Congresswoman Urges a U.S. Pullout from Iraq

The Chicago Tribune

January 25, 2005

ILLINOIS -- U.S. Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.), one of the earliest and most outspoken critics of the Iraq war, urged the Bush administration on Monday to pull all U.S. forces from Iraq by mid-year.

"It's time for us to leave if there is to be any hope of a peaceful resolution," Schakowsky said.

Her statement comes as Iraqi insurgents have stepped up attacks in recent weeks, in an effort to disrupt the national election scheduled for Sunday.

Schakowsky called for "an orderly and rapid withdrawal over the next several months."

The administration should continue providing diplomatic and financial support to the Iraqi government, she said. But she added that installing permanent U.S. military bases in Iraq would "continue to represent a target of hostility."