Remarks of U.S. Senator Russ Feingold
In Opposition to the Iraq Supplemental Conference Report
As delivered from the Senate Floor
Watch or listen to Senator
Feingold's remarks.
May 24, 2007
Mr. President, I rise today to express my disappointment both in
the final version of the supplemental spending bill that we expect
to consider today and in the process that led to this badly flawed
bill. Those two concerns are linked, because the flawed procedure
that the Senate adopted when we passed a sham supplemental bill last
week without debate or amendments helped grease the wheels for a final
bill that contains no binding language on redeployment. While our
brave troops are stuck in the middle of a civil war in Iraq, we have
a bill with political benchmarks that lack meaningful consequences
if they are not reached.
Legislation as important as this funding bill should have been openly
considered in this body. I am talking about an open and on the record
debate, with amendments offered and voted upon. That’s the way
the Senate is supposed to operate. I share the desire of my colleagues
to pass this important bill as quickly as possible, but that was no
excuse for us avoiding our responsibilities as legislators.
Unquestionably it was easier -- and faster -- for us to send a place-holder
bill back to the House. By doing that, the real work could be done
behind closed doors where all kinds of horse trading can occur and
decisions are unknown until the final deal is sealed. That process
makes it a lot easier for most members of Congress to avoid responsibility
for the final outcome – we didn’t have to cast any votes
or make any difficult decisions. In short, we didn’t have to
do any actual legislating. And now that we face a badly flawed take-it-or-leave
it bill, we can simply shrug and tell our constituents “Hey,
we did the best we could.” Well, that’s not good enough
– not when we are talking about the most pressing issue facing
this country.
In the five months we’ve been in control of Congress, a unified
Democratic caucus, with the help of some Republicans, has made great
strides toward changing the course in Iraq. We were able to pass a
supplemental bill supported by a majority of the Senate that required
the phased redeployment of our troops to begin in 120 days. And last
week, a majority of Democrats supported ending the current open-ended
mission by March 31, 2008. It’s been almost one year since 13
Senators supported a proposal I offered with Senator Kerry that would
have brought our troops out of Iraq by this summer. Now, 29 Senators
support an even stronger measure, enforced by Congress’s power
of the purse, to safely redeploy our troops.
Unfortunately, after that strong vote, we are moving backward. Instead
of forcing the President to safely redeploy our troops, instead of
coming up with a strategy providing assistance to a post-redeployment
Iraq, and instead of a renewed focus on the global fight against al-Qaeda,
we are faced with a spending bill that kicks the can down the road
and buys the Administration time.
But why, I ask you, would we buy the Administration more time? Why
should we wait any longer? Since the war began in March 2003, we have
lost more than 3,420 Americans, with over 71 killed since the beginning
of this month. Last month, we lost over one hundred Americans. Last
weekend, the media reported that 24 bodies were found lying in the
streets of Baghdad; all of whom had been killed execution style. 19
of them were found in parts of the city where U.S. troops have “surged.”
The Administration’s policy, Mr. President, is clearly untenable.
The American people know that, which is why they voted the way they
did in November. They want us out of Iraq and they want us out now.
They don’t want to give the so-called “surge” time.
They don’t want to pass this problem off to another President,
and another Congress. And they sure don’t want another American
servicemember to die, or lose a limb, while elected representatives
put their own political comfort over the wishes of their constituents.
It was bad enough to have the President again disregard the American
people by escalating our involvement in Iraq. Now, too, Congress seems
to be ignoring the will of the American people. Mr. President, if the
American people cannot count on the leaders they elect to listen to
them, and to act on their demands, then something is seriously wrong
with our political institutions – or with the people who currently
occupy those institutions. I urge my colleagues to reject the weak supplemental
conference report, and to stand strong as we tell the Administration
that it is time to end a war that is draining our resources, straining
our military, and undermining our national security.
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