Lynn C. Woolsey: “since the United States went to war in Iraq over 2 years ago, Congress has approved spending bill after spending bill to…”

“since the United States went to war in Iraq over 2 years ago, Congress has approved spending bill after spending bill to pay for military operations in Iraq. But one thing Congress has never done is provide any meaningful oversight over the war and the spending on the war. Think about it. Congress will spend money on Iraq to the point of busting our already fragile budget, but when it comes to truly managing the war, Congress is nowhere to be found. Every single Member of Congress and the people that elected them should be utterly ashamed of this absence of Congress on this crucial issue. With nearly 2,000 United States troops killed, another 15,000 wounded, and countless thousands of Iraqis killed, the U.S. Congress must, must exercise its oversight responsibilities to determine why things are going so drastically wrong in Iraq. I have repeatedly asked the House Armed Services Committee and the House International Relations Committee to hold hearings on Iraq. Unfortunately, no committee has undertaken a serious and thoughtful examination of the war. Since Congress has continually failed in that duty, I have decided to take matters into my own hands. Last Thursday I held a hearing to assess how to end the war in Iraq and start bringing our troops home. Such luminaries as former Senator Max Cleland, four-star Marine Corps General Joseph Hoar, and former U.S. Ambassador David Mack testified at this hearing.…”