Harry Reid: “I want the majority leader to understand how much I appreciate his breaking up his schedule to come here to offer this…”

“I want the majority leader to understand how much I appreciate his breaking up his schedule to come here to offer this unanimous consent request. I appreciate it very much. As I indicated a short time ago, the solemnity of this occasion is significant. I want the record to reflect that we have reached, as has been said here several times today, regrettably, a milestone in Iraq; that is these 2,000 killed. Frankly, Mr. President, it is no longer 2,000. It is now 2,002. There has been--and will continue to be--heated debate about our involvement in Iraq, about the flawed pre-war intelligence that some say existed, and it appears pretty certain at this time, the selling of the war by administration officials, the poor planning, and the ideologically driven attempt by the President and others to reshape the Middle East through the force of arms. These debates will go on, and they should. That is what our country is all about. But today--right now this minute--I think it is appropriate to set the debate aside and reflect on this solemn mark that we have reached so that we can pay tribute to the heroic services and the sacrifice that each of these brave Americans made to our Nation. A few months ago, I was able to travel along with a number of my colleagues to the Middle East where I spent time with scores of Nevadans serving in Iraq. Any one of us who traveled to the region meets with U.S.…”