WASHINGTON, DC -- Today U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-IL)
joined colleagues in sending a letter to Speaker Hastert, asking him to seek an
apology for statements made my Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki. Below is the
full statement of U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky:
“Thank you for coming today.
“Tomorrow, the United States Congress is scheduled to give Iraqi Prime Minister
Nuri al-Maliki the rare and high honor of addressing a joint session of
Congress.
“Unfortunately, it has become clear that the new government in Iraq, which came
to power with the blessing of the Bush Administration, does not share the same
foreign policy goals of the United States when it comes to the Middle East.
“At a time when all of us are particularly concerned about the well being of our
staunch ally Israel, we feel strongly that Speaker Hastert should be working to
secure an apology or clarification from Prime Minister Maliki for his recent
remarks about Israel and for the vicious anti-Semitic rhetoric of the Speaker of
Iraq’s Parliament.
“We are sending a letter to Speaker Hastert and we hope he will successfully
convince Mr. Maliki to clarify his remarks in acceptable way. If Prime Minister
Maliki is not willing to apologize for his remarks or to clarify them, we do not
believe the Congress should be offering him the privileged opportunity to
address a joint session. Speaker Hastert should reconsider the invitation is he
is not successful.
“The Bush Administration, who conceived this tragic war, believed that regime
change in Iraq would result in a number of “benefits” for the region.
“In fact, in August of 2002, Vice President Cheney said, “Regime change in Iraq
would bring about a number of benefits for the region. ...Extremists in the
region would have to rethink their strategy of jihad. Moderates throughout the
region would take heart, and our ability to advance the Israeli-Palestinian
peace process would be enhanced.”
The Bush Administration was flat wrong.
“Extremists throughout the Middle East, including Hezbollah and Hamas have been
empowered. Moderate voices in the region are not being heard. And the
Israeli-Palestinian peace process is under attack.
“The Speaker’s podium in the United States Congress reflects our nation’s
values. Unfortunately, the current Iraqi leadership does not.
“On July 13th, the Speaker of the Iraqi Parliament claimed that there was a
Jewish conspiracy which was responsible for the insurgency in Iraq. He was
quoted as saying: “Some people say 'we saw you beheading, kidnapping and
killing…These acts are not the work of Iraqis. I am sure that he who does this
is a Jew and the son of a Jew. I can tell you about these Jewish, Israelis and
Zionists who are using Iraqi money and oil to frustrate the Islamic movement in
Iraq.”
“And on July 19th, in reference to the conflict in Lebanon which was instigated
by an Iran-funded and backed Hezbollah, the Iraqi Prime Minister condemned
Israel’s right to defend itself against terrorism, calling Israel’s actions
“criminal aggressions”. Additionally, the Iraqi Parliament voted unanimously to
condemn Israel.
“The comments made by Mr. Maliki were in stark contrast to other American allies
in the region, Saudi Arabia, Jordan and Egypt, who have strongly condemned the
indiscriminate and destabilizing violence brought on by Hezbollah.
“As members of Congress, our concerns go well beyond the statements of the Iraqi
Speaker and Prime Minister. In Iraq, we are seeing the emergence of an Iraqi
government who supports the ideals of terrorist organizations such as Hamas and
Hezbollah. The United States House of Representatives should not allow an
address from any world leader who takes these types of positions.
“For that reason we have asked Speaker Hastert to cancel the Iraqi Prime
Minister’s invitation to address a joint session of Congress if he does not
secure an apology or satisfactory clarification. In addition, 50 members of
Congress have signed a letter to President Bush, asking that he denounce the
hate-filled comments of the Iraqi Speaker.
“The challenges that we face in Iraq are great, and as Members of Congress we
are committed to helping rebuild Iraqi society. However, if we are going to
commit the human and financial resources of the United States towards the
rebuilding effort, we must know that these resources are not being used to
promote hate and anti-Semitism. And they must not empower those who undermine
our interests or our allies in an important region."
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Click here to view
the letter sent to Speaker Hastert
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Click here to view the
joint press release |