WELCH, PETER: Mr. Speaker, I yield 2 minutes to
WELCH, PETER: the gentlewoman from
WELCH, PETER: California, Ms. Harman,
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: entle lady from California
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: is recognized.
HARMAN, JANE: r. Speaker, I thank the
HARMAN, JANE: gentleman for yielding, and I would
HARMAN, JANE: point out to our colleagues that the action just
HARMAN, JANE: described in my view is not
HARMAN, JANE: necessary.
HARMAN, JANE: I rise in support of the rule, the underlying
HARMAN, JANE: bill, and in strong support for
HARMAN, JANE: ending our combat mission in Iraq and redirecting
HARMAN, JANE: our efforts towards stability
HARMAN, JANE: in the region, including Iraq, but also in
HARMAN, JANE: trouble spots like Iran, Lebanon,
HARMAN, JANE: Pakistan and Afghanistan.
HARMAN, JANE: Let me make three points.
HARMAN, JANE: First, based on firsthand experiences from my
HARMAN, JANE: fourth visit to Iraq just weeks
HARMAN, JANE: ago, Baghdad is not safer. True, we have worked
HARMAN, JANE: successfully with tribal
HARMAN, JANE: leaders against al Qaeda in Anbar Province, but
HARMAN, JANE: the major population center,
HARMAN, JANE: Baghdad, the focus of our military surge, is not
HARMAN, JANE: turning around. Progress will
HARMAN, JANE: not be made by a continuation of our combat
HARMAN, JANE: mission.
HARMAN, JANE: Second, the Skelton bill mirrors a companion bill
HARMAN, JANE: in the other body which has
HARMAN, JANE: impressive bipartisan support. I urge Republicans
HARMAN, JANE: to support this measure,
HARMAN, JANE: and know that some will do so.
HARMAN, JANE: The message our constituents want to hear is that
HARMAN, JANE: 290 of us, a veto-proof
HARMAN, JANE: bipartisan majority, insist on a responsible end
HARMAN, JANE: to our combat mission in Iraq
HARMAN, JANE: beginning now with passage of this bill.
HARMAN, JANE: Third, though I feel Homeland Security Secretary
HARMAN, JANE: Chertoff's use of the words
HARMAN, JANE: ``gut feeling'' was unwise, I share the view that
HARMAN, JANE: our country could be attacked
HARMAN, JANE: at any time. Al Qaeda has regrouped in Pakistan
HARMAN, JANE: and expanded its reach
HARMAN, JANE: throughout North Africa. Homegrown cells in
HARMAN, JANE: England and elsewhere are
HARMAN, JANE: increasing, and our assumption must be that they
HARMAN, JANE: are here as well.
HARMAN, JANE: Low-tech, low-scale vehicle-borne attacks are,
HARMAN, JANE: sadly, not hard to execute. At a
HARMAN, JANE: minimum, those, and attacks on soft targets like
HARMAN, JANE: our mass transit systems,
HARMAN, JANE: may be in our near future.
HARMAN, JANE: DHS, FBI and our exceptionally talented local
HARMAN, JANE: police departments are working
HARMAN, JANE: overtime, though their ranks are depleted and
HARMAN, JANE: their equipment and they are
HARMAN, JANE: surged in Iraq. But 100 percent protection is
HARMAN, JANE: impossible.
HARMAN, JANE: Mr. Speaker, this is where our attention must be,
HARMAN, JANE: and our resources. Pass the
HARMAN, JANE: Skelton bill.
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: Gentleman from California
DREIER, DAVID: r. Speaker, at this time I am
DREIER, DAVID: happy to yield 4 minutes to
DREIER, DAVID: my friend from Holland, Michigan, the former
DREIER, DAVID: chairman, now the ranking
DREIER, DAVID: member of the Select Committee on Intelligence.
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: entleman is recognized
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: for four minutes.
HOEKSTRA, PETER: r. Speaker, later on, my
HOEKSTRA, PETER: colleague from California will
HOEKSTRA, PETER: make a motion to defeat the previous question, as
HOEKSTRA, PETER: the gentlewoman from New
HOEKSTRA, PETER: Mexico (Mrs. Wilson) indicated. That will then
HOEKSTRA, PETER: enable us to address a very
HOEKSTRA, PETER: serious issue, the problem that, right now, we
HOEKSTRA, PETER: are blind and deaf to people who
HOEKSTRA, PETER: may want to attack the United States.
