Operation Iraqi Freedom Produces Country's First Days as a Democracy

OPERATION IRAQI FREEDOM PRODUCES COUNTRY'S FIRST DAYS AS A DEMOCRACY

From the beginning, the name of our mission in Iraq has been named "Operation Iraqi Freedom." The U.S. led coalition, measured up to the objective of the mission's name by turning over a free and sovereign Iraqi to its people two days ahead of schedule. An important goal of this mission has always been to liberate the people of Iraq and give them the tools to build a free and democratic Iraq.

Operation Iraqi Freedom is part of the on-going War on Terror and President Bush's promise to take the war to the terrorists rather than let them bring it to our shores. President Bush chose to enforce the official U.S. policy of "regime change in Iraq" that has been in effect since 1998. Getting weapons of mass destruction out of the hands of dictators who would use them against us was just one of the reasons presented as a gathering threat to the United States. To protect American interests, President Bush chose wisely by forming a "coalition of the willing," rather than depend on the United Nations, which has been left impotent by the oil for food scandal.

In fact, getting weapons of mass destruction out of the hands of dictators has proven more successful, and made the world safer, than the media gives it credit. No sooner did we pull Saddam Hussein from his spider hole than Libyan leader, Moammar Gadhafi started coughing up his weapons of mass destruction like a hairball. Gadhafi invited United Nations and U.S. weapon inspectors into his country to dismantle and remove all weapons of mass destruction.

Charles Duelfer, current head of the Iraq weapons inspection team, announced that his group is finding new WMD evidence "almost every day." A roadside bomb made from an artillery shell discovered May 15 contained chemicals that, when combined, form Sarin-a deadly nerve agent. On June 24, 2004 his group uncovered at least ten more artillery shells filled with banned chemical weapons. All such weapons were supposed to have been destroyed by terms of the 1990-91 Persian Gulf War cease fire agreement.

We know that Saddam had a vast stockpile of chemical weapons because he has used them in the past against his own people as well as Iran. President Clinton also asserted that Saddam had, and would use weapons of mass destruction, during his administration. The intelligence data provided by virtually every nation, not just the United States, was unambiguous
that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.

Last October I visited Iraq to assess the progress of our military and humanitarian efforts. One of my most memorable experiences there was visiting with our military troops, reviewing their working conditions and personal morale. I learned firsthand that our troops are clear and secure in their purpose, well trained and well equipped to complete their difficult assignments. They impressed me with their bravery, determination, readiness to defend America, and willingness to help
establish permanent stability in the Middle East.

Since the ousting and capture of Saddam Hussein by U.S. forces, civil rights and personal freedoms have been restored in Iraq, as well as equal rights to all. Working together, the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) and the Iraqi people started the process of restoring and rebuilding the electrical grid, schools and hospitals and created a recovering economy.

Last week, two days ahead of schedule, the CPA in Iraq stepped down, and handed over its power to the Iraqi people, marking the first day of democracy in the nation's history. The CPA turned over authority to the Iraqi interim government led by Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, who will lead the reconstruction of the country until a national election is held in 2005. This is a monumental event in the history of Iraq and proves our goal is to be liberators.