Lynn C. Woolsey: “In the year 2005, I joined my colleagues and fellow Californians, Maxine Waters and Barbara Lee, and other strong…”

“In the year 2005, I joined my colleagues and fellow Californians, Maxine Waters and Barbara Lee, and other strong progressives in forming the Out of Iraq Caucus. That group was critical in galvanizing support for an end to the Iraq war and a return of our troops safely home. Before we formed the Out of Iraq Caucus, Mr. Speaker, questioning the occupation of Iraq was considered a political death wish, but because we had the courage to speak out and to organize, ours became a firmly mainstream position. Without the work we did and the pressure we applied and the growth of our Out of Iraq Caucus, we would not be poised for redeployment out of Iraq later this year. It's now time for those of us who oppose the war in Afghanistan--a bloc that's growing every single day--to do the same thing. I urge Members on both sides of the aisle to join the new Out of Afghanistan Caucus, formally launched by my friend Mr. Conyers from Michigan. As Afghanistan becomes more bloody, more expensive, and, frankly, more hopeless, we must rally with the same sense of purpose and fearlessness as we did in 2005 in the debate over Iraq. Every day, it seems, brings more bad news out of Afghanistan. The United States death toll has topped 1,000. According to news reports, for the first time we now have more troops in Afghanistan than we do in Iraq, and the combined costs of both wars is fast approaching $1 trillion--that's trillion with a ``T,'' Mr. Speaker.…”