HOEKSTRA, PETER: As Secretary Chertoff indicated earlier this
HOEKSTRA, PETER: week, all of the indications are that
HOEKSTRA, PETER: we still remain very, very vulnerable. The
HOEKSTRA, PETER: chatter, the signals, indicate more
HOEKSTRA, PETER: clearly that America is still at risk. And it is
HOEKSTRA, PETER: not only the chatter. All you really
HOEKSTRA, PETER: need to do is take a look at what al Qaeda says.
HOEKSTRA, PETER: They are clear on their intent
HOEKSTRA, PETER: to attack the United States again.
HOEKSTRA, PETER: Take a look at what happened in the U.K. 2 weeks
HOEKSTRA, PETER: ago. Planned attacks in the
HOEKSTRA, PETER: heart of London, planned attack at an airport
HOEKSTRA, PETER: indicate that al Qaeda and
HOEKSTRA, PETER: radical jihadists want to attack the U.K.; but
HOEKSTRA, PETER: they want to attack in Europe,
HOEKSTRA, PETER: and they want to attack us in the United States.
HOEKSTRA, PETER: One of the things that needs to be clear is that
HOEKSTRA, PETER: what has helped keep us safe is
HOEKSTRA, PETER: our intelligence community. And as our ability to
HOEKSTRA, PETER: gain information has changed
HOEKSTRA, PETER: and adapted over the last couple of years, it has
HOEKSTRA, PETER: become even more clear that
HOEKSTRA, PETER: FISA needs to be updated, and FISA needs to be
HOEKSTRA, PETER: updated now. It needs to be
HOEKSTRA, PETER: done before we go home in August because if we
HOEKSTRA, PETER: expect to stay safe, we need to
HOEKSTRA, PETER: make sure that our intelligence community has all
HOEKSTRA, PETER: of the tools at its disposal to
HOEKSTRA, PETER: identify risks, to identify potential terrorists
HOEKSTRA, PETER: and to identify individuals who
HOEKSTRA, PETER: want to do us harm.
HOEKSTRA, PETER: FISA should not be used to protect international
HOEKSTRA, PETER: terrorists. It should not be
HOEKSTRA, PETER: used to protect radical jihadists. It should not
HOEKSTRA, PETER: be used as a screen to protect
HOEKSTRA, PETER: members of al Qaeda. Remember, FISA was designed
HOEKSTRA, PETER: in the 1970s, designed to
HOEKSTRA, PETER: handle a Cold War surveillance of countries like
HOEKSTRA, PETER: the Soviet Union. Back then
HOEKSTRA, PETER: and into the 80s and early 90s, our intelligence
HOEKSTRA, PETER: community only needed to be
HOEKSTRA, PETER: one step faster than the former Soviet Union. We
HOEKSTRA, PETER: didn't have to be that fast.
HOEKSTRA, PETER: And the risks and the threats were not as real or
HOEKSTRA, PETER: as immediate to our
HOEKSTRA, PETER: homeland as what they are today.
HOEKSTRA, PETER: Today our intelligence community needs to be one,
HOEKSTRA, PETER: two, three steps faster than
HOEKSTRA, PETER: radical jihadists, radical jihadists who use
HOEKSTRA, PETER: technology, who use the Internet,
HOEKSTRA, PETER: who use the communications world of today to
HOEKSTRA, PETER: drive their message and to plan
HOEKSTRA, PETER: their attacks. We need to be able to penetrate
HOEKSTRA, PETER: into it and penetrate into it very
HOEKSTRA, PETER: effectively.
HOEKSTRA, PETER: Now is the time to modernize FISA. Now is the
HOEKSTRA, PETER: time to make sure that the
HOEKSTRA, PETER: intelligence community has the capability to
HOEKSTRA, PETER: identify the threats and the
HOEKSTRA, PETER: individuals who may want to attack the United
HOEKSTRA, PETER: States and make sure that they
HOEKSTRA, PETER: are in a position to identify these threats and
HOEKSTRA, PETER: get this information to our law
HOEKSTRA, PETER: enforcement individuals in the United States in a
HOEKSTRA, PETER: seamless way.
