Lynn C. Woolsey: “exactly 1 year ago the first bombs blasted in Baghdad and the United States christened a shameful new military doctrine…”

“exactly 1 year ago the first bombs blasted in Baghdad and the United States christened a shameful new military doctrine, the preemptive war, against a regime that for all its vicious cruelty had not provoked the United States or our allies. We were told by the President that Iraq posed an imminent threat to our national security with a link to al Qaeda, which is fiction. And our own weapons inspector concluded that weapons of mass destruction did not exist. Where was our intelligence? What were we working on? After September 11, countries throughout the world clamored to give the United States support in the global fight against terrorism. But after bombing Iraq without multinational support, the United States lost the moral authority we once enjoyed around the rest of the world. Today, 1 year later, Iraq remains mired in chaos. It is becoming a breeding ground for terrorists, nowhere near ready to assume the responsibility of a democracy. For this we have sacrificed nearly 600 American lives with thousands more wounded; 27 today have already been killed in Baghdad with hundreds injured. If this Congress wants to support the troops, we should work to equip every soldier in Iraq and Afghanistan with the best equipment and supplies available, including hydration water systems. We would ensure them the benefits they have been promised and they deserve when they return home. But we do not talk about that in this resolution.”