José E. Serrano: “I rise today to talk about Iraq, a failure built on the lies of this Administration. I am opposed to H. Res. 861…”

“I rise today to talk about Iraq, a failure built on the lies of this Administration. I am opposed to H. Res. 861, because contrary to what it states in this resolution, I believe that it is in the best interest of the United States to bring our troops home now. I voted against our involvement in Iraq, and I have opposed funding the conflict. For years, I have been calling for the return of our soldiers. This war has been a mistake, and our continued participation will not change this basic fact. I have the utmost respect for our former Secretary of State Colin Powell. He was a truly outstanding Secretary of State: However, I will never forget how this great American was sent to the United Nations to sell a fabrication and to convince the world that this was a just endeavor with what we all now know was deliberately falsified evidence. This was just one part of a continuous effort to deceive the American public into believing that a conflict, that even many in our military had misgivings about, was the right thing for our nation to do. The image of our President standing on the aircraft carrier and proclaiming ``mission accomplished'' is one that I continue to associate with this failed effort. Since that fabricated public relations moment, both our nation and the nation of Iraq have suffered great personal loss. The American public no longer supports our involvement in Iraq, and we as their representatives, must respect their wishes and bring our troops home.…”