HOEKSTRA, PETER: We've made progress in a number of areas in
HOEKSTRA, PETER: intelligence reform. There's still
HOEKSTRA, PETER: much work to do, but one of the areas that we
HOEKSTRA, PETER: have not done is update FISA.
HOEKSTRA, PETER: Defeat the previous question and allow for the
HOEKSTRA, PETER: modernization of FISA now.
HOEKSTRA, PETER: Thank you.
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: Both sides have three and a
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: half minutes
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: remaining.
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: r. Speaker, I'm pleased to
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: yield 1 minute to the
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: gentleman from Iowa, Mr. Loebsack.
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: entleman from Iowa is
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: recognized for 1 minute.
LOEBSACK, DAVID: r. Speaker, I thank the
LOEBSACK, DAVID: gentlewoman for yielding.
LOEBSACK, DAVID: Mr. Speaker, today it was reported that al Qaeda
LOEBSACK, DAVID: is as strong now as it was
LOEBSACK, DAVID: prior to the 9/11 attacks. Meanwhile, our troops
LOEBSACK, DAVID: who have served with honor
LOEBSACK, DAVID: and distinction are mired in the middle of a
LOEBSACK, DAVID: religious civil war in Iraq. The men
LOEBSACK, DAVID: and women of Iowa's National Guard have faced
LOEBSACK, DAVID: multiple redeployments at
LOEBSACK, DAVID: great sacrifice to them and their families.
LOEBSACK, DAVID: The American people continue to demand a new way
LOEBSACK, DAVID: forward in Iraq. Even
LOEBSACK, DAVID: Members of the President's own party are
LOEBSACK, DAVID: demanding change. We must
LOEBSACK, DAVID: immediately begin to chart a new course.
LOEBSACK, DAVID: I'm a cosponsor of the Responsible Redeployment
LOEBSACK, DAVID: from Iraq Act because it
LOEBSACK, DAVID: provides for the safe withdrawal of combat troops
LOEBSACK, DAVID: by April 1, 2008. We must
LOEBSACK, DAVID: bring home our troops safely and responsibly. We
LOEBSACK, DAVID: must also redirect our efforts
LOEBSACK, DAVID: against terrorism.
LOEBSACK, DAVID: This bill represents a step forward, and I urge
LOEBSACK, DAVID: its passage and the rule and I
LOEBSACK, DAVID: yield back the balance of my time.
DREIER, DAVID: r. Speaker, may I inquire of my
DREIER, DAVID: very good friend from
DREIER, DAVID: Rochester, New York, the distinguished Chair of
DREIER, DAVID: the Committee on Rules, how
DREIER, DAVID: many speakers she has remaining.
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: ertainly, Mr. Speaker. I have
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: DAVID DREIER. With that, Mr. Speaker, I reserve
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: two.
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: the balance of my time.
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: will yield 1 minute to the
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: gentlewoman from California,
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: Ms. Solis.
SOLIS, HILDA: r. Speaker, I thank the
SOLIS, HILDA: gentlewoman from New York for
SOLIS, HILDA: yielding time.
SOLIS, HILDA: Mr. Speaker, I rise to support the rule and also
SOLIS, HILDA: the underlying bill, the
SOLIS, HILDA: Responsible Redeployment from Iraq Act. We can't
SOLIS, HILDA: afford to spend $10 billion a
SOLIS, HILDA: month on this failed war and continue to see the
SOLIS, HILDA: loss of lives, 3,600 now. From
SOLIS, HILDA: my district alone, 14 individuals have not come
SOLIS, HILDA: home to see their families.
SOLIS, HILDA: 27,000 have come home injured from the war.
SOLIS, HILDA: I want to tell you that in March I had the
SOLIS, HILDA: opportunity to visit some of our
SOLIS, HILDA: troops in Iraq, many from California representing
SOLIS, HILDA: southern California's San
SOLIS, HILDA: Gabriel Valley. Many of them told me they did not
SOLIS, HILDA: have appropriate equipment,
SOLIS, HILDA: that they were there for an insurmountable time,
SOLIS, HILDA: many on their second, third
SOLIS, HILDA: and fourth tour. One family member from the City
SOLIS, HILDA: of Azusa told me that he had
SOLIS, HILDA: not even seen his child. It had been already 14
SOLIS, HILDA: months.
