[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 20]
[House]
[Page 27367]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                       COURAGE OUTWEIGHS POLITICS

  (Mr. BLUMENAUER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute.)
  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, yesterday was the most significant day 
in the war in Iraq since we first began our attack. As President Bush 
is learning that our few allies are withdrawing their troops, 
Congressman Jack Murtha has publicly concluded it is time to bring our 
troops home.
  Despite attacks by some who never had a hint of his military service, 
whose own mismanagement, not just of the information that got us into 
this effort, but whose inept mismanagement of the war itself left us 
with few good options, Jack Murtha remains the single most 
knowledgeable and respected Member of this House dealing with military 
affairs.
  I have not seen eye-to-eye with Jack from the beginning, when I 
opposed attacking Iraq, to a statement I just posted, after weeks of 
thought, for a more gradual withdrawal. But I and every Member who is 
thinking honestly about this sad episode will reconsider my conclusion 
because of Jack Murtha's courageous and heartfelt statement. He is the 
only Member of Congress who has earned the right to be listened to . . 


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