Frank Lautenberg: “I am sure that what is taking place on the floor of the Senate must present a terribly confusing picture to the American…”

“I am sure that what is taking place on the floor of the Senate must present a terribly confusing picture to the American people. It is hard to understand even being here, with colleagues shouting their support for the American troops while they inject that what they need is an injection of truth serum for the vote. Then it will be plain and simple to see where they are, those who are opposing a direct vote, an up-or-down, as we call it, to take place, and that will answer the question: Do you want our soldiers, airmen, seamen, and marines returned home, as the American people are demanding? I remind our friends that the obligation is to get our people back to their families as soon as possible. Outside my office, I pay respect to America's lost soldiers, our casualties of war, in a display called the 'Faces of the Fallen.' It gives a picture and some background of the soldiers who gave their lives in this ill-conceived and seemingly endless war in Iraq. Every day, families, friends, and visitors search through thousands of photos looking to see if there are people they know, while they try to comprehend the human cost of this war to parents, spouses, children, siblings, and friends across our country. Four years and 4 months have passed since President Bush sent young American men and women to fight in a war based on faulty intelligence and incomplete information about an enemy and the scope of this ferocious conflict.”