Office of the Speaker, J. Dennis Hastert
Return to Home page Speaker's Role Top Issues News Room House Acitivity Search En Espanol
photo, speaker of the house in black and white

Speaker Hastert Floor Statement on the Global War on Terror Resolution

June 15, 2006

(Washington, D.C.)  Speaker of the House J. Dennis Hastert (R-IL) today made the following remarks to begin debate on H. Res 861,  Declaring that the United States Will Prevail in the Global War on Terror, the Struggle to Protect Freedom from the Terrorist Adversary:

“Mr. Speaker, one of our greatest Presidents, Ronald Reagan, was fond of saying that, ‘Freedom is never more than one generation from extinction.’  President Reagan’s wise words are still true today.

“I rise in support of H. Res. 861.  This resolution is about more than the War in Iraq and Afghanistan.  It is about a Global War to protect American ideals, and the democracy and values on which this great nation was founded.  This resolution, Mr. Speaker, like this War itself, is about freedom.

“Just 12 days ago I returned from Iraq.  I can tell this House that the morale of our fighting men and women there is sky high.  They are not suffering from doubt and ‘second guessing.’  And they certainly are not interested in the political posturing about the war that often goes on in this city.  They know why they are there.  They know they are liberators doing good and they believe passionately in their mission.  It is not possible to talk to these men and women without being inspired by their courage, their determination, their professionalism, and their patriotism. 

“I came home from Iraq believing even more strongly, that it is not enough for this House to say, ‘We Support Our Troops.’  To the men and women in the field, in harms way, that statement rings hollow if we don’t also say we support their mission.

“The clarity with which our men and women in uniform understand the reason they are in Iraq is a stark contrast to some here at home who talk about this war as a ‘war of choice.’  The facts are clear.  America has been struck repeatedly.

“Despite the life-ending attacks on Khobar Towers, our east African embassies, the USS Cole, and the first World Trade Center bombing, US policy tended to confuse these attacks with isolated, law-enforcement events.

 “We failed to recognize them as the escalating strikes that they were.  We failed to identify the networks behind the bombs.  We convinced ourselves that these attacks were somehow just random acts of violence. 

“Yet, the attacks continued.  The terrorists did not admire or appreciate our limited response.  They did not come to the table to discuss points of political concern.  They did not de-escalate, demobilize, or disappear.  Our response was inconstant and limited, but their reactions were not.  They plotted and practiced, while we hoped for the best.  We were wrong as we slumbered in denial.

“Then came the day when terrorism slapped us in the face, awakening us to a stark reality.  I remember it as a crisp fall day, where the clear blue sky was filled with fluffy white clouds.  But that peaceful scene was transformed in an instant, when planes went crashing into buildings and the clear sky turned to choking ash and soot. 

“I stood in my Capitol office, just a few yards from where I am speaking today, and saw the black smoke rising from the Pentagon.  The third plane had hit just across the river from this Capitol Building.  On 9/11 the terrorists were not a distant threat, they were in our front yard, and they were very real – and very deadly.

“In that moment, we were afraid.  None of us had anticipated the lengths to which our common enemy would go to destroy our American way of life, our ideals and our beliefs.  Of course we knew that foreign terrorist had caused trouble elsewhere, but we found it hard to imagine that they came to our shores hoping to kill tens of thousands of men, women and children, innocent, unarmed people,  peacefully going about their daily lives.  It is hard, even now, to comprehend such enormous evil.

“As we watched some of our fellow citizens leap from burning buildings to their deaths, our fear turned to anger and then anger to resolute determination. 

“America’s response started high above a cornfield in rural Pennsylvania.  Brave men and women, armed with nothing more than boiling water, dinner forks and broken bottles, stood up – as Americans always do when our freedom is in peril – and they struck back.  We know from the messages they left behind that their final thoughts were for their families and their loved ones – but they also spoke of their love of their country. 

“Freedom is never more than one generation from extinction.

 “Perhaps the brave souls on United Flight 93 also remembered Ronald Reagan’s words, because the generation represented on that plane, like the patriots at Concord bridge, were not going to let freedom be extinguished, not on their watch.

“We in this Congress must show the same steely resolve as those men and women on United Flight 93; the same sense of duty as the first responders who headed up the stairs of the twin towers.  We must stand firm in our commitment to fight terrorism and the evil it inflicts throughout the world.  We must renew our resolve that the actions of evildoers will not dictate American policy.  And we must decide, right here today, what kind of nation we want to leave for our children and their generation.

“We are not alone in the fight on Global Terror.  I cannot list them all but they include countries large and small, rich and poor:  Great Britain, Jordan, Canada, Japan, Portugal, Denmark, Mali, Latvia, Romania, Italy, Poland and South Korea.  In fact, the number of countries working to defeat continues to grow.  

 “Pakistan, a nation that once recognized the oppressive Taliban regime, has changed its course and now works closely with the Coalition to round up terrorists.   Yemen, Indonesia and Saudi Arabia have also moved aggressively within their borders to fight terrorism.

“Today, more than three-quarters of al Qaeda’s known leaders and associates have been detained or killed.  Just last week, we saw an amazing victory for the U.S. military, which managed to track down the self-proclaimed “Prince of al Qaeda,” Abu Musab al-Zarqawi.   He was personally responsible for beheading innocent civilians.   He had killed scores of Iraqis.  Today he is dead.

