Political Quotes

“Since the war in Iraq began, 2,067 Americans have died; 15,568 have been wounded. Today, I joined my colleagues, Senators Levin, Biden, Harry Reid, and others, in offering an amendment to honor their sacrifice and service and to seek a new course in Iraq in the coming year. I was proud to cosponsor the Levin amendment. I thought it made three critical policy statements about Iraq. First, the amendment demanded that the administration provide Congress and the American people with a plan for success and a timetable with estimated dates for the phased redeployment of American forces. Second, the amendment makes it clear that 2006 will not be just another year on the calendar when it comes to the war in Iraq. The next year represents a critical transition period for Iraq, when a newly elected government, as of this December, will take office and must assume the authority and responsibility that comes with sovereignty. This is the year when Iraqi forces must help create the conditions that will finally lead to the phased redeployment of U.S. troops. The Levin amendment also stated that the administration had to make it crystal clear to the Iraqi people that we were not in Iraq indefinitely. We are neither permanent occupiers nor are we a permanent police force for the Iraqi people. That is a job for Iraq, not for the United States.…”