[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 7]
[House]
[Page 10281]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




              GETTING ADVICE OF REAL PROFESSIONALS ON IRAQ

  (Mr. DeFAZIO asked and was given permission to address the House for 
1 minute.)
  Mr. DeFAZIO. Madam Speaker, Bush, Cheney and their Republican 
apologists here in Congress say ``hands off their war. Leave it to the 
professionals.''
  Well, if they followed their own advice, we wouldn't be at war in 
Iraq. Remember Cheney and Scooter Libby, who is on his way to prison, 
phonying up intelligence, overruling the intelligence and military 
professionals, saying there was a threat, that there were weapons of 
mass destruction? They didn't exist.
  Then they fired General Shinseki because he had the temerity to 
suggest if we didn't put in 400,000 troops, there would be a massive 
insurgency and a civil war. They fired him. If they had not fired 
General Shinseki, if they followed his professional advice, our troops 
wouldn't be mired in the middle of a civil war; and Paul Bremer 
disbanding the Iraq Army, de-Baathification, against all professional 
military and intelligence advice.
  Now the Republican lapdogs have the temerity to say ``hands off 
Bush's war. Let the professionals run it.'' Well, it is time for some 
adults to step in here and really take advice from the professionals 
and get our troops out of the middle of this civil war.

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