[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 6710]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




             THE FOURTH ANNIVERSARY OF THE INVASION OF IRAQ

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. JOHN CONYERS, JR.

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                         Monday, March 19, 2007

  Mr. CONYERS. Madam Speaker, on November 7, 2006, the American people 
sent a clear message to Congress and the President: we must end the war 
in Iraq. In response, the administration announced it would escalate 
the conflict. Today we mark the fourth anniversary of President Bush's 
war of choice, and later this week, the House of Representatives will 
have to make a choice of its own: either endorse the President's open-
ended commitment to the Iraq war or demand accountability and set a 
timeline for the phased redeployment of our troops. I am hopeful that 
Congress will pass a supplemental appropriations bill that will chart a 
new direction toward de-escalation, with a definitive date for 
disengagement.
  The occasion of this anniversary is an appropriate time to examine 
the impact of these last four years of war. As we begin the fifth year 
of the war, the price we have paid is high--with more than 3,000 U.S. 
troops dead, more than 20,000 U.S. troops wounded, and more than $400 
billion of taxpayer dollars appropriated. The Iraq war is already 
longer than U.S. participation in World War II, World War I, the Korean 
War, or the Civil War.
  What do we have to show for these sacrifices? Contrary to the rosy 
scenario depicted by the administration, this war has not made us 
safer; on the contrary, it has made us more vulnerable than ever. A 
sizeable majority of foreign policy and military experts agree that the 
world is a more dangerous place for Americans now than it was before we 
invaded Iraq. The war has become the number one recruiting tool of 
terrorists, and our continuing occupation of Iraq has provided them 
with the best training camp they could ever hope to have--a place where 
they can practice and refine their methods while taking American lives. 
The war increasingly strains our military--now creating a genuine 
crisis in U.S. troop readiness and our ability to respond to new 
threats. Should disaster strike here at home or elsewhere in the world, 
we will be left virtually defenseless while our troops and equipment 
are bogged down in a bloody quagmire that threatens to drag on for many 
more years.
  House Democrats are bringing forward a plan that provides for a 
change in course on Iraq. Our plan will protect our troops on the 
battlefield and at home, require accountability from the Bush 
Administration and the Iraqi government, and set a responsible timeline 
for a phased redeployment of U.S. troops--with a date certain, by 
August 2008 at the latest, for U.S. combat troops to be redeployed from 
Iraq. While I would have preferred a plan that brought the troops home 
even sooner, I believe that this compromise proposal is the best 
approach Congress can take at this time.
  Adoption of the Democrats' plan would begin to answer the pleas of 
the American people--to turn away from the President's open-ended 
commitment to U.S. participation in this Iraqi civil war and instead 
provide a responsible, phased plan for requiring the Iraqis to take 
responsibility for their own future. Redeploying our armed forces does 
not mean ``cutting and running.'' On the contrary, we suggest continued 
and extensive involvement in the region through renewed diplomacy and 
reconstruction that is free from fraud and abuse. This sensible path is 
the only one that can truly lead us to victory.

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