Marcy Kaptur: “To fail to understand their importance or their systematic exclusion from the machinations in Baghdad is to play a war…”

“To fail to understand their importance or their systematic exclusion from the machinations in Baghdad is to play a war game of chess with half the board empty. Be aware, if certain key decisionmakers in our own government as well as Baghdad's didn't recognize that Mosul could be taken by ISIL, why depend on those same advisers to plot a forward strategy now? Our policy should be to leave no chessmen off the table. Today, very, very, very reluctantly, I will support this resolution, but with great misgivings. I hold the sincere hope the administration will hear my pleas to measure up to the full task at hand. Leave no major Sunni interests absent from the daunting political and military coalition that must be forged to be successful in this venture. {time} 1730 Mr. McKEON. Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to the distinguished gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. McAllister), my friend and colleague. Mr. McALLISTER. Mr. Speaker, I thank the chairman for all his hard work on getting this amendment before us today. Mr. Speaker, I am very frustrated that I stand before you today and we can wage a war on Ebola, yet we sit back for hours and allow ISIL to wage a war against us. A ``no'' vote is the easiest vote to cast. We cannot stand back and do nothing while ISIL continues to threaten our national security and terrorizes the Middle East. Everyone wants to be a general, but now is not the time to argue amongst ourselves.…”