[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 150 (2004), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 14314]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                THANKING MEMBERS INVOLVED IN IRAQ WATCH

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Larson) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I thank the distinguished 
gentleman from Georgia for the opportunity to speak for 5 minutes. Two 
of our esteemed colleagues are en route here, and I would like to take 
this 5 minutes to further thank the Members who have been involved in 
the Iraq Watch.
  I say so from the bottom of my heart because I think at the end of 
the day there has been a great discussion that has been going on within 
this body, but unfortunately, in so many respects, it has not fully 
reached the American people, or it has in drips and drabs; and I 
commend our colleagues on the other side of the aisle who were down 
here in the previous hour.
  I think, as the gentleman from Hawaii (Mr. Abercrombie) has 
suggested, we need to have that kind of frank discussion and debate 
that all too often really does not take place on this floor. It is an 
important dialogue that the American public needs to hear.
  I believe in the final analysis it is not the shock and awe of our 
military and the strength that it has that determines America's 
greatness, but rather, the strength of our ideas and our ability to 
express those ideas not only here on the floor but for citizens who are 
out there listening, for them to partake and ultimately put in their 
own words, with their own voice, from their own heart and head, their 
feelings about these issues.
  So often I go back to my district and so many of them will ask why is 
no one speaking out about these issues, and not understanding the 
workings of the House of Representatives and not understanding that so 
many times meetings are actually going on in committees that do not 
happen to make it on to C-SPAN, but also wondering where the voice and 
conscience of the country is, and the Iraq Watch has done an 
outstanding job in terms of making sure that there has been this 
opportunity to reach out to the American public and inform them in a 
nonpartisan way about these issues and raise these questions that are 
so important for the American people to digest, especially as we face 
upcoming elections that will determine the fate and course of the 
Nation.
  If we consider that in the previous election, less than 50 percent of 
the American people voted and understanding that in the aftermath of 
September 11 there has been a great outpouring of patriotism and 
citizenship, and what better way to express that than by going out and 
voting and immersing and involving one's self in the issues of the day, 
it is our responsibility as Members of Congress to make sure that we 
inform and educate the general public; but it is equally responsible 
that the public have an opportunity to express their concerns.
  Mr. DELAHUNT. Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield.
  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. I yield to the gentleman from 
Massachusetts.
  Mr. DELAHUNT. Mr. Speaker, I thank my friend from Connecticut for 
yielding, and I think he is so on the mark, if you will.
  People are thirsting for respectful discourse about these issues 
because they are so profoundly important, and I want to thank the 
gentleman for the kudos. I know that each of us has benefited from 
appearing here on a weekly basis, having this conversation; and I think 
what has also amazed us is the level of interest, the response that we 
have received so that there is no doubt that there is a deep need out 
there for, again, the kind of dialogue that goes on here, at least once 
a week, and that the gentleman from Hawaii (Mr. Abercrombie) mentioned 
earlier even should be expanded so that there can be a variety of 
perspectives expressed, because it is important.
  My colleague mentioned Ahmed Chalabi earlier. How many people in this 
Chamber, in this country, know of Ahmed Chalabi; and yet many, many in 
the world, in the intelligence community, believe that he is as 
responsible as any single individual for the faulty intelligence that 
led us into this war, a man, by the way, who is a convicted felon, who 
was an individual who was convicted of embezzlement in Jordan and 
reports now indicate is being investigated for the dissemination of 
sensitive information to a potential adversary in Iran.
  Mr. LARSON of Connecticut. Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman from 
Massachusetts for his comments. I see that our time has expired and the 
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Meek) has arrived.

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