Mr. President, it is my understanding that there is 8\1/2\ minutes remaining on this side; is that correct? I yield 4 minutes to Senator Inouye. Mr. President, all time has expired on the other side; is that correct? Mr. President, this is…
Mr. President, it is my understanding that there is 8\1/2\ minutes remaining on this side; is that correct?
I yield 4 minutes to Senator Inouye.
Mr. President, all time has expired on the other side; is that correct?
Mr. President, this is meritorious legislation, important legislation. First, I thank Senator Byrd, the chairman of our Appropriations Committee, and his staff for working so hard to get us where we are. I thank Congressman Obey, chairman of the comparable committee in the House of Representatives.
I know that my friend, the distinguished senior Senator from Mississippi, does not agree with the Iraq language, but I express my appreciation to his staff. This bill has in it more than the Iraq language, and his staff has worked with us all the way to get that done. I extend my appreciation for his usual gentlemanly way doing everything he does here.
Also, because she worked so hard on a lot of things that she was assigned to do by Senator Byrd, Senator Patty Murray has done an outstanding job on this bill. She is in the Chamber, and I express my appreciation to her for her usual fine work but especially her fine work on this matter.
The individuals I have just mentioned have delivered to us a tremendous conference report, one we can all be proud to send to the President and we should send to the President. This conference report honors and provides for our courageous men and women in uniform. This conference report doesn't forget the emergencies Americans face at home while the war rages abroad. This conference report makes us more secure by charting a new, more sustainable course in Iraq so we can find a responsible end to the war and return our focus to the global challenges that lie ahead.
President Bush requested $91.5 billion for continued military operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. We provided every penny of that request, but, Mr. President, more. Our bill matches the President dollar for dollar on the equipment and training he requested for the 140,000 troops in Iraq and the 20,000 deployed in Afghanistan, including hundreds of troops deployed from the State of Nevada.
This conference report doesn't stop there because we recognize the President's request shortchanges our troops and our security in a number of critical areas. For example, with the roadside bombs that have accounted for over half of the fatalities suffered by our troops in Iraq, Democrats have added $1.2 billion for mine-resistant vehicles. This is important.
My friend--and he is my friend--the distinguished Republican leader, said we should live up to our end of the bargain. Our end of the bargain? We have done pretty well, spending over one-half trillion dollars in the faraway land of Iraq, having lost more than 3,300, through death, of our finest, 27,000 wounded, a third of them missing limbs, 2,000 double amputees, brain injuries as we have never seen before, and paralysis. We have lived up to our end of the bargain.
At a time when the health care needs of thousands of our soldiers and veterans are being ignored, Democrats have added--with the help of two courageous Republicans, who I am confident will vote with us on this matter--we have added $2.5 billion to ensure all of our troops receive the quality care they have earned--our troops--veterans. These funds will improve the unconscionable conditions at Walter Reed and other medical facilities around the country and greatly enhance the care provided to those who suffer from brain trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder.
Every Thursday, Senator Ensign and I, when we are in session, in the Johnson Room, have a ``Welcome to Washington'' for Nevadans. The Baileys were here today. They had a 27-year-old son who went to Iraq and came home with severe emotional problems. He was fine before he went. He went to a VA facility in Southern California, hundreds of miles away from his parents, where he was not taken care of. He died of a drug overdose. Not illegal drugs but drugs they gave him. What we have put in this bill to help veterans, those people returning from Iraq who have been injured, is important. It is in this bill and it should stay here.
At a time when our citizen soldiers have been pushed to their limit, and most Guard and Reserve units lack the equipment they need to conduct their mission, our bill would provide an additional $1 billion for the supplies and equipment they need. Despite the fact a majority of the American people disapprove of this administration's Iraq policy, this bill clearly takes care of the men and women who are serving us courageously in Iraq, as clearly as anyone who opposes this legislation would set back or hurt badly our efforts to support our fighting forces.
We provide for our troops, we do that, but we also believe we have an obligation to address emergencies facing Americans here at home. That is what emergency supplemental bills were at one time--emergencies that developed during the year.
President Bush has made numerous trips to the gulf region to take a look at the devastation created by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, which devastated that region of the country, but he hasn't done anything about it, to speak of. We believe we have a responsibility to help the victims of this historic tragedy. We agree with the sentiment of the people of this country, who are determined to help their fellow citizens, and that is what this bill does. We provide $7 billion for the victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, whose help is long overdue.
Thousands of family farmers and ranchers from virtually every State in this country are suffering the effects of extreme drought or damaging weather conditions. These are emergencies. We rely upon these American farmers and ranchers for the Nation's food supply, and we believe we have an obligation to help them when disaster strikes. That is why we provide $3.5 billion to help address some of the losses suffered by farmers and ranchers caused by drought, flood, fire, hurricanes, and pestilence.
More than 5 years after the terrible terrorist attacks of 9/11, we know gaps remain in this Nation's homeland security efforts. This is an emergency. We have tried here on the Senate floor to offer amendments to cover this. We have been defeated on a straight party-
line basis. This bill has that relief. That is why we provide $2 billion for port security, mass transit security, airport security, and other initiatives to address the shortcomings identified by the bipartisan 9/11 Commission, whose recommendations came down almost 3 years ago.
