[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 11]
[House]
[Page 14574]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         TAKE IMMEDIATE ACTION TO WITHDRAW OUR TROOPS FROM IRAQ

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Clay) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. CLAY. Mr. Speaker, I rise to address the House for 5 minutes.
  Mr. Speaker, as a member of the Out of Iraq Caucus, I urge this 
administration to take immediate action on a plan to withdraw our 
troops from Iraq. The American people were misled into this war, and 
they want the leaders of this Nation to take responsibility and end 
this war now.
  I was among those who opposed the tragic decision to launch this war. 
I warned that the invasion and occupation of Iraq would plunge us into 
a bloody quagmire of violence that would only intensify the instability 
in the Middle East and leave our own Nation less secure and less able 
to protect our national interest.
  The sad truth is that all the grimmest predictions have now come 
true. Today, the Taliban are mounting a major comeback in Afghanistan. 
Iran is on the verge of producing a nuclear weapon. Somalia is 
dominated by an al Qaeda-inspired militia, and the Hezbollah has 
attacked Israel. In return, Israel has attacked Lebanon. Here at home, 
our Nation is at risk.
  As fundamental recommendations of the 9/11 Commission remain 
unfulfilled, those who still support the Iraq war often claim it has 
made this Nation a safer place, that it has kept away the terrorists 
and stopped another 9/11 tragedy.
  Unfortunately, such wishful thinking is only an effort to justify the 
horrendous human suffering that we have caused by this misguided 
mission, an effort to justify a war that was never properly planned and 
executed, a war that has wounded thousands and cost the lives of 2,547 
American soldiers.
  The human toll of this war is still climbing, and throughout the 
world terrorism is on the rise. This administration talks a lot about 
national security, but without doing anything about it.
  Those in Congress know the war in Iraq has made America a more 
vulnerable Nation. Congress is appropriating millions and millions of 
dollars on homeland security projects. The U.S. Capitol complex is 
saturated with security, and certainly no one in this body behaves as 
if the war in Iraq has made our Nation safe from terrorism.
  In fact, the Iraq war has only inspired terrorism. Democracy is not 
flourishing in the Middle East, and the costs of the Iraq war and our 
global antiterrorist operations will top $500 billion next year.
  It is time to bring our troops home and to devote our resources to 
protecting the American people.

                          ____________________