On the recordApril 14, 2010
On April 20, 2004, I rose in this Chamber to say that we needed a new approach to national security. To say for the very first time before any other Member of Congress was brave enough to say it that it was time to bring our troops home from Iraq. I have continued to speak out almost every night that the House is in session, but I never imagined that almost 6 years later I would be here to talk about Iraq and about Afghanistan for the 350th time. But that's what I'm doing today, and it's because our service men and women are still in harm's way in both Iraq and Afghanistan on missions that violate core American values and undermine American security. We have come a long way in building a movement across this country that opposes these military conflicts, but still our leaders stubbornly cling to a disastrous policy. What we're doing in Iraq and Afghanistan is disgraceful. It is a stain on our Nation. It will someday be remembered as a shameful episode in American history.