Tens of thousands of children across this country will lose their health care in the next several months if we don't do something in this conference report. This, too, is an emergency. That is why we provide $650 million to keep the State Children's Health Insurance Program running. This is health care for kids.
All of these nonmilitary investments are crucial priorities, but fully funding our troops and changing the course of the war in Iraq is this bill's primary goal. No one wants this Nation to succeed in the Middle East more than I do. But I know that after more than 4 years of mismanagement and incompetence of the war in Iraq by this administration, there is no magic formula or silver bullet that will lead us to the victory we all desire. Yet I also believe there is a way forward that gives us our best chance to end the war responsibly while protecting our strategic interests, strengthening our security, and better positioning us to provide the long-term assistance Iraq will need for years to come. This way forward is consistent with what our military leaders are telling us, including General Petraeus, who repeated again yesterday, publicly--not privately but publicly--that this war cannot be won militarily. That is what General Petraeus says.
I want to talk about what is in this bill as relates to Iraq.
First, we transition the U.S. mission from policing a civil war to training and equipping Iraqi security forces, protecting U.S. forces and conducting targeted counterterror operations.
Second, we begin the phased redeployment of our troops no later than October 1, 2007, with the goal of removing all combat forces by April 1, 2008, except for those carrying out the limited missions I have mentioned.
Third, we impose tangible, measurable, and achievable benchmarks on the Iraqi Government so they will be held accountable for making progress in security, political reconciliation, and improving the lives of ordinary Iraqis, who have suffered so very much.
Fourth, we launch the kind of diplomatic, economic, and political offensive the President's strategy lacks, starting with a regional conference working toward a long-term framework for stability in the region, as recommended by the Iraq Study Group, with Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Syria, and, yes, Iran must be involved.
Fifth, and finally, we build up our overburdened military to ensure that only battle-ready troops are sent into battle, and giving them the manpower and support they need to face the daunting challenges that lie ahead. My friend Congressman Murtha, whom I had the good fortune to serve with when I was in the House of Representatives, pointed out clearly in the debate on the House floor last night that we are currently paying 126,000 individuals, independent contractors, to supplement the work of our soldiers. These contractors are not held to the same standards or accountability of our troops, yet often earn tens of thousands of dollars more. This is unacceptable. Do the American taxpayers know this, that 126,000 people are being paid over there for various things? Doing what? Why? This is costing billions, and for what? And why? This supplemental funding bill was forged by listening to Members of Congress from both parties, to military experts, and, most importantly, to the American people. I have had a number of people from the other side who have come to me and said, we know you are doing the right thing but we can't help you now. There are two people on the other side, however, who are coming and saying they are going to vote on this matter. I don't know what I can say, other than to say it is for the American people, and they have a lot of courage.
This compromise was forged through thoughtful negotiation. It was forged with the firm resolve that we must do what is right for our troops, our Nation's security, and Iraq's future. Once we pass this bill, we will send it to the President's desk. We know he has threatened to veto this legislation. But in the same spirit of compromise and bipartisanship with which this bill was written, we hope the President will reconsider his stubbornness and his refusal to listen to the American people. This is a good conference report. It provides for the safety of our troops, it helps Americans recover from emergencies that have plagued us here at home, and it sets us on a new course, away from a civil war with no end in sight, and toward a responsible, phased redeployment, and it holds the Iraqis accountable. This is a responsible plan for redeployment, not a precipitous withdrawal.
Our troops in harm's way will always have the resources to do the mission their leaders ask of them. It directs our attention to eliminating al-Qaida, addresses refugee and humanitarian crises, and launches the diplomatic and political surges necessary to prevent regional instability. It also allows us to provide the longer term investments and the political solutions needed in Iraq. It prevents the jihadists from being able to claim victory over America, and it begins to restore America's prestige, power, and influence in the region and throughout the world.
Some will say there is no alternative to the President's course. They say the only course is to stay the course or fail; that there is no plan B. But our President is wrong. I say that with all due respect. The choice is in our hands. Today, we have the chance to support our troops, represent the will of the American people, and lead America to a path of responsibility. If the President refuses to change direction, America risks being bogged down in Iraq for years, not months.
This President, who took us to war under false pretenses, now needs the courage to admit his policies have failed and work with us to bring the war to a responsible end. This conference report gives him that path forward, and I hope he follows it.
Madam President, for Members of the Senate, as we have announced, there will be no more rollcall votes this week.
We hope that we can move, on Monday, without any problems, to the FDA reauthorization. This is an extremely important piece of legislation which Senator Kennedy and Senator Enzi have worked on for months. Now, we hope we can move to that. We know people want to offer amendments. Certainly, that will be part of what we are doing here because the bill is imperfect. But it is a bill on which we must move forward. With all of the food safety and health safety issues that have come up during the past several years, we must do this. So we are going to move to that bill on Monday. That will be the next order of business for the Senate.