House Proceeding 03-18-09 on Mar 18th, 2009 :: 0:09:10 to 0:15:05
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0:09:06 to 0:09:27( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: following members may be permitted to address the house for five minutes, to revise and extend their remarks and include therein extraneous material. ms. woolsey, california. mr. furify, connecticut, mr. defazio, oregon, mr. fal mo vega, america samoa, ms. kaptur, ohio, mr. sherman,

0:09:10 to 0:15:05( Edit History Discussion )
Speech By: Lynn C. Woolsey

0:09:28 to 0:09:48( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: california, mrs. taylor, mississippi. the speaker pro tempor without objection. under the speaker's announced policy of january 6, 2009, and under a previous order of the house, the following members arrecognized for five minutes each. ms. woolsey of california. the gentlelady is recognized

0:09:49 to 0:10:09( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: for five minutes. ms. woolsey: thank you, mr. speaker. mr. speaker, in two days we will mark the sixth anniversary of america's invasion and occupation of iraq. when president bush announced the start of the conflict on the night of march 20, 2003, he

0:10:10 to 0:10:30( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: said that america must go to war agains a regime, a regime that threatens the peace with weapons of mass murder. of course, mr. speaker, we know that those weapons did not exist. and that the war should never have been fought. but today i don't want to go back and i don't wt to

0:10:31 to 0:10:51( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: revisit all the many mistakes of the past. instead, i want to use this time to remember the literally millions of men, women and children from the united states of america, from iraq and from the many other countries whose lives have been shattered over the past six years.

0:10:52 to 0:11:12( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: these include those who died, the woded, the veterans, the refugees, the orphans, the widoys and the many other family -- widows and the many other family members who are left to mourn and to struggle. we have a great responsibility in this house of representatives to honor and to

0:11:13 to 0:11:33( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: give meaning to their sacrifice. and i believe the best way to do that is by committing ourselves to work for peace. so that war becomes a thing of the past. on this sixth anniversary, mr. speaker, anniversary of the occupation, we have more reason to hope for peace than on the

0:11:34 to 0:11:56( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: previous five. that's because we have a new leader in the white house. one who has already taken some very positive steps. president obama is committed to diplomacy, not war. and the most important tool of american foreign policy. he's banned the use of torture. he is closing the notorious

0:11:57 to 0:12:18( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: prison at guantanamo bay. and he has announced a plan to remove all combat troops from iraq. but, mr. speaker, there is much more that we need to do. the iraq withdrawal plan will leave 50,000 troops behind to continue the occupation. that is unacceptable.

0:12:19 to 0:12:40( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: all troops and military contractors must come home by august, 2010, at the latest. if afghanistan -- in afghanistan the administration is planning to double down on our military involvement. but, mr. speaker, there is no military solution to this

0:12:41 to 0:13:01( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: situation in afghanistan. that is why i've joined my colleagues, barbara lee and maxine waters, in asking the president to establish a timeline for the redeployment of our troops out of afghanistan. we have also called for a plan to assist the afghan people because we cannot defeat the taliban with bombs and bullets.

0:13:02 to 0:13:22( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: we can only defeat the taliban by helping the afghan people to meet their desperate needs for schools, for roads and for economic development. but we need to do more than just solve problems as they arise. we need to be proactive. we need to have a comprehensive strategy for keeping t peace.

0:13:23 to 0:13:43( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: let me suggest two ways to achieve that goal. first, i believe this is a good time to renew congressman kucinich's call for the establishment of a cabinet-level department of peace. so that we can work full time to analyze international

0:13:44 to 0:14:07( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: president on strategies to prevent war and to peacefully resolve conflicts around the world. the president of the united states has never had the advantage of such advice and i believe it is high time that he did. second, i believe that this is a good time to renew our

0:14:08 to 0:14:29( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: proposal for a smart national security plan. smart is based on a simple idea. war is an outdated concept. that's why my smart plan keeps americans safe through strong global alliances and better intelligence. as opposed to preemptive military strikes. smart also calls for the united

0:14:30 to 0:14:50( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: states to support nuclear nonproliferation and it includes an ambitious humanitarian development agenda to end the hopelessness and oppression that lead to war and terrorism in the first place. mr. speaker, after these many years of violence, one thing is clear, the american people have

0:14:51 to 0:15:05( Edit History Discussion )

Lynn C. Woolsey: had enough war. they are seeking a better way to make the world safe for their children and grandchildren. so let us resolve in the honor of those who suffer because of a mistaken occupation six years