Virginia Foxx: “as we celebrate the 1-year anniversary of Iraqi sovereignty, I would like to take the time to express my gratitude and…”

“as we celebrate the 1-year anniversary of Iraqi sovereignty, I would like to take the time to express my gratitude and appreciation for the men and women of the United States military who are fighting for freedom in Iraq and around the world, both those still fighting and those who have fallen. These soldiers of liberty are following the tradition of what Franklin Delano Roosevelt described as ``the greatest arsenal of democracy.'' From Bunker Hill to Gettysburg, and from the beaches of Normandy to the rice paddies of Vietnam, no nation has lost so many in the name of liberty. Indeed, never before in the history of mankind has one people acted to free so many of the world's oppressed, both within and beyond its borders. America does not fight for land, glory or riches. No, Mr. Speaker, we fight to free those who live on the land, to spread the bounties of freedom, and to bring the riches of liberty to those who cannot do the job alone. So it has been, and so it is in Iraq. Our brave soldiers and support personnel are engaged in a battle as important as any the United States has ever before waged, for the success of democracy in Iraq is a crucial test of the ideals this Nation was founded upon. Our founding texts all proclaim freedom's universalism. Liberty is not the unique right of Americans or even Westerners, but is mankind's right. Indeed, it is a right that according to our Declaration of Independence is unalienable.…”