Ted Poe: “today we vote on the ``Iraq surrender bill.'' Approval of it means we vote to abandon Iraq at an arbitrary time, no…”

“today we vote on the ``Iraq surrender bill.'' Approval of it means we vote to abandon Iraq at an arbitrary time, no matter the situation. We vote to retreat even if it means defeat. We vote to quit while our troops are in the field. And we vote for peace at any price. This bill will put American troops at risk. And for some odd reason, this emergency Iraqi bill is loaded with squealing pork that has nothing to do with our troops or the war. One provision is to give $3 billion to farmers hurt by bad weather, like my rice farmers in southeast Texas that were devastated by Hurricane Rita. But I will not barter my position. I will not betray our troops for 30 pieces of silver or $3 billion of squealing pork. The troops in Iraq need our total commitment, not total defeatism. Ronald Reagan put it best, ``Men cry `peace, peace,' but there can be no peace as long as there is one American somewhere dying for the rest of us.'' And that's just the way it is.”