Joe Wilson: “Mr. Chairman, there are a lot of thoughtful and difficult issues that people have been trying to address here on all…”

“Mr. Chairman, there are a lot of thoughtful and difficult issues that people have been trying to address here on all sides this afternoon. I think there is sincerity on all sides. The underlying proposal that we are asked to endorse today is to endorse, without conditions, the indefinite assignment of 4,000 Americans as part of a NATO force of 30,000 in the territory of a sovereign country with which we are not at war, and over the objections of that country, on the grounds that the administration of the province of Kosovo is not in accordance with international humanitarian standards. I am a supporter of NATO, and I am a supporter of American involvement in the world. In fact, I used to serve in the United States mission to NATO. I have worn the uniform of a member of the armed services. But let us not make any mistake here, this deployment is an extraordinary departure from what is envisioned in the NATO charter, and it is a departure from much of American diplomatic history.”