Neil Abercrombie: “I come to the floor to indicate to one and all who cannot be here today that our legislative hands are tied. We have no…”

“I come to the floor to indicate to one and all who cannot be here today that our legislative hands are tied. We have no opportunity, even though we pleaded with the Rules Committee to give us an opportunity to be able to speak on alternatives to this resolution. You have heard that this resolution is in support of the troops. It is not. You have heard that this resolution is in support of the war on terrorism. It is not. And I will tell you why it is not, and I will tell you why we have to have an alternative and why we need to vote ``no'' on this resolution, because it doesn't support the troops, and it does not support the war on terrorism. The people in this resolution that are referred to, the honored sacrifice that has been made by the Armed Forces of the United States, is supposedly on behalf of somebody called Prime Minister Nouri al Maliki, a man who today said he was going to engage in conversations with terrorists who have murdered Americans to give them amnesty. This is the amnesty resolution. To vote for this resolution is to vote for those who support amnesty for those who kill American troops. This is the government we are supposed to be standing up and defending, the very freedom that gives that prime minister the possibility of speaking to the terrorists has been won by the blood and sacrifice of American troops. This is the amnesty bill. This is the amnesty resolution.…”