[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 13]
[House]
[Page 18781]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                          GLOBAL WAR ON TERROR

  (Mrs. BLACKBURN asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Mr. Speaker, today we will see another attempt by the 
liberal majority leadership to drive a stake between the American 
people and the brave men and women fighting in the global war on 
terror. Today's latest attempt is called a precipitous withdrawal. The 
American people would label it a cut and run. Our soldiers deserve the 
confidence of their leaders, not second-guessing arrogance by 
politicians half a world away.
  The leadership thinks Iraq is lost, despite the fact that the new 
mission has shown signs of progress, including the fact that half of 
Baghdad has been secured, the Baghdad Security Plan. General Petraeus 
and Ambassador Crocker are going to provide us a progress report in 
September, but that is not fast enough for the liberal leadership. They 
expected the new strategy to win overnight. Don't they know that you 
don't find instant gratification in war?
  One thing is certain: surrender and failure in securing Iraq hold 
catastrophic consequences for freedom, the U.S., and the Iraqi people. 
Surrender would send the wrong message. It will say the U.S. is weak, 
that roving death squads in the streets of Baghdad and ethnic cleansing 
are acceptable to us. It may be fashionable to want to pull out of 
Iraq, but it sends the wrong message.

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