Joe Wilson: “I saw during the flights that I had six buildings destroyed. I also saw sites where rubble was pushed up, so I knew…”

“I saw during the flights that I had six buildings destroyed. I also saw sites where rubble was pushed up, so I knew there were buildings no longer there. But the infrastructure is in place. The bridges that had to be destroyed in Serbia, that did not occur in Iraq. The bridges were in across the Tigris and the Euphrates. When we talk about rebuilding, I hope the American people understand it is not because of the American destruction. The destruction is that created by Saddam Hussein. For example, in the schools, we are working very hard to show our good faith to the people of Iraq to get the schools open on October 1. When we talk about rebuilding the schools, we are not building beautiful edifices. Many of these schools are one-room schoolhouses which we are repainting. Particularly in the Shiite areas, the persons less likely to be followers of Saddam Hussein, their schools were closed or left to be dilapidated. They are not to American standards, but they are going to be very fine schools. And very importantly, the materials they have to learn from will be modern materials.”