[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 7]
[House]
[Page 9435]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              NUCLEAR IRAN

  (Ms. WATSON asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. WATSON. Mr. Speaker, the danger of a nuclear Iran may be the 
biggest security challenge facing America and the world, and now it 
appears that the Iranian regime might finally be willing to talk about 
ending their nuclear weapons programs.
  This opportunity raises many questions. Can we depend on Iran to 
negotiate in good faith? Is Iran truly ready to renounce terrorism? And 
what will be the cost to the people of Iran if we engage a regime that 
oppresses its own people?
  We must confront all these questions and scour our conscience for the 
answers. But these questions are dwarfed by a more immediate one: Do we 
have the courage, the foresight and the strength of will to seize this 
opportunity? Will we be brave enough to talk with Iran and risk a 
diplomatic failure? Or will we be so afraid to talk that we would risk 
war?
  I ask the President to confront his fears, justified as they may be, 
and choose the courageous path of reaching out to engage Iran on a 
diplomatic formula to end the Iranian nuclear program.

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