David Price: “I rise in support of H.R. 2956, which would compel a responsible exit of U.S. troops from Iraq. I voted against giving…”

“I rise in support of H.R. 2956, which would compel a responsible exit of U.S. troops from Iraq. I voted against giving the President the authority to go to war in Iraq. Two years ago, Brad Miller and I introduced legislation to terminate the authorization and to require of the President a comprehensive exit strategy. The President has responded to calls for change by stubbornly adhering to a failed strategy that has cost our Nation dearly in blood, treasure and moral authority. He has rejected Congress's constitutional role in determining policy, and he has ignored the will of the American people. This obstinate, irresponsible, destructive course must not continue. Now, the President has put great stock in the recent surge in U.S. forces, but the surge seems mainly to have shifted the locus of the fighting. The intent was to create space for Iraq's political leaders to make the hard choices that will lead their country forward, but those hard choices are not being made. We can no longer leave our foreign policy at the mercy of sectarian and political forces we cannot control. A mission of simply biding time, at great cost in blood and treasure, is not one that we can or should support. We must begin to bring our troops home. Yet, as I and many others have repeatedly argued, it not only matters that we leave Iraq, but it also matters greatly how we leave.”