Statement Of U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell On The January 30, 2005 Iraqi Election
Statement Of U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell On The January 30, 2005 Iraqi Election
U.S. Senator Mitch McConnell delivered the following statement on the Senate floor today on the historic Iraqi Election:
"Mr. President, yesterday freedom took a giant step forward.
"History will rank January 30, 2005, alongside November 9, 1989the day the Berlin Wall fellas a day when man's innate desire to be free broke the shackles of tyranny.
"Millions of Iraqis stood up to the terrorists and told them, "We reject your credo of violence. We reject your claim that Iraq cannot join the democratic family of nations. We reject your belief that Iraqis deserve nothing more than to live in fear of oppression."
"One Iraqi voter, a businessman named Samir Sabih, put it better than any of us could. Of yesterday, he said, "Fear has no place in our hearts anymore. We became free."
"The Iraqi elections for the National Assembly must be heralded as a major success. Turnout has been reported as being anywhere from 60 to 70 percent, defying all expectations. Thanks to the dedication and bravery of our troops, and the Iraqi police that we have trained, there was much less violence than expected. We were all moved by the courage of so many ordinary Iraqi citizens, each one risking their lives to proudly display a purple-ink-stained finger.
"While we do not yet know the results of the election, we can name the winners: the people of Iraq, for enthusiastically embracing democracy. The nations of the Middle East, who can now look to Iraq as a model. And the people of every country, who now live in a world more favored towards freedom.
"Some cynics have missed the point of this election. For instance, some say that the vote is illegitimate if not enough Sunnis choose to participate. But by all reports, the Shiite majority will not let this stop Sunnis from having a voice. There will be a place for all religions and ethnicities in the government. Interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, himself a Shiite, has said, "let us work together toward a bright futureSunnis, Shiites, Muslims and Christians, Arabs, Kurds and Turkmen."
"I also heard a news reporter ask yesterday whether the election results were good for President Bush. In case this reporter missed it, President Bush was not on the ballot. Yesterday's historic achievement was not about which party can collect political points. It was about the march of freedom.
"There is still a lot of hard work ahead before Iraq becomes a stable democracy. America must stay committed. The Iraqis are counting on us to help them in their quest for freedom, and we cannot and we will not let them down. We must do what it takes, for our own security's sake, so that Iraq never again becomes a cauldron of terrorism.
"Many Americans and Iraqis risked everything to help realize the first free vote in Iraq since 1953. Some gave their lives. We should offer our thanks and our prayers to those who valiantly sacrificed. We can honor their deeds by completing our task in Iraq.
"Mr. President, amidst the joy and celebrations yesterday, one Iraqi woman actually gave birth at her polling station. Despite her pregnancy, she was determined that nothing would stop her from casting a ballot. She named the child after the word "election" in her native language.
"Mindful of the hard work still ahead, I hope and believe that this baby will grow up never knowing tyranny and oppression. Never living under totalitarian fear. Never seeing a family member spirited away to be murdered.
"I hope and believe that this child will grow up in a free society, with the power to make his own destiny. Let's finish the job and ensure that that's so."
http://mcconnell.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=231202&start=1