|
Washington, D.C. --- U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) today supported The Responsible Redeployment from Iraq Act, which requires a responsible redeployment of U.S. troops out of Iraq beginning within 120 days of enactment and ending by April 1, 2008. The New Jersey congressman issued the following statement in support of the bill.
"Today, the House once again showed President Bush the path to a responsible way to bring our troops home.
"Everyday, there is new evidence showing how devastating the war in Iraq has been to our nation. Nobody has sacrificed more than our military personnel and their families. To date, more than 3,600 of our brave soldiers have been killed in this war and more than 26,000 have been injured.
"Our nation as a whole is also suffering. The war in Iraq has drained our military and depleted nearly half a trillion dollars from our treasury. And yet, according to a new National Intelligence Estimate, we are less safe today than we were on September 11th.
"President Bush was wrong to divert attention away from the global war on terror for this poorly-planned war in Iraq. Our troops have done everything asked of them, but they have been poorly led by the president and his war cabinet.
"Today, the president released an interim report on the troop escalation plan that shows violence is still intense throughout Iraq and that absolutely no political or diplomatic benchmarks have been met.
"President Bush has not learned anything from the last five years. If he had, he would have never sent more troops to Iraq earlier this year. This war is not America's to win. It's the Iraqis'. And that is why we must leave.
"Today, this House set us on a course of bringing our troops home by next April. It provides us real hope of protecting our nation by getting out of Iraq so we can once again focus on the real threat in Afghanistan."
|
