Congressional Record—House H1614
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H1614 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE February 14, 2007 for a great purpose and goal that our We have spent and are continuing to EXPRESSING SORROW OF THE Commander in Chief has ordered us to spend $9 billion a month in Iraq; 3,122 HOUSE AT THE DEATH OF THE achieve. I have never felt it would be of our servicemen and -women have HONORABLE CHARLIE NORWOOD, an easy task, nor should those at home been killed; 23,550-plus have been MEMBER OF CONGRESS FROM living their comfortable lives. Have we wounded; tens of thousands more Iraqis THE STATE OF GEORGIA forgotten that this great country of killed and wounded. The violence is es- Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I ours was not handed to us on a silver calating, our troops are the targets. offer a privileged resolution (H. Res. platter? I am asking everyone, please 159) and ask for its immediate consider- I do not think this resolution pre- don’t allow those of us who have died ation. to die in vain. When we have completed judges anything. The facts speak for The Clerk read the resolution, as fol- the mission and have been successful in themselves. And the people are saying lows: defending freedom, we will come bring the troops home with honor. I did H. RES. 159 home.’’ not support this war at its outset. We Resolved, That the House has heard with b 1630 had Saddam Hussein contained. Al profound sorrow of the death of the Honor- Qaeda was not in Iraq. We had a job to able Charlie Norwood, a Representative from Mr. HUNTER. Mr. Speaker, I just do in Afghanistan. I supported going the State of Georgia. want to thank the gentleman. I want into Afghanistan to capture Osama bin Resolved, That a committee of such Mem- to thank the gentleman for yielding bers of the House as the Speaker may des- Laden. But I saw no clear rationale for this time to Mr. LOBIONDO. As this ignate, together with such Members of the Member gets time in the coming de- sending troops into combat in Iraq. Senate as may be joined, be appointed to at- bate, we owe you one. The resolution does offer a statement tend the funeral. Resolved, That the Sergeant-at-Arms of The SPEAKER pro tempore. The of support for the troops. Their service the House be authorized and directed to take House of Representatives extends its is an extraordinary gift. They volun- such steps as may be necessary for carrying deepest sympathy to the gentleman teer to leave their homes and families out the provisions of these resolutions and from New Jersey. and risk their lives every day, at the that the necessary expenses in connection Mr. SHERMAN. Mr. Speaker, I yield order of the President. All they ask is therewith be paid out of applicable accounts 5 minutes to the very patient and the of the House. that we never ask them to go to con- Resolved, That the Clerk communicate very distinguished gentleman from flict unless that conflict is absolutely Minnesota, the chairman of the Trans- these resolutions to the Senate and transmit necessary and in the national interest. a copy thereof to the family of the deceased. portation and Infrastructure Com- Resolved, That when the House adjourns mittee (Mr. OBERSTAR). Lieutenant General William Odom, today, it adjourn as a further mark of re- Mr. OBERSTAR. Mr. Speaker, this is in a recent article in The Washington spect to the memory of the deceased. the moment that a majority of Ameri- Post said, about the question that we The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gen- cans who voted last November have have to continue to fight in order to tleman from Georgia (Mr. DEAL) is rec- been waiting for, a time when Congress support the troops, has anyone asked ognized for 1 hour. does something about Iraq. And that the troops? During their first tours, Mr. DEAL of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, I something that the people asked of us many may have favored staying the yield 30 minutes of time to the gen- is to get us out of Iraq. course. But now in their second, third, tleman from Georgia (Mr. LEWIS) and The resolution before us will not of fourth tours, he writes, many are thank him for arranging for this reso- itself get U.S. forces out of Iraq, but to changing their minds. lution to be heard at this time today. paraphrase Winston Churchill, if it is Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 2 min- We see no evidence of that in the not the end, it is at least the beginning utes. of the end. news stories about unhappy troops Mr. Speaker, as we all know, we lost Our President is having trouble un- being sent back to Iraq. The strangest a true champion in the House of Rep- derstanding the message from the aspect of the rationale, General Odom resentatives on yesterday: CHARLES American people. It is a simple mes- writes, for continuing the war is the NORWOOD from Georgia. CHARLIE, as he sage that I hear every time I go back implication that our troops are some- was known by most of us here, was home to Minnesota. Time to bring our how responsible for deciding to con- truly a friend across party lines and troops home with honor. The people tinue the President’s course. across State lines. He was a true pa- are telling me our mission in Iraq is ac- That political and moral responsi- triot. He served in the dental services complished. The President already de- bility belongs to the President, not to in the U.S. Army in the combat zone of clared victory. The goals of the U.S. in- the troops. Didn’t Harry Truman make Vietnam. vasion have been met. He returned to a private dental prac- it clear that the buck stops in the Oval Iraq’s army was defeated, Saddam tice in Georgia, and then in the elec- Hussein removed from power and Office? The President keeps dodging it. tion cycle of 1994 was elected to this brought to judgment. The Iraqi people Where does it stop, General Odom asks, House of Representatives. He came held elections to establish a new gov- with Congress? And that is why we are with a passion for many things. Health ernment. Mission accomplished. Time here today to say it is up to us to make care was at the very top of his list. to bring the troops home with honor. a definitive statement with this resolu- Education was very shortly thereafter. No weapons of mass destruction were tion, a statement that it is time to end And he worked on both of those issues found, despite extensive searches. The the U.S. involvement in Iraq, to bring with all of his heart. Iraqis have a government, they have an the troops home with honor. And then He inspired many people in this army, a police force. There is no fur- if the President does not heed, then we House because he was indeed pas- ther purpose of American policy to be must take more vigorous steps, steps sionate about everything that he did. If served by a continued military pres- that I voted for in coming to end the he was your friend, you knew he was ence in Iraq. U.S. involvement in Vietnam over 32 your friend. If you were on the opposite What remains in Iraq is religious years ago. side of an issue from him, he let you warfare between Sunni and Shia, with know that as well, but he was still your our troops caught in the crossfire. This If that is what it takes, then we have friend. is not the job our troops signed up for. to say that the buck stops with us in All of us watched as we observed This is not the war President Bush sold the Congress to stop the U.S. engage- what had been diagnosed in 1998 as an to Congress. People are telling the ment in Iraq. incurable disease. And following that President, it is time to bring the troops diagnosis, he underwent lung trans- ANNOUNCEMENT BY THE SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE home and to do it with honor. plant surgery. That was a process that President Bush has said he is con- The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursu- most of us probably would have had cerned this resolution is prejudging the ant to section 3 of House Resolution great difficulty undergoing. But CHAR- outcome of our involvement in Iraq. I 157, further proceedings on the concur- LIE did it with courage. He rebounded would say the outcome is not in doubt. rent resolution will be postponed. with the same kind of determination VerDate Aug 31 2005 05:07 Feb 15, 2007 Jkt 059060 PO 00000 Frm 00048 Fmt 7634 Sfmt 0634 E:\CR\FM\K14FE7.089 H14FEPT1 ccoleman on PRODPC75 with HOUSE February 14, 2007 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE H1615 and willingness to go forward in spite me to want to some day have the op- men, Abraham Lincoln and Robert E. of the inconveniences that that portunity, and thank God that I did, to Lee. It was at a time when this Nation brought to him. follow in that walk that he walked. was going through its great Civil War We saw him with his oxygen tank, What a great Member of this body and how to fix that. That conversation and we saw him on his little scooter as and what a fierce competitor and a fair went like this.