[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 14768]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                    PRESIDENT'S SPEECH TO THE NATION

  (Mr. McGOVERN asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, the President of the United States misled 
this Nation to justify his invasion of Iraq. There were no weapons of 
mass destruction; there were no ties to al Qaeda. Our men and women are 
now engulfed in a violent quagmire and endless war. There is no 
strategy, only spin. Last night, in his speech to the Nation, the 
President shamelessly, in my opinion, invoked the terrible tragedy of 
September 11 to justify our continued occupation.
  Mr. Speaker, the fact that Iraq has become a haven for terrorists is 
due to this President's failed policy in that country. Our continued 
massive presence fuels the insurgency and is a magnet for foreign 
fighters.
  It takes no courage for a President or a Congressman to stand up and 
say ``stay the course.'' It is not our lives that are on the line. We 
owe our soldiers better.
  It is time for the President to admit that this war was a mistake. It 
is time for us to begin an orderly withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq. 
It is time for President Bush to end his war.

                          ____________________