SOLIS, HILDA: I would ask Members of Congress to remember who
SOLIS, HILDA: our constituents are. I
SOLIS, HILDA: have the adjoining district next to Congressman
SOLIS, HILDA: Dreier. In my district alone,
SOLIS, HILDA: 4-1 in a survey said, Republican and Democrat, we
SOLIS, HILDA: want the Congress to get us
SOLIS, HILDA: out of the war.
SOLIS, HILDA: I ask for support of our bill and the rule.
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: Gentleman from California.
DREIER, DAVID: r. Speaker, I continue to reserve
DREIER, DAVID: the balance of my time.
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: entleman continues to
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: reserve. Gentle lady from
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: New York.
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: r. Speaker, I yield 1 minute
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: to the gentleman from
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: Texas, Mr. Doggett.
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: he gentleman from Texas
DOGGET, LLOYD: r. Speaker, we were reassured
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: is recognized.
DOGGET, LLOYD: that ``progress'' was being
DOGGET, LLOYD: made in Iraq 500 deaths ago, 1,000 deaths ago,
DOGGET, LLOYD: 2,000 deaths ago, and 3,000
DOGGET, LLOYD: deaths ago.
DOGGET, LLOYD: Like the boy who cried wolf, this President cries
DOGGET, LLOYD: ``progress.'' What progress?
DOGGET, LLOYD: With all this talk about benchmarks, I think it's
DOGGET, LLOYD: time to get off the bench and
DOGGET, LLOYD: bring our troops home now, with an immediate,
DOGGET, LLOYD: responsible, and safe
DOGGET, LLOYD: redeployment.
DOGGET, LLOYD: President Bush says as we approach five years of
DOGGET, LLOYD: being in Iraq, he says ``listen
DOGGET, LLOYD: to the generals.''
DOGGET, LLOYD: Well, we've listened to them, and his top general
DOGGET, LLOYD: says if we followed his course,
DOGGET, LLOYD: if we stay his course, we'll be in Iraq fighting
DOGGET, LLOYD: for another five to ten years.
DOGGET, LLOYD: Real progress would begin by adopting today's
DOGGET, LLOYD: very modest proposal and
DOGGET, LLOYD: moving forward united so that our troops are not
DOGGET, LLOYD: caught up in a final
DOGGET, LLOYD: disastrous position in Iraq, that we responsibly
DOGGET, LLOYD: redeploy to protect our families,
DOGGET, LLOYD: rather than generating one generation after
DOGGET, LLOYD: another of jihadists. I yield back.
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: entleman from California.
DREIER, DAVID: r. Speaker, I continue to reserve
DREIER, DAVID: the balance of my time.
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: entleman continues to
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: reserve. Gentle lady from
SPEAKER PRO TEMPORE: New York.
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: r. Speaker, I have no more
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: requests for time and ask
SLAUGHTER, LOUISE: if the gentleman has more requests.
DREIER, DAVID: r. Speaker, I'm going to close
DREIER, DAVID: the debate now, so I yield
DREIER, DAVID: myself the balance of the time.
DREIER, DAVID: Mr. Speaker, let me just begin by talking about
DREIER, DAVID: procedure. We continue to hear
DREIER, DAVID: the distinguished Chair of the Committee on Rules
DREIER, DAVID: talk regularly about an
DREIER, DAVID: open amendment process, and I will say with
DREIER, DAVID: absolute certainty, I had the
DREIER, DAVID: privilege of chairing the Rules Committee for 8
DREIER, DAVID: years, and I will tell you that we
DREIER, DAVID: have brought more rules to the floor of this
DREIER, DAVID: House under a completely closed
DREIER, DAVID: process during the first 7 months of this year
DREIER, DAVID: than we did during any 7 months
DREIER, DAVID: during the 8 years that I was privileged to serve
DREIER, DAVID: as chairman of the Rules
DREIER, DAVID: Committee. So much for a new and open process.
