Political Quotes

“It is time to authorize the use of our military might to enforce the United Nations resolutions, disarm Iraq, and eliminate the ongoing threat to our security, and the world's, posed by Saddam Hussein's rabid regime. Later he asks the question, Why now? He replies: For more than a decade we have tried everything--diplomacy, sanctions, inspections, limited military action--except war to convince Saddam Hussein to keep the promises he made, and the U.N. endorsed, to end the Gulf War. Those steps have not worked . . . So my answer to ``why now?'' is, ``Why not earlier?'' And, of course, that question has new urgency since September 11, 2001. Further, he quotes from former Secretary of Defense Jim Schlesinger, under whom I was privileged to serve as Secretary of the Navy. Senator Lieberman states: As former secretary of defense Schlesinger recently told the Senate Armed Services Committee, ``Vigorous action in the course of an ongoing conflict hardly constitutes preventive war.''”