Michael Burgess: “in the last week in August of this year I was privileged to go with several of my colleagues to the country of Iraq. One…”

“in the last week in August of this year I was privileged to go with several of my colleagues to the country of Iraq. One of the things that sticks with me from that trip was the quote from General James Conway of the First Marine Expeditionary Force. He described to us what is going on in Iraq today as a ``vivid success story.'' The American soldiers who fought in Iraq did so with skill, determination and bravery in the face of grave dangers. Their conquest of Iraq was rapid, overwhelming, and the victory was obtained with relatively limited civilian casualties or damage to Iraq's infrastructure. All Americans can be proud of the performance of our Armed Forces in Iraq, and we can unite in honoring of the memory of those courageous soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice to protect their fellow Americans. Having overthrown Saddam's regime, we must now secure the peace. It is absolutely critical to the United States' national security that we help Iraq become a stable, free nation that does not support terrorism or pose a danger to its neighbors. A secure and free Iraq is in our country's national security interests, as it is in the world's security interests. The road ahead is difficult, and every lost American life is a tragedy, but our troops' incredible sacrifices are helping to secure a safer future for our children, our grandchildren and, indeed, the children of the world.”