“There was widespread coverage last week of al-Zarqawi’s death, but among the things that stood out to me were the personal stories.  One man, a 34-year-old nurse in Baghdad, told a Washington Post reporter how one of al-Zarqawi’s car bombs killed his brother, the father of three small children.  Upon news of the American victory, this man said he called his sister-in-law and she was overjoyed.  She said of her husband, it is as if the Americans had, ‘brought him back alive’ for me.

“There is no doubt that since 9/11 our military as well as our law enforcement and intelligence agencies have made great strides in uprooting terrorism.  Nearly a dozen serious al-Qaeda plots have been stopped since September 11th.  But there is good reason for ongoing vigilance, because the threat is still very real.

“Just recently, our neighbor to the North, Canada, foiled a terrorist plot to storm that country’s Parliament and one of its major television headquarters. The terrorists planned to behead those they captured. 

“Today in parts of the Middle East, where once oppression choked out freedom, we are now seeing democracy take root.

“Afghanistan was once a safe haven for the al Qaeda terrorist network.  In remote training camps, terrorists planned and practiced attacks on the United States and other freedom loving peoples.  Those camps are now gone.  In their place is a developing democracy with an elected President and a new constitution that gives unprecedented rights and freedoms to all Afghans.   Just three years ago, Afghan women were whipped in the streets; schooling was denied to girls.   Today, women have the right to vote, and two Afghan cabinet ministers are women.

“In Iraq, just three years ago, a brutal dictator sat in palatial luxury.  Unhampered by UN, Saddam and his family stole the oil for food money from starving Iraqi children in order to support their lifestyle of debauchery and brutality.  Schoolgirls were raped.  Iraqi patriots were thrown alive into meat grinders.  Unspeakable atrocities of all kinds were common, including the use of chemical weapons on Saddam’s own people, the Kurds.  Saddam invaded the sovereign nation of Kuwait, he harbored terrorists in his midst and he defied seventeen United Nations Security Council Resolutions.  

“Just a few days ago I was listening to the radio, and a pundit, remarking on the sectarian violence in Iraq, observed that perhaps the Iraqi people were better off under Saddam.  Given the unspeakable and systematic brutality of Saddam’s regime, such a remark either reflects a serious misreading of history or a very naïve and forgiving nature.  It might have been easier for us in America to turn our heads and look the other, way as much of the rest of the world did, but I would submit that Saddam was an evil cancer on the world.  He was a threat to our country and, America, not just Iraq, is better off today because Saddam Hussein sits in a court of law answering for the crimes he committed against humanity.

“While I was in Iraq, I met with Prime Minister al-Maliki as well as my counterpart, the Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament.  We talked about the birth of democracy in Iraq. 

“I looked the Speaker in the eye and I said, ‘Mr. Speaker, I admire you. The Iraqi people represent an ancient civilization, but your democracy is just beginning.  Your challenges are great but so too are your opportunities.’ 

“I urged the Iraqi people to look forward and not back; to listen to the voices of reconciliation, not division; I urged them to choose unity.  They told me that they were succeeding in putting together a Unity Cabinet, and shortly after my return they announced the names of the last three ministers that deal with critical security issues.

“Each Iraqi official I met with, even the Iraqi Speaker, who originally viewed the US presence in Iraq negatively, thanked me for the help America has given their country.  He went further and urged us to stay with them while they build up the capacity to take over the task of providing security for their people.

“Today in Iraq we are working together with Iraqi patriots, men and women elected by their fellow citizens.  Along with brave Iraqi soldiers and police, we are moving toward the day when the Iraqi government on its own has the strength to protect their people; a day when our men and women and their coalition partners, can come home.  The ‘stand up’ of this new Iraqi government, which is the fruit of three elections where Iraqi citizens held up their ink stained fingers and resisted intimidation, brings us closer to that day. 

“President Bush told us from the beginning that this road would not be easy.  We have lost many American lives and each one is precious to us.  Our fighting men and women remain committed to the effort.  Active duty retention and recruiting is meeting or exceeding all objectives.  We are making progress toward our goal but the battle is not over.  It is a battle we must endure and one in which we can and will be victorious.  The alternative would be to cut and run and wait for them to regroup and bring the terror back to our shores.  

“When our freedom is challenged, Americans do not run. ‘Freedom is the very essence of our nation,’ President Reagan said in 1990 when a section of the Berlin Wall was presented to his Presidential Library.  He continued, ‘But even with our troubles we remain a beacon of hope for oppressed peoples everywhere.’  President Reagan also observed that freedom is not passed on at birth.  It must be fought for, protected, and handed on and that is happening.  Freedom is being handed on.  Our soldiers, sailors, coastguardsmen, airmen and marines are serving proudly and bravely in harsh conditions, far from their families.  

“When I was there, I told them their task was important and how proud we all were of their service.  But frankly, our men and women in uniform did not need to be told.  In fact, it is we who should listen to them. 

“They know their sacrifices on foreign shores are keeping the battle against the terrorists out of our cities.   They know that by going into harms way, they are keeping American freedoms safe.  They know they are helping a proud but brutalized people to throw off tyranny and stand tall once again.    They know they are liberators not occupiers.   Our men and women in uniform know all this and they are proud of it.  It is time for this House of Representatives to tell the world that we know it too, that we know our cause is right and that we are proud of it. 

“Stand up for Freedom, adopt this resolution.”

###

 

photo, american flag  graphic, seal for the speaker of the house with the year seventeen eighty nine  graphic, illinois flag