Specifically, Harry Reid continues to choose to completely ignore all the successes made via the efforts of our troops, continuing rather to engage in the rhetoric and propaganda of defeat at all costs. Said Harry “The Undertaker” Reid today,
Of course in that statement Reid refuses to acknowledge that the last few months, largely in part due to the efforts of our troops and their commanders, have produced some of the least number of civilian and military casualties since the war began!
And the willing shills over at CNN Radio News simply parroted Reid’s propaganda on their top of the hour newscasts, with no mention of recent and not-so-recent successes.
Earlier this evening, I was at the SD 15 BPOU meeting, where I lamented that I see no Republicans countering the defeatist, seditionist rhetoric coming from Reid and the other traitorous democrat scum that inhabit the hallowed halls of Congress and the Senate.
Thoroughly dejected, I spent the night wondering when someone on the side of victory would come to the defense of our soldiers and their mission.
Tuesday, November 6, 2007
Mr. President, I want to join my colleagues from Georgia, Senator Chambliss and Senator Isakson, in talking about the news from Iraq. It’s important as we discuss the challenges that we still face and that the Iraqi people still face in Iraq to talk about the complete picture.
And unfortunately, while we have heard much of violence in Iraq and the challenges that face us, we have not heard enough about the successes that the American military and our Iraqi allies are meeting with in that country. It wasn’t that long ago that the surge that General Petraeus, the counterinsurgency strategy that he is the architect of and which he has executed was called a failure on the floor of the United States Senate.
It’s ironic, looking back, that sometimes it’s helpful to go back and learn from history. You don’t have to go back very far; actually just the summer and the spring of this year when leaders on the other side of the aisle called the surge a failure. And the most ironic part of it is that General Petraeus, who is the commander of the multinational forces in Iraq, at the time said we haven’t even started the surge yet. So let me have a few months.
Well, General Petraeus has now had a few months, and the surge has now had an opportunity to make a difference. And in fact, there is much positive news to report. I have to think that the biggest mistake the nay-sayers have made is to bet against the men and women of the United States military. That’s always a mistake, because the the American military men and women have demonstrated that they can accomplish the goals that they set out to do, and they are making a tremendous difference in Iraq in eliminating terrorist strongholds as we continue to train the Iraqi military to take our place.
And as I’ve always said, Mr. President, we all want to bring our troops home. The question is: are we going to bring our troops home based on conditions on the ground and the Iraqis’ ability to secure and stabilize their own country or are we going to do it regardless of the consequences in a way that will create the potential for a failed state in Iraq, another terrorist haven, and encourage our sworn enemies in Iran and elsewhere, embolden them to think that America cannot be trusted and America will turn its back on our allies?
Mr. President, in May, one of our senior colleagues said the surge was supposed to bring stability essential to political reconciliation and economic reconstruction. But he said at the time it has not, and it will not. One short month later the Majority Leader and the Speaker of the House in a letter to the President wrote, “as many had foreseen the escalation has failed to produce the intended results. The increase in US forces has had little impact in curbing the violence or fostering political reconciliation.”
We even bore witness to atrocious ads run by organizations like moveon.org, slandering General Petraeus before he even had a chance to come here and report on the status of the surge in September. Well, Mr. President, the numbers don’t lie. To the dismay of many Americans, some of my colleagues have chosen to conveniently gloss over and try to explain away the progress that’s been made by General Petraeus’ counterinsurgency strategy.
Far from being a simple increase in troops we learned, General Petraeus’ strategy was a new way to attack the enemy in Iraq. That is utilize support from both local Iraqi citizens and tribal leaders to form an offensive against insurgent and terrorist groups. And this strategy has met with a resounding success. It’s become a common story but one worth repeating that Al Anbar province, a Sunni strong hold, was virtually overrun and lost to American and Iraqi forces, because Al Qaeda basically had its way with that region, had terrorized the people so much that they would not stand up and fight them, and basically were being held as victims of terror.
Now, the so-called ‘Anbar Awakening’ has occurred. Tribal leaders have come forward and volunteered their people to serve in the Iraqi police force and the Iraqi security forces, and now Al Anbar province has essentially been rid of organized Al Qaeda strong holds. “The Washington Post” editorial page on October 14 recognized decreasing violence in Iraq and noted that the evidence of a drop in violence in Iraq is becoming hard to dispute.
In September, Iraqi civilian deaths were down 52% from August and 77% from September. The Iraqi health ministry and the associated press reported similar results, and we are thankful that American casualties are down as well. Numbers recently released by the Pentagon corroborate the progress occurring in Iraq. In and around Baghdad, the DOD reports, terrorist operations are down by 59%. Operations targeting Iraqi forces, more than 60%. Car bombs are down by 65%. Casualties due to enemy attacks are down by 77%. And violence during this last Ramadan period was the lowest in three years.
