Pete Sessions: “I am glad this long and unfortunate political process has apparently come to an end, so we can now provide the funding…”

“I am glad this long and unfortunate political process has apparently come to an end, so we can now provide the funding for our troops that has been needed for some time. The failure to do so has created uncertainty and ambiguity and has, I believe, undermined our policies in Iraq in a number of different ways. Historically, politics have stopped at the water's edge. That was a cardinal rule of American foreign policy that you might agree with or not, but you would not criticize fundamental decisions made by the United States while things are ongoing in various places in the world and, certainly, you would not take steps and actions that would undermine our troops in combat someplace in the world. Vigorous debate is absolutely a part of who we are as a Nation. A lot of people who have been critical of our war efforts in Iraq have made suggestions that have been good. A number of their criticisms have been correct, and it is certainly welcome and a part of our heritage that we would have that kind of debate. I don't mean to suggest otherwise. But the delays we have been seeing now in actually providing the funding necessary for our military men and women in harm's way has been too long. I believe it has had a tendency to embolden our enemies and raise questions in the minds of our own soldiers. So as I have said a number of times on the floor of the Senate, those soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan today are there for one reason, and that is because we sent them.”