David Loebsack: “Madam Speaker, today with all my colleagues I stand here in support our brave men and women of the Armed Services, as…”

“Madam Speaker, today with all my colleagues I stand here in support our brave men and women of the Armed Services, as well as their families. We should honor their great commitment and sacrifices without hesitation. I support this resolution because I believe the President's plan for escalation is the wrong approach to the conflicts in Iraq. But this must not be the end of our efforts in Congress. For too long, Congress refused to stand up to the administration. Our actions today must mark the beginning of Congress' role, not the end. The time has come to tell President Bush enough is enough. Last November, the American people spoke. They spoke loudly and clearly on a number of issues, but none more passionately and forcefully than the war in Iraq. The American people, long before this debate this week, decided that the misadventure in Iraq must end. Our troops have performed valiantly in Iraq. In just a matter of a few weeks they removed from power a brutal dictator and began to provide the Iraqi people the opportunity to construct a new political order. Our troops have also contributed mightily to the reconstruction and development of the Iraqi economy and infrastructure. But over the course of this conflict, the mission of our troops has been transformed, and now they find themselves in the middle of a civil war that involves not just two sides, but almost innumerable factions in conflict with one another.”