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It is time, past time. Over three thousand four hundred Americans are dead, more than twenty-five thousand physically wounded, eighteen to thirty percent returning servicemen and women suffering from PTSD, four to six hundred thousand Iraqis killed, over 3 million displaced. Members of Congress, these are not just numbers, they are human beings. I am glad that most of you, like the vast majority of Americans, not having loved ones in harm’s way, are personally untouched by this war. Please, just for a moment, put the politics and the rhetoric aside and think, not as politicians, but as parents. Try to imagine, perhaps even to feel, the suffering and endless grief of those devastated family members who must deal with the injury or loss of a child, a child as vibrant and as important to them as your children are to you. Can you feel their pain? Can you understand their grief?
As a former United States Marine Corps Officer, I realize the realities of the dangerous world in which we live. That sometimes, in dire situations of last resort, such sacrifices may be necessary to defend America and the values we hold sacred. It is clear, I think, to all, even to those who previously supported or were deceived into voting for the war, that the invasion of Iraq was a mistake, that the continuing military occupation and escalation accomplishes nothing save costing more lives, further enriching corporate war profiteers, and swelling the ranks of Al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations. It is clear as well, that over the long term, what truly threatens the very foundations and fabric of our way of life is not some amorphous, enigmatic horde of bloodthirsty terrorists. Nor is it Iraqi “insurgents” struggling to rid their Country of foreign occupiers. Rather, it is the assault upon truth, individual freedom, the Constitution, and the values of justice and morality by those opportunists in the current Administration, obsessed and motivated by wealth and power, determined to forward their flawed agenda.
It is time, long past time, for decisive action. We must realize that however distant we may see ourselves from this war, especially in a democracy, we are all responsible and culpable for the death and destruction prosecuted in our name. We all have the blood of our children and of innocent Iraqis on our hands. As a veteran of the Vietnam War, I know, first hand, the burden of having to live with decisions that caused others to be killed and to die. Members of Congress, I implore you to have the political and moral courage to do what you know is right. You must vote to end this debacle in Iraq, to block funding for this war, to bring all U.S. troops home now, to ensure that the Veterans Administration is adequately funded to treat and care for our veterans, and to pay reparations for the death, destruction, and chaos we have inflicted upon the Iraqi people.
This is not about politics, nor is it about jockeying for favorable position in the next election. It is about morality and justice, of doing what is right. It is about human beings and saving lives. As was clearly demonstrated during the last election, America has had enough of an incompetent, deceitful, and arrogant Executive Branch and a cowardly and inept "rubber stamp" Congress. We have had enough of "middle of the road", "do nothing" politics while other people’s children continue to die for a mistake. We have had enough as well of meaningless political distractions regarding such issues as flag burning and same sex marriages. In the 110th Congress, the Democratic Party has been given an opportunity by the American people in the hope that a Democratic led Congress would have the insight and moral courage to end this senseless and tragic debacle in Iraq and restore immediately the rule of law in compliance with our Constitution and International Agreements. It is my view that this opportunity is also a test, that the future of the Democratic party will rest upon whether over the next eighteen months, Democrats demonstrate that they are up to the challenge of providing courageous, competent, and moral leadership . . . and not just politics as usual.
I know we all hope for bipartisan cooperation between Congress and the Executive Branch. However, I must remind you that cooperation does not entail compromising your principles and your integrity. It does not mean ignoring morality in behalf of perceived political gain. Most importantly, it does not mean acquiescing to the demands of a delusional Executive Branch still determined to ignore the sane, rational, and fact-based advice of, among others, the Iraq Study Group and senior military leaders, as well as the desires of the American people, and arrogantly continues to pursue its failed policies in Iraq and around the world. Congress must again assume its responsibilities of oversight under the Constitution. Congress must end funding for this war now, investigate the actions of this Administration and if the findings warrant, must ensure that justice is done, that those responsible and culpable for deceiving the American people, violating the Constitution, ignoring International law, etc., be prosecuted for their transgressions. This oversight is not a distraction, it is a Congressional responsibility.
It is my hope, and the hope of the vast majority of the American people, that you will hear the cries for sanity and for peace, not only from your constituencies but also from people around the world. Members of Congress, in your hands rest the future of our great Nation. Please act wisely, quickly, and courageously to restore America’s greatness and its moral leadership in the world. Bring our troops home now. Stop the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis and the wasting of billions of American dollars that could better be spent on education, health care, global warming, etc. - - money that could better be spent saving lives rather than destroying them.
