Statement on Iraq Progress Reports

Press Release

Statement on Iraq Progress Reports

"Recent reports to Congress from the General Accountability Office (GAO) on progress in Iraq, from retired Marine General James Jones on Iraqi security, and from General Petraeus on results of the troop surge only confirm my belief and toughen my resolve that we must redeploy American troops from Iraq as quickly as possible. Of course, putting more troops on the ground in certain neighborhoods increases security there. But this security should not be confused with political progress.

The new GAO report shows the Iraqi government has failed to meet 15 of 18 benchmarks for success. A separate report from retired Marine General James Jones stated that the Iraqi government is unable to assume security responsibilities in that country and indicates that the Iraqi Interior Ministry which runs the security force is dysfunctional.

General Petraeus and the White House are asking for more time, more money, and more troops to help support an Iraqi government that appears unwilling and unable to govern. We invaded Iraq to topple Saddam Hussein, eliminate weapons of mass destruction (that turned out not to exist) and plant the seeds of democracy. Our troops have valiantly met all those objectives. It is time to bring them home. There is clearly no military solution to the current state of affairs in Iraq and our continued presence only exacerbates the violence.

On this 6th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks, Osama bin Laden remains at large and Al Qaeda and the Taliban grow stronger in Afghanistan and Pakistan. It's long past time to end our involvement in Iraq's civil war and refocus our efforts on the real threats of terrorism around the world."

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