taking from our children 
and grandchildren.
  And then there are the things you can't quantify--the moral authority 
we have squandered; the national credibility we have lost; the trust of 
our global neighbors that we won't soon recover. Of course no sacrifice 
was greater than the one borne by our men and women in uniform and 
their families; 4,400 Americans died unnecessarily, upwards of 30,000 
are wounded, and tens of thousands more are suffering from post-
traumatic stress. The men and women deployed to Iraq, Mr. Speaker, have 
served with courage, they have served with honor, and we owe them our 
never-ending gratitude, and we owe them our concern and our support.
  Now that the occupation is drawing to a close in Iraq, however, the 
Iraqi people have a chance to build the brighter future that they 
deserve. To help them in that endeavor, even as we phase out the 
military campaign, we must step up our commitment on other fronts.

                              {time}  1900

  We must embrace the smart security platform I have spoken of so often 
in these chambers. That means a civilian surge of aid workers, 
diplomats and other experts who can help the Iraqi people rebuild their 
country, strengthen democratic institutions, and empower their citizens 
with education and economic opportunity.
  Finally, Mr. Speaker, let me say this: We are still a Nation at war. 
The conflict in Afghanistan, often forgotten when Iraq was at its 
worst, lingers on hopelessly and disastrously. There are some who 
believe more time is needed in Afghanistan to turn the corner. But if 
we've learned one lesson from Iraq, it's that prolonging the war only 
emboldens the very forces we're trying to defeat.
  Just as President Obama kept his word to end combat operations by a 
date certain in Iraq, he must do the same in Afghanistan. I strongly 
urge the President to stick to his own deadline of next July, and I, 
for one, will

[[Page H6650]]

not rest until all of our troops are out of danger and brought safely 
home.

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