Second District Congressman Dave Loebsack, a democrat, spoke today on the resolution against the proposed troop surge in Iraq. Loebsack says he supports the resolution because he believes the plan is the wrong approach for the conflict in Iraq. Loebsack says the resolution should be the start of action in Congress.
"For too long Congress refused to stand up to the administration. Our actions today must mark the beginning of Congress’ role, not the end," Loebsack says. Loebsack says the U.S. has done all it can in Iraq.
Loebsack says U.S. troops have performed "valiantly: in Iraq in getting rid of a "brutal dictator" in a matter of weeks. He says troops have also helped rebuild the Iraqi economy and infrastructure, but Loebsack says the mission has changed and Iraq is now involved in a civil war that involves "not just two sides, but almost innumerable factions in conflict with one other."
Loebsack says sending more troops into Iraq won’t help the situation. Loebsack says the continued presence of American troops will only exacerbate the problems in Iraq. Loebsack says he is also concerned that it will further strain the readiness level of our troops. Loebsack says the Iraqi people must stand up for themselves and president must reach out to our allies to help.
Loebsack says: "The Bush administration must do something that it has been woefully reluctant to do. It must admit made a major strategic and foreign policy mistake when it invaded Iraq in the first place." He says this admission would go a long way toward preparing the U. S. relations with the rest of the world and Loebsack says that’s a prerequisite for securing help from our allies in Iraq. Loebsack is a freshman congressman from Mount Vernon.