Steve Stivers: “I would like to thank the chairwoman for yielding me time. I rise in support of the Speaker's resolution. With 26 years…”

“I would like to thank the chairwoman for yielding me time. I rise in support of the Speaker's resolution. With 26 years of military service, my experience has taught me many lessons, and those lessons give me pause and concern with regard to the Kucinich resolution. I think we need to be prudent, thoughtful and measured in the way we end our involvement in Libya, and I don't believe that the Kucinich resolution does that. Even though the President did not follow proper procedures and even though he should have allowed Congress to debate and decide the issue, a 15-day withdrawal would cause other issues. Currently, the U.S. is providing important refueling, logistics and other support functions for our NATO allies. Unfortunately, if you create a 15-day time line, those allies might not have time to plan or build capacity to resource their plan and effectively continue their operations. I don't agree with how the President has handled our current military mission in Libya, and I don't think he has currently explained the national security interest of our mission. However, I think the troops that have been called to action have performed admirably, and I thank them for their service. But now we are involved, and the time frame for withdrawal in the Kucinich resolution would hurt our NATO allies, the same allies who have stood by us in Afghanistan for 10 years. They deserve our cooperation in any transition. I support the Speaker's alternative resolution on Libya.…”