[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 154 (2008), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5367]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




           DO NOT SELL OUT THE TROOPS AND LOSE A WINNABLE WAR

  (Mrs. BLACKBURN asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend her remarks.)
  Mrs. BLACKBURN. Madam Speaker, today is a serious day on Capitol 
Hill. General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker have returned. They are 
reporting to the Nation on the progress in Iraq.
  Since they were last here, this is what the Iraqi Parliament has 
passed: A pension law for regime officials; de-Baathification reform; 
an amnesty law; a provincial election law. The national government is 
sharing oil revenues with the provinces; sectarian killings are down 90 
percent; civilian deaths have dropped by more than 70 percent; and 
coalition casualties have dropped by more than 70 percent. Most 
importantly, Iraqi security forces are fighting for the future of their 
very own country.
  Some in this House are so invested in the narrative of defeat that 
they are blind to the results of a campaign that ranks among the 
greatest in the history of our Armed Forces.
  Our troops have achieved tremendous success through valor and 
sacrifice. Let's not sell them out and choose to lose a winnable war. 
History would not forgive us for that.

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