Hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee - Assessment of the Administration's September Report

Statement

HEARING OF THE HOUSE FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
SUBJECT: ASSESSMENT OF THE ADMINISTRATION'S SEPTEMBER REPORT ON THE STATUS OF U.S. POLITICAL AND MILITARY EFFORTS IN IRAQ

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REP. JOE WILSON (R-SC): Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and, Senator Graham, thank you for being here today.

Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member, fellow South Carolinian and Congressman Scott, I want you to know that our association has been for a number of years. Senator Graham was the staff judge advocate of the Air National Guard; I was the staff judge advocate of the Army National Guard, so I appreciate his background.

As we consider, Senator, what we're dealing with today, I think we should keep in mind that Osama bin Laden has said that we're in the third world war at the confluence of the Tigris and Euphrates, meaning Baghdad. Zawahiri, an al Qaeda spokesman, has said that Iraq and Afghanistan are the central fronts in the global war. We need to remember in 1998, Osama bin Laden declared war on America and its allies whenever and wherever we could be destroyed.

And again, I want to thank you for your military background, your perception, and I look forward to your testimony. I yield the balance of my time.

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