Water Resources Development Act Of 2007

Floor Speech

WATER RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT ACT OF 2007 -- (Senate - May 16, 2007)

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Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, American troops must come home from Iraq. Because more than 3,000 of our men and women have lost their lives, and tens of thousands more have returned home wounded, American troops must come home from Iraq.

Because hundreds of billions of America's tax dollars have been sunk into the sands and marshes of Iraq, with much of that funding lost to waste, fraud, or abuse by those who have neither Iraq's nor America's best interests at heart, America's troops must come home from Iraq.

Because the public records of this conflict--reflected in the many retired generals who have spoken out against the conduct of the war, and the many books and articles chronicling its planning and execution--reveal catastrophic mistakes and misjudgments that have raised serious questions about this administration's very capacity for leadership, American troops must come home from Iraq.

Because that same administration misused and distorted intelligence, arguing that America should go to war on the basis of information that proved to be untrue or highly misleading, American troops must come home from Iraq.

Because despite the millions of Americans who joined together to call for a new direction in Iraq, this President chose instead to escalate the conflict, American troops must come home from Iraq.

Because the President and Vice President and their political allies would rather pick a political fight with this Congress, using false rhetoric, such as ``micromanaging'' and ``precipitous withdrawal,'' than answer tough questions from the American people, American troops must come home from Iraq.

Because the prospect of our troops' redeployment is the single most powerful force at our disposal to galvanize unity and cooperation among the Iraqi factions and effect real change, American troops must come home from Iraq.

And because even after all this, this President still refuses to listen to the American people and stubbornly fails to give this country the change of course it demands, it is up to this Congress to act to bring American troops home from Iraq.

Some claim this strategy is risky, but the greater risk by far would be to fail to seize the opportunity a redeployment of our troops presents us. To announce clearly to the world that American troops will soon leave Iraq will change the dynamic there in a positive way. It may be the only way we can change the dynamic there in a positive way. It will give us the chance to renew and rebuild diplomatic ties in the region and around the world that have been so badly damaged by this President and this President's war, and restore America's prestige and standing among our friends. It will send a signal to the insurgents who foment violence in Iraq that they will no longer be able to use the United States military presence as a recruiting tool for extremists, and it will motivate efforts by the Iraqis to secure and stabilize their Nation.

It will give the Iraqis the impetus to step forward and do the things our military leaders say they must do for the surge to succeed--things they have been disgracefully slow in doing, such as passing a hydrocarbon law to allow equal sharing of oil revenues among all Iraqis, and measures to facilitate elections, as an example.

It will give our country the time and resources to restore our extraordinary military to the strength and level of readiness our troops deserve. And it will give us the freedom and the resources to look to the many challenges that still confront us here at home, from soaring gas prices to a broken health care system.

To achieve all these things, we must take the first step. We must make it clear we will bring our troops home from Iraq. The measure offered by Senator Feingold, with the support of the distinguished majority leader, is a smart strategy. It has a responsible schedule and it will be an effective step to repair what the President has left broken.

It would require the President to redeploy our troops from Iraq by March 31, 2008. After that date, funds would only be available for three specific limited purposes.

The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The Senator's time has expired.

Mr. WHITEHOUSE. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent for an additional 15 seconds.

The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so ordered.

Mr. WHITEHOUSE. The limited purposes for funding would be: targeted counterterrorism operations, protecting United States infrastructure and personnel, and training and equipping Iraqi security forces.

This plan gives our troops in the field the resources they need today and a strategy that is worthy of their service as they look to tomorrow. I urge my colleagues to support the Feingold-Reid amendment.

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