But perhaps the most convincing evidence that things, good things are happening in Iraq is the fact that the Iraqi people are beginning to move back into areas that they had previously left behind, hopeless that peace and security could ever be accomplished. According to recent news reports, even cab drivers are feeling it’s safe tore drive around Baghdad neighborhoods where sectarian violence one made it impossible for them to enter.
Perhaps the most telling story of increased security in Baghdad is one told by the Iraqi people themselves. According to an Associated Press article from this past weekend, thousands of Iraqi refugees who previously fled their homes in heir home country. While it’s easy for skeptics to doubt numbers and statistics, it is nearly impossible to say not long ago Iraqis living in a foreign country now feel safe enough to come home. this clearly indicates that there are good things happening in Iraq. And around Baghdad. The AP reports that in a dramatic turnaround, more than 3,000 Iraqi families driven out of their Baghdad neighborhoods have returned to their homes in the past three months as sectarian violence has dropped.
The article goes on to quote one refugee who returned home to his neighborhood of Qadra. In Qadra, he said, about 15 families have returned. He said, “I’ve called friends and family and told them it’s safe to come home.” Where there was one widespread fear among Iraqi citizens, we’re now seeing something new — hope. Hope for a better and safer future. Nothing confirms this more than the return of refugees and the testimony that they’ve given that it is becoming safer in Iraq, while not yet safe.
No one is saying that the job has been completed, but surely an honest, objective appraisal would acknowledge the improvements in the security situation in Iraq as de demonstrated not only by these statistics, by these testimonials from Iraqis themselves. These heart-warming accounts of families reuniting in neighborhoods which not long ago had been written off as hopeless and businesses opening their doors is an important lesson for us all.
This strategy employed by this new commander, General Petraeus, has worked, and it’s continuing to work. The efforts of our military men and women who have put their hearts and souls into this mission are now paying dividends and producing results. These security gains are not a fluke. What we’re seeing is a direct result of a carefully designed strategy which includes ramped-up counterinsurgency operations, increased efforts to foster cooperation and reconciliation among local tribes and our continued backing of the hard work of the American military and our support for their families.
As we’re presented with funding requests by the Pentagon to bring about a stable and peaceful Iraq, we are ensuring that our soldiers have the resources they need to bring peace and stability to a tumultuous land. And my hope, Mr. President, is that we will not use the funding request from the Pentagon for continued support for our troops as another political football, as has been used in the past, particularly in the face of such hopeful and promising news, for which I would expect that we would be grateful and to thank our men and women in uniform and their families who have sacrificed so much to help bring this about, along with our Iraqi allies.
General Petraeus told reporters this past weekend that, in general, we think there are no Al Qaeda strongholds at this point. While he was quick to remind us that they are still a potent threat, his assessment of the progress in Iraq can be nothing but reassuring. Mr. President, I shudder to think of what would have happened had we listened to the nay-sayers months ago who said, we have to withdraw all our troops, even before the surge was able to be fully im implemented. So far, we have voted 59 times on Iraq-related resolutions, most of which are non-binding Sense of the Senate resolutions.
59 times we have voted, even before the surge had a chance to be implemented. Now we see once again what a mistake it is to bet against the men and women of the United States military and thank goodness those resolutions were not successful and thank goodness our American soldiers, sailors, Marines, airmen, coast guard were able to carry out this new plan under the leadership of General Petraeus, and we now see at least some hope in a land where hope was in short supply.
So, Mr. President, although many of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle prejudged the surge strategy and continue to oppose our efforts in Iraq, some of whom call even today for cutting off funds to support our troops, we see now substantial evidence of progress, and it is my continued hope that these positive developments may yet change the tone of the national dialogue on the global war on terror, including the campaign in Iraq.
It’s time for all members of this body to take an objective look, not through our political lens, not through a lens which sees only to the next general election, but look objectively at what our troops are accomplishing in Iraq instead of focusing only on the challenges. We should at least be honest enough to acknowledge the accomplishments. Not the least of which are the indisputable gains in security that have been made through their sacrifices. I, for one, am proud to recognize and applaud the undeniable achievements of our troops in Iraq.
Their hard work and their tireless dedication has reminded us that a stable and peaceful Iraq is within reach. It’s my fervent hope that my colleagues will join me in acknowledging and honoring the successes achieved by our military personnel and renew their support for them, for their commander, and for the counterinsurgency strategy that is bearing fruit and to always remember their family — families here at home who wait for their loved one to return as soon as their mission is accomplished.
So, I was happily wrong in my assertion that there are no Republicans with the cajones to stand up for our troops and their mission.
Rather, there is a media cabal that is so hellbent on pushing their agenda that they haven’t the balls to present an opposing view that runs counter to their defeat-at-any- cost-so-we-can-crucify-Bush template.
Between the media and the democrats, I feel as if I have ceased being a citizen of America, and am instead a citizen of Wonderland.
The active sedition on the part of not only a critical mass of American citizens but of elected officials sworn to defend the Constitution is getting to be all too surreal.
