[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 17]
[House]
[Page 23454]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         NOW IS THE TIME TO DECLARE A MILITARY VICTORY IN IRAQ

  (Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Ms. JACKSON-LEE of Texas. Mr. Speaker, I hold in my hand the United 
States Government Accountability report, ``Securing, Stabilizing and 
Rebuilding Iraq.'' The Iraqi Government has not met most legislative 
security and economic benchmarks.
  The President and Secretary of State and Secretary of Defense made a 
surprise visit to Anbar Province in Iraq. Out of their visit, I might 
imagine they would hope to have a counteroffensive against a number of 
hearings that the majority will be holding on the question of are we 
safer today than we were before the Iraq war. This report is both 
striking and provoking, provoking Americans to realize that the policy 
in Iraq has failed.
  It is time now to declare a military success, a military victory. Our 
soldiers have done their job. They have created an opportunity for a 
democratic government in Iraq. But, unfortunately, the job that needs 
to be done by the Iraqi Government has not been done. There are no 
battalions that are ready to go on the ground.
  So I will say to the administration, a surge will not work. Staying 
the course will not work. I ask that the troops be redeployed and a new 
direction be taken in Iraq.

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