**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**

February 13, 2007

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**CONTACT**:    Kim Olive

                        (202) 225-2452 (Office)

                        (202) 420-9493 (Cell)

**Victory in Iraq Caucus Members Respond to**

**Democratic Iraq Resolution**

***WASHINGTON -- Victory in Iraq Caucus Members today released the
following statements regarding the Democratic resolution opposing
President Bush's plan to send additional troops to Baghdad:***

"It is unfortunate that Democrats continue to play politics with the
most important issue of our day.  Defeat in Iraq would have catastrophic
consequences for the United States and the world.  Yet, instead of
working to advance our mission in Iraq and promote victory, Democrats
are content to grandstand on the floor of the House, oppose President
Bush's efforts, and offer no substantive alternatives."

-   **Congressman Joe Wilson** (SC-02), *Chair, Victory in Iraq Caucus*

"These meaningless nonbinding resolutions are a distraction; this is
just a political stunt by the Democrats that will not bring us any
closer to ending the war.  It only serves to weaken the morale of our
fighting men and women and allows our enemy to claim victory."

\- **Congressman John Carter** (TX-31)

"As Stuart Mill said, 'War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of
things.  The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling
which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse.'  In Iraq, the
only thing worse than staying, changing our approach, losing American
lives, and persevering through suicide bombings and IED's would be to
retreat by a date certain leaving our troops and our nation in a more
dangerous world.  It may be unpopular, but I believe that the reason our
enemies have not attacked the United States since 9/11 is that they do
not want us united.  They much prefer dissent and division.  After all,
'a nation divided cannot stand.'  Proverbs 28:2 says, 'when a man is in
rebellion, it has many rulers.'"

-   **Congressman Zach Wamp** (TN-03)

"How can the majority party in Congress fund something that it believes
is against U.S. interests?  I am not sure how any member of either
chamber can look the family of a young man serving in Iraq in the eye
and tell them, 'we don't think your son's mission in Iraq is in the
interest of the United States, regardless, we are going to send him
there and fund it.   Senator Kerry once asked, 'How do you ask a man to
be the last man to die for a mistake,' yet if the Democrat majority
believes that the plan in Iraq is not in U.S. interests, that is exactly
what they are asking of our servicemen and women. 

"If the majority party in Congress believes that the mission in Iraq --
as offered by the Commander-in-Chief and General Petraeus -- is not in
the interest of our nation, then they have the moral obligation to
introduce legislation to end or change that mission.   They owe that to
the men and women in our armed forces and their families.  They owe that
to their constituents.  They owe that to every American."

\- **Congressman Jeb Hensarling** (TX-05)

"As some of you may remember, on February 12, 1973, the first wave of
the longest held Prisoners of War left Hanoi.  I was among them. Words
can not fully describe the unspeakable damage of the anti-American
efforts against the war back home to the guys on the ground.  I promised
myself many things I would do when I returned home safely to my family
-- and one was that I would fight to ensure America never lets down our
troops in harms way again.  The Democrat resolution to deny success in
Iraq is the first step for them to cut funding for our troops in harm's
way. 

"We are elected to protect our men and women in uniform, just as they
protect our freedom everyday.  As long as we deploy men and women across
the globe, we should never, ever leave a member of our military in
harm's way without support."

-   **Congressman Sam Johnson** (TX-03)

"This non-binding resolution does nothing to either win the war or end
the war.  It does nothing more than encourage our enemies and discourage
our brave men and women who are in Iraq to finish their job."

-   **Congressman Tom Cole** (OK-04)

"In a time of war our citizens and those defending our freedoms deserve
leadership, not politics.  This non-binding resolution does little more
than undermine the war on terror, demoralize our troops, and embolden
the enemy.  The President put forth a plan for victory that understands
the mistakes of the past and sets benchmarks to measure Iraqi
involvement and success.  Congress should allow time for the plan to
take hold, not put forth a resolution that is clearly a first step in a
policy of retreat and defeat."

\- **Congressman Gresham Barrett** (SC-03)

"What this resolution shows the American people is that the Democrats,
yet again, for all of their rhetoric have no plan and no alternative to
fight Islamic extremism.  This is a critical time for us in Iraq and
this resolution does noting but embolden our enemies and send a message
to our troops that their government is weak-kneed in its support of
their mission."

\- **Congressman Bill Shuster** (PA-09)

"The Democrats non-binding resolution is nothing more than a political
ploy, rather than a venue for substantive debate on the way forward in
Iraq. This rhetoric is dangerous, and lends the impression that we do
not support the efforts of our troops as they put their lives on the
line for our freedom. The consequences of failure in Iraq are
monumental, and we cannot risk defeat by the Islamic extremists that
seek to destroy us. This resolution is merely a stunt that holds no
water and does nothing but damage the morale of our troops and embolden
the enemy that we are fighting."

\- **Congressman Mike Conaway** (TX-11)

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