[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 5]
[House]
[Page 7061]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           THE MESSAGE COUNTS

  (Mr. SAXTON asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. SAXTON. Madam Speaker, in the upcoming debate on the 
supplemental, I just want to point out to my friends on both sides of 
the aisle that the message counts.
  As we prepare for the debate on the supplemental appropriations bill, 
I want to caution my colleagues to bear in mind that our words are 
heard and seen all over the world by the Iraqi people, by our allies, 
and by our enemies.
  The President has given guidance on benchmarks for the Iraqi 
Government to meet, but this does not give Congress license to attach 
timelines and penalties. If we do, we are undermining the authority of 
General Petraeus, to whom we have entrusted this very important 
mission.
  Perhaps those who would vote in Congress to set deadlines, or any 
other maneuver aimed at limiting the ability of the White House and the 
Department of Defense to manage this dangerous situation under the 
guise of sending a message to the Iraqi leadership, will consider how 
their message will be received and interpreted by others.
  The future stability of Iraq and the national security of the 
American people would be better served with a message that clearly 
states ``We will stand with our allies and partners until Iraq's goal 
of stability is utilized.''

                          ____________________