DREIER, DAVID: Now, let's look at what it is we're considering
DREIER, DAVID: here, Mr. Speaker. Mr. Speaker,
DREIER, DAVID: we know full well that this is a bill, unlike
DREIER, DAVID: resolutions that may have been
DREIER, DAVID: brought up under closed rules in the past, this
DREIER, DAVID: is actually a bill, a bill that's
DREIER, DAVID: scheduled to go to the President's desk. Everyone
DREIER, DAVID: knows that this bill is not
DREIER, DAVID: going to become law.
DREIER, DAVID: What we've found is gross politicization once
DREIER, DAVID: again, a commitment made that
DREIER, DAVID: every week we're going to have some kind of vote
DREIER, DAVID: We all know that the war in Iraq is very
DREIER, DAVID: on Iraq.
DREIER, DAVID: unpopular. We know that the President
DREIER, DAVID: is a great punching bag on this for virtually
DREIER, DAVID: everyone, but the fact of the matter
DREIER, DAVID: is we are in the midst of a very important global
DREIER, DAVID: war on terror, and as the
DREIER, DAVID: President said in the past, you know, we all like
DREIER, DAVID: to be loved, but I'd much
DREIER, DAVID: rather be right than be loved.
DREIER, DAVID: The fact of the matter is, we want to bring this
DREIER, DAVID: war to an end. The President
DREIER, DAVID: stood right here in this chamber in January and
DREIER, DAVID: said I wish that this war were
DREIER, DAVID: over and that we had won, but we need to ensure
DREIER, DAVID: victory. And, Mr. Speaker,
DREIER, DAVID: unfortunately, we are not given the opportunity
DREIER, DAVID: to consider any thoughtful,
DREIER, DAVID: bipartisan alternative to this measure which
DREIER, DAVID: calls for the withdrawal to begin
DREIER, DAVID: within 120 days. I mean, how crazy is that when
DREIER, DAVID: we're looking for a report to
DREIER, DAVID: come in September and as we are looking at
DREIER, DAVID: success that has begun even after
DREIER, DAVID: only one month, one month of this plan having
DREIER, DAVID: been put into place under the
DREIER, DAVID: greatly heralded General David Petraeus?
DREIER, DAVID: Now, Mr. Speaker, as my friends from New Mexico
DREIER, DAVID: and Michigan have said, I'm
DREIER, DAVID: going to move to defeat the previous question.
DREIER, DAVID: I'm going to move to defeat the
DREIER, DAVID: previous question so that we can actually ensure
DREIER, DAVID: that we have the tools to win
DREIER, DAVID: this war on terror. You know, we've had a number
DREIER, DAVID: of anniversaries marked.
DREIER, DAVID: We've spent a lot of time talking about them, but
DREIER, DAVID: we fail to remember the
DREIER, DAVID: success that we've had at preempting attacks on
DREIER, DAVID: this country.
DREIER, DAVID: Just last month, we marked the first anniversary
DREIER, DAVID: of the discovery of the
DREIER, DAVID: proposed attack on the Sears Tower and the FBI
DREIER, DAVID: headquarters in Miami.
DREIER, DAVID: Just last week, we marked the first anniversary
DREIER, DAVID: of the proposed attack on the
DREIER, DAVID: plan to blow up the Hudson River tunnel between
DREIER, DAVID: New Jersey and Manhattan.
DREIER, DAVID: Just in May, we had a report of the plan, as you
DREIER, DAVID: all know, to see some of these
DREIER, DAVID: people go in and start killing our people at Fort
DREIER, DAVID: Dix in New Jersey.
DREIER, DAVID: And then of course, just a few weeks ago, we had
DREIER, DAVID: the plan to blow up JFK
DREIER, DAVID: International Airport.
DREIER, DAVID: Well, Mr. Speaker, we've been able to discover
DREIER, DAVID: those, but we know full well from
DREIER, DAVID: those in our intelligence operations and the
DREIER, DAVID: Department of Homeland Security
DREIER, DAVID: that we are, as Mr. Hoekstra said, blind and
DREIER, DAVID: deaf, and I believe that we need to
DREIER, DAVID: make sure we defeat the previous question so that
DREIER, DAVID: we'll be in a position to
DREIER, DAVID: amend this proposal so that we can ensure that we
DREIER, DAVID: have the tools necessary to
DREIER, DAVID: win this war on terror. With that I yield back
DREIER, DAVID: the balance of my time.