Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act for Defense, the Global War on Terror, and Tsunami Relief, 2005
EMERGENCY SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS ACT FOR DEFENSE, THE GLOBAL WAR ON TERROR, AND TSUNAMI RELIEF, 2005 -- (Extensions of Remarks - April 12, 2005)
SPEECH OF
HON. BETTY McCOLLUM
OF MINNESOTA
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Wednesday, March 16, 2005
The House in Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union had under consideration the bill (H.R. 1268) making emergency supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2005, and for other purposes.
Ms. McCOLLUM of Minnesota. Mr. Chairman, all Americans stand united in support of our troops. However, President Bush has no strategy for success in Iraq. Therefore, I rise in opposition to the Emergency Wartime Supplemental Appropriation (H.R. 1268) and my vote today is a vote of no confidence in this Administration's ad hoc Iraq policy.
Tragically, more than 1,500 American troops have been killed in Iraq and there is no end in sight to this war. The President's "coalition of the willing" is dissolving as Italy and the Netherlands become the most recent countries deciding to withdraw their troops from Iraq. The U.S. continues to bear the enormous burden of this conflict militarily and financially. With this $75 billion, as well as the $25 billion approved earlier this year, we have now spent $250 billion in Iraq.
Most outrageous is the fact that not $1 of the more than $200 billion spent on this war has been paid for. Congress has now borrowed over $250 billion from foreign countries like Saudi Arabia, China and Japan. Every dollar plus interest will be paid for by the men and women who are fighting as well as their children.
There are some real emergencies funded in this bill. I support U.S. assistance for tsunami relief and recovery as well as for peacekeeping operations, emergency funds and food aid to the Darfur region of Sudan. The generous assistance of the American people in these two serious crises is saving lives and having a tremendous impact.
This administration's failures of leadership in Iraq demands extensive Congressional oversight and accountability, not another blank check. The current policy is unsustainable. If Americans are to continue to bear the burden of securing and rebuilding Iraq, rather than approving a blank check, we deserve a plan for success and an exit strategy for America's troops.
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