is not in order let's take conversations off the floor  the five year anniversary of nine eleven and well a resolution on the floor and we will also begin consideration of h r twenty nine fifty five the federal prison industries competition and contracting act on thursday and friday we will complete consideration of the federal prison industries bill and we will consider a house resolution amending of the house rules on here mark reform i would also note that  reports may be brought up in any time and hope to see h r fifty one twenty two this money on the game or a national event authorization act for fiscal year two thousand and seven and that conference report in terms of the schedule members have a schedule through september it is expected that with the house will not be back in session until the week of november thirteenth and i do want members to know that the house  session that we expect that we will have votes on monday the thirteenth and through that week any anything further on the schedule beyond that time i wish i could  i don't know i thank the gentleman for bringing us up to date then am i to take it that when the gentleman indicated that the twenty ninth would be in effect the  can were glad to advise members somebody else was having those discussions with themselves that would make that happens i've noticed reclaiming my time with respect to the schedule that you have just announced would it be fair to conclude that if we do not have additional conference reports you indicate on that you will take up its reports if they're available which i understand but if there were not additional conference reports beyond those which you have referenced in your announcement that the probability of friday is not as great as it otherwise would be what i'm saying before you respond is sexually it would appear to me that based upon what has been noticed that that work would probably be accomplished within the t i believe that members should expect votes on friday if it becomes clear during the week that that we will be able to complete our work i'll give members as much notice as possible but  i don't want to i don't want to promise something that we can't deliver i'm saying on the following friday the twenty second is the gentleman rush on to begin to sundown on that day and that's the first day russia one of the problems as you know that we have as members getting back to the west coast in in time to observe russia  this religious holiday i do understand the problem of those members on the west coast will work with you to come to some resolution about it we don't want to put any members in a difficult travel position when it comes to the observance of their religious holidays i thank you gentlemen for that and we'll look forward to discussing that with you you know in the announcement of the nine eleven resolution i was asked by the remembrance and resolve remembrance of the hero wisdom of that day remembering the loss of life on that day and resolve to defeat terrorism and to defeat those who would put our country at risk and our people in harm's or and at risk i believe that we're united and that we have not have however i just saw the resolution i've not had a chance to read the resolution nor i understand it have we worked with your side on the resolution mr leader i would hope that perhaps we could come together before the resolution was finally introduced we passed as you know last year's resolution i think with over four hundred votes very few  votes if we could work on this together to ensure that we would have that kind of unanimity which i think is appropriate and would help to bring us together you know the my friend the gentleman yield i've not had a chance to read the resolution either you' not read the resolution i do know that both democrats and republicans work closely together to develop the resolution and so again i'll be happy to take a look at it and i would suggest with john if you have any resolution i'm sure all the players but if there are questions i will bring them to the attention of the leader mr leader of course we have next week schedule next week schedule does not include the only appropriation bill that we have not yet passed as you know we passed ten out of the eleven appropriation bills the labor health bill was passed through the house appropriations committee and reported to the   ready to report in june so it's now been pending for approximately sixty seventy five days do you have any expectation that the labor health bill will be brought to the floor within the forseeable future you know that my friend the issue is under discussion is the judgment of there are a number of issues in that bill that have caused concern amongst members and  one of those appears to have been resolved there are a number of other issues remaining there there are been several discussions this week and i think your bees are more discussions next week about about how to deal with that particular bill thank the gentleman for that considered it with a another bill number of items included went to the senate didn't didn't pass we believe that they six point six million people on the minimum wage are hopeful that we will act before we leave here for the election i'm very hopeful and i know our side is very hopeful that we can bring that bill to the floor with them and protected voted up or down if the members think they will not do it fine the members think we ought to do it fine and pass course i appreciate your reiterating what we did we all understand what we did there are different perspectives on what we did but i would reiterate this strong desire and hope that we would consider the issue of minimum wage on its own merits as was done in the committee as you know it was passed in the bipartisan fashion in committee with the fourth i think or maybe a fifth of the republicans in the hopeful that the senate will deal with it soon i thank the gentleman for his coming i understand what the rules are and both sides have relatively regularly  waive those rules when it wanted to do something and if we want to raise the minimum wage for our workers we can do it that's our perspective but i certainly appreciate the gentleman's further education of what the rules require  let me ask you it's not on the schedule for next week but do you anticipate any additional legislation prior to the twenty ninth of september which would further implement the recommendations of the nine eleven commission as you know there are some nineteen recommendations which the governor kaine and mr hamilton and congressman hamilton have observed we have not acted on you can you tell us whether there is any anticipation of scheduling action on those issues i yield to my friends over a year ago the house work to implement the recommendations bipartisan nine eleven commission and i believe that members on both sides of the capitol on both sides of the aisle decided to accept those recommendations that we thought would be helpful not all of the recommendations of the nine eleven commission  have in fact been adopted because as i understand it members on both sides of the aisle and on both sides of the capitol have rejected some of the ideas that they put forth as we all know these some of these independent commissions get established they can make recommendations but the real decisions about what we should enact in the law should be left to the members and i think the members have made their decisions very clear i thank the gentleman for his observations when i think we disagree on the substance of the of the reports and the merits of the recommendations that have not yet been passed i know are signed by mr thompson who is our ranking member on the homeland security  committee and others are very hopeful that we can move forward on those but i understand what the gentleman has said i will not ask the gentleman further questions but mr speaker under my reservation i would say that we on this side of the aisle are very hopeful that we could consider legislation before we break on the twenty ninth of september which would give the sector health education health and human services already to negotiate lower prescription drug prices for seniors we would hope that we would see legislation which would restore the deep cuts in college tuition assistance that were included in the deficit reduction bill that we passed some months ago  and that we would reconsider the tax cuts that we gave to deep tax cuts that we gave to oil companies apparently  spur further investment in exploration for new sources of oil a worthy objective but i think happily and happily depending upon your perspective whether you're an oil company or whether you're  a driver of automobiles and have to pay the gasoline prices the companies are making great profits and could have great incentive because of those great profits t as much information as i can now see that my friend from maryland today is decided to employ a new tactic and bring campaign themes to the floor during the college would be happy to engage you in below far below anything any number that anyone ever expected and what got us those low drug premium prices was the competition that was created in the creation of the program secondly when it comes to the college loan program that the gentleman referred to as the cuts the gentleman would look at the bill he'll realize that we widened the ability of more students to get to college under this program that we've ever engage you in this conversation but we could probably do it under a special order rather than during the colloquy i thank the gentleman reclaiming