[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 8]
[House]
[Page 11519]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          GLOBAL WAR ON TERROR

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Nebraska (Mr. Forten-
berry) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. FORTENBERRY. Mr. Speaker, on June 6 we commemorated D Day, the 
day that American military forces stormed the coast of France 62 years 
ago to turn the tide in one of the most brutal conflicts the world has 
ever known. The United States sustained 6,603 casualties that day, yet 
the final victory over the forces of fascism remained nearly a year 
away.
  Rows of silent graves at the American Military Cemetery in Normandy 
bear witness to the high price of freedom. They solemnly remind us that 
there is no substitute for perseverance and sacrifice if we are to 
prevail over the threats which challenge this Nation and the world 
today.
  The global war on terror is a different war from the wars of the 
past. This is not a war of uniformed armies on clearly defined 
battlefields. It is a war that invades tranquil space and time without 
warning, carried out by those who hide among and behind civilian 
populations, seeking to exploit the vulnerable for ruthless purposes.
  While we have endured the sacrifice of global wars during the past, 
we have never waged a war in an age of globalization, in an age when 
technology eviscerates the concept of distance, magnifies our losses, 
trivializes our accomplishments, and places our adversaries in a far 
better position to leverage the freedoms of our society against us.
  In seeking to prevent another 9/11, the President and the United 
States Congress would have been utterly irresponsible to ignore the 
threat posed by Saddam Hussein in Iraq. It is important to note that in 
1998 President Clinton ordered U.S. Armed Forces to strike military and 
security targets in Iraq because Iraq's nuclear, chemical and 
biological weapons programs posed a credible and serious threat.
  But I am not here to argue the case for war today. The United States 
and our coalition partners made judgments to enter Iraq based upon the 
best available evidence, and now the commitment is ours to complete. We 
are all in this together, and the successful progression of our 
commitment in Iraq, from which I remain convinced that an abrupt 
withdrawal of U.S. troops would do more harm than good, is vital to 
achieving national security for America, stability and hope for all 
peoples of the Middle East, and establishing the prospects for civil 
reforms and long-term peace throughout the entire world.
  While our mission continues to be dangerous and costly, it continues 
to make strong progress as well. The recent establishment of democratic 
institutions in Iraq is without cultural or historical precedent. This 
fact, combined with rapid progress in the deployment of Iraqi security 
forces, gives us realistic hope of diminishing conflict and a stable 
foundation for the prospects of long-term peace.
  As we proceed with our obligation, may each one of us endeavor to 
discharge our responsibilities in a manner that is worthy of the 
sacrifices of the United States Armed Forces.
  And may each of us recall that this obligation is ultimately 
connected to the mantle of leadership that has fallen to the United 
States, not only for our own welfare, but for the welfare of the entire 
world.

                          ____________________