Lynn C. Woolsey: “Madam Speaker, I rise today for the 180th time in the last few years to challenge the Congress and the President to end…”

“Madam Speaker, I rise today for the 180th time in the last few years to challenge the Congress and the President to end the destructive, violent, senseless military occupation of Iraq. A generation ago, Madam Speaker, Democratic and Republican Presidents alike entangled the Nation in a foolish and unnecessary war. Even after a decade, and thousands upon thousands of American casualties in the jungles of Vietnam, our leaders could not bring themselves to publicly admit what most Americans knew; that the United States was asking its youngest and bravest to risk life and limb on an unwinnable mission. Today, our President is repeating this American tragedy. President Bush said that his goal is to win in Iraq. But he has offered no clear idea of what he means by this or how it is achieved. He just knows he doesn't want to lose. The bipartisan Iraq Study Group concluded that the United States cannot win in Iraq; that the only question is how best to exit. Iraq is mired in a civil war, and even though we helped ignite it, we have very little influence on its outcome. You can't expect American soldiers as brave, as intelligent, and honorable as they are to solve a religious and sectarian conflict that stretches back centuries. Whether we stay or leave, the Iraqis will be the ones to decide their own fate.”