[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 12]
[House]
[Page 17072]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         IRAQIS CALL FOR WITHDRAWAL OF AMERICAN TROOPS IN 2010

  (Mr. ARCURI asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. ARCURI. Madam Speaker, congressional Democrats have repeatedly 
urged President Bush to bring our troops home from Iraq honorably, 
responsibly, safely, and soon.
  After rejecting 18 months of attempts by the Democratic majority to 
adopt redeployment timetables, the President now proposes a vague 
general time horizon that falls far short of a commitment to ending 
involvement in Iraq. The Iraq Government was more direct. For the 
second time this month, Iraqi officials have indicated their support 
for the withdrawal of U.S. combat forces by the end of 2010.
  Maybe these statements served as a wake-up call to the Bush 
administration. It appears they are finally getting the message that 
the war in Iraq cannot go on indefinitely. Perhaps President Bush 
should pass the message along to Senator McCain, who continues to 
believe that our commitment in Iraq will last 50 to 100 years.
  Madam Speaker, we need a new direction in Iraq that allows our troops 
to come home and allows us to focus on the war on terrorism in 
Afghanistan and around the world.

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