Time For A New Direction In Iraq

TIME FOR A NEW DIRECTION IN IRAQ -- (House of Representatives - December 07, 2006)

Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, for months now, President Bush has refused to listen to anyone outside of his war cabinet and for any counsel on the war in Iraq. Yesterday, the bipartisan Iraq Study Group came to the sobering conclusion that the situation in Iraq is grave and deteriorating.

We lost 10 soldiers in Iraq yesterday. We have lost more than 30 soldiers already this month. I had hoped that the President would begin to reconsider his course after the November election, but the President continues to say that American troops will remain in Iraq after he leaves office in 2 years. This is simply unacceptable. We must begin the process of redeploying our troops out of Iraq now.

The Iraqi Prime Minister was correct when he said that the war can only be won politically, and, therefore, it is time for us to bring our troops home. It is time for the politicians in Iraq to begin to work together to bring an end to the civil war and for the international community, particularly Iraq's neighbors, to work with Iraqi leaders to stabilize the Nation. Our troops have done everything they can, and it is now up to the Iraqis to take complete control of their country.

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