Brenham Banner-Press - McCaul Wants to Finish Job' in Iraq
Press Release
Brenham Banner-Press - McCaul Wants to Finish Job' in Iraq
Bud Chambers
District 10's U.S. Congressman Michael McCaul, speaking before a capacity crowd Friday noon at the Washington County Chamber of Commerce Forum, said, "I've attended too many funerals (in recent years) " yet added that parents and families of the American men and women killed in Iraq and Afghanistan have given him a surprisingly consistent mandate in behalf of their fallen loved one: "Finish the job over there in Iraq."
Recalling recent military funerals he has attended in nearby towns like Somerville and Katy, the Congressman said the message he's been given by close relatives of soldiers, airmen and Marines who have fallen in America's war against terrorism is a startingly consistent one with a near unanimous conclusion.
The words McCaul passed on by a departed military person's family at one of the most recent of those "too many funerals" he has attended were both specific in nature and pointed in the actions desired of him.
"My son believed in what he was doing," a heartbroken parent told the second term Congressman from Austin, "so don't let his sacrifice (and that of so many others) be in vain."
The Congressman also suggested there are signs the current American troop surge is beginning to gain ground, and this is not the time for America to retreat from its obligations.
In a number of recent instances, McCaul said both Sunis and Shiites fed up with Al Qaeda terrorist actions against Iraqis have stepped up and taken action to thwart these treacherous activities; a positive sign the American/allied surge is beginning to have more positive effects.
An important remaining step not yet taken, McCaul said, is "is to apply more pressure on the Iraqi government."
McCaul also passed on to his Washington County audience of about 150 people a thought shared with him by the mother of a fallen American soldier, noting she "was greatly disturbed when President George W. Bush spoke of A Victory over terrorism' during the State of the Union message "and half of the Congress didn't applaud or rise."
Among other topics brought up, or handled by the Congressman in a question and answer session:
-He feels there is a positive function to building at least segments of "The Border Fence" with Mexico, especially helping Border Patrol officials gain more effective control in certain areas. McCaul is pushing a Texas portion to be completed before 2008's end in addition to current segments under construction in Arizona and New Mexico.
-Good (international and domestic) intelligence is (certainly) our first line of defense, but secure borders are our last line of defense in (winning) this war on terrorism," McCaul said.
-He agrees with Bush Administration actions taken to ease the Sub-Prime Mortgage crisis, further suggesting that Congress, if still in session, might have taken additional action but not necessarily made the right moves.
Brenham school superintendent David Yeager served as emcee, and John Barnhill introduced Rep. McCaul.
Source