[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 17]
[House]
[Pages 24099-24100]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




 RECOGNIZING THE SIXTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE SEPTEMBER 11 ATTACKS AND THE 
       NEED TO REFOCUS OUR ATTENTION ON THE GLOBAL WAR ON TERROR

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Cummings) is recognized for 5 minutes.
  Mr. CUMMINGS. Mr. Speaker, tomorrow marks 6 years since America 
experienced its worst foreign terrorist attack. I send my solemn 
prayers to the families of the victims and the survivors of the 
September 11 attack, where nearly 3,000 persons lost their lives.
  Although no amount of time can ever bring back the ones you cherish 
or erase the memories of the tragic event, it is my hope that their 
wounds have begun to heal.
  While the world and the United States mourned the loss of innocent 
lives that day, we also sought answers as to who had attacked us and 
what would be our next steps. Rather than focusing on those responsible 
for organizing these attacks, President Bush and his administration 
diverted our efforts and refocused our resources to fight the global 
war on terror by waging war against the regime of Saddam Hussein via a 
preemptive strike. The administration presented its erroneous case by 
drawing on allegations that Iran had weapons of mass destruction, that 
it was a clear threat to the United States, and that it was connected 
with al Qaeda.
  While failing to gain the support of the global community, this 
administration continued on with its ill-conceived stance on Iraq, 
convincing the majority of the Congress to vote in favor of entering a 
war where only 5 years later we continue to pay heavily.
  And what exactly has been the cost? It has cost over $450 billion in 
taxpayers hard-earned dollars, according to the Congressional Research 
Service. It has left families of servicemembers and the larger 
population mourning the deaths of over 3,750 servicemembers, 69 of 
those being from the great State of Maryland. It has resulted in a 
strained family situation for those who endure multiple deployments, 
and has led to strikingly low levels of recruitment and retention of 
our mid-career armed servicemembers.
  It has undercut our efforts to ensure adequate protection of the home 
front because much of the needed equipment has been left behind 
unaccounted for in Iraq, as the National Guard testified before a 
Senate committee last April.
  It has belabored the economy, where the Government Accountability 
Office, GAO, has reported that the United States simply cannot continue 
spending at its current rate. And it has, in reality, resulted in the 
establishment of al Qaeda in Iraq, as reported by the National 
Intelligence Estimate.
  Mr. Speaker, the GAO testified before the House Armed Services 
Committee, upon which I sit, last week that only three of the 18 
benchmarks established by the Congress have been met. Four have been 
partially met, and 11 have not been met at all. Specifically, only two 
of the nine security-related benchmarks were met, two were partially 
met, and five not met at all.
  Furthermore, in a hearing before the House Armed Services Committee 
on Thursday, September 6, the Jones Commission made clear that 
political reconciliation is a key component of resolving the issue of 
sectarian violence. Accordingly, political reconciliation requires the 
diplomatic and international support of the global community. 
Presently, the President and this administration's efforts to gain this 
pivotal support are less than adequate. The Bush administration, as it 
has done in the past, continues to try to

[[Page 24100]]

buy the patience of this Congress and the American people by pulling 
for excuses.
  Mr. Speaker, 5 years ago I expressed my disapproval of the war by 
voting against the United States military operations in Iraq.
  Today, I still remain unwavering in my support of our troops and the 
urgent need to make a responsible and timely redeployment of our men 
and women in uniform as a means to end the continued bloodshed.
  I urge my colleagues to support our troops, support saving taxpayer 
dollars, and support the victims of September 11 by ushering in 
measures that will ensure diplomatic multilateral and bilateral support 
for political reconciliation in Iraq. A more focused and more 
determined strategy that will refocus and better utilize our efforts to 
fight the global war on terror is necessary to ensure that the victims 
of September 11 have not died without adequate retribution.
  Thank you, Mr. Speaker.

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