Cord Byrd: “I understand it is possible the United States could be lucky if the United States made a unilateral decision to invade…”

“I understand it is possible the United States could be lucky if the United States made a unilateral decision to invade Iraq. We could be lucky, but we might not be. Does the Senator have any idea, based on his having information from the administration, what is the likelihood we might find ourselves bogged down in the hot sands of the Middle East and our men and women may have to fight a house-to-house, apartment-to-apartment battle in any one of the cities of Iraq? What would be the cost in terms of human life, not only of Iraqis but of our own men and women, if we were faced with a war in which we have to go street by street, avenue by avenue, house by house, floor to floor, to root out the snipers? What would be the cost in American lives? The distinguished Senator has stated that in this war, Saddam may believe he has nothing to lose by pushing the button and going the final mile, the last way, and making whatever expenditure in human life that flows from that decision. I wonder if the administration, in its planning, has determined at any point that we may be faced with that kind of situation. I wonder this further, if the Senator will allow me: Have the American people been asked to face up to that possibility?”