This week, the House of Representatives debated a Democrat resolution disapproving of the President’s plan to deploy approximately 20,000 more troops to Iraq. During his January 10 speech to the nation, President Bush announced his strategy for the way forward in Iraq, which included the idea of a troop surge. In accordance with the President’s proposal, additional American troops will deploy to Iraq, primarily to Baghdad, in order to better train the Iraqi military, clear and secure neighborhoods and quell the sectarian violence.
As a result of that announcement, House Democrats have brought forth a resolution which criticizes the President’s plan without offering any alternative solution to the situation in Iraq.
“This non-binding resolution is nothing more than a political ploy, rather than a venue for substantive debate on the way forward in Iraq,” said Conaway, a member of the House Armed Services Committee. “I firmly believe that this rhetoric can be dangerous, and can lend the impression that we do not support the efforts of our troops as they put their lives on the line every day in order to protect our freedom. The American people must understand that the consequences of failure in Iraq are unacceptable, and we cannot risk defeat by the hand of Islamic extremists that seek to destroy us.”
The debate on the House Floor this past week will in no way change the President’s plan; it was simply an opportunity for everyone to debate and express their opinion on the troop surge. This non-binding resolution came to a vote today after over 40 hours of debate, and passed by a vote of 246 to 182, with Conaway voting against the resolution.
Conaway went on to say, “The last thing we need to do is to have the 535 independent contractors that make up the House and Senate take on the role as five-star generals to decide where not to send the additional troops. I believe this is the first step of a Democrat plan to de-fund the war. The Iraq resolution we debated this week is merely a stunt that holds no water and does nothing but damage the morale of our troops and embolden our enemy that we are fighting. I am disappointed that Democrats continue to play politics while our brave young men and women of our armed forces are in harm’s way. I believe we should be having an open and honest discussion about the implications of success or failure in Iraq, and the options for the road ahead.”
