Frank Pallone: “yesterday, an influential Republican voice on foreign affairs admitted that the war in Iraq is doing more harm than good…”

“yesterday, an influential Republican voice on foreign affairs admitted that the war in Iraq is doing more harm than good and that, I quote, ``Our course in Iraq has lost contact with our vital national security interests in the Middle East and beyond.'' Those are the words of Republican Senator Richard Lugar of Indiana, who went to the Senate floor last night to say that changes in strategy need to be made before September. Lugar's comments should be listened to very carefully by my Republican colleagues who continue to hold out hope that the President's troop escalation strategy can work. Senator Lugar is just the latest to admit that the President's plan is not working and that a new strategy is needed in Iraq. Last week, General Petraeus himself said that we will not meet the target of seeing any positive results from the troop escalation plan by September. Now, Senator Lugar's realistic assessment of the war in Iraq is commendable, but words are simply not enough. If Lugar is convinced that the war in Iraq is no longer in our Nation's best interest, he must join us in finding an alternative that begins to bring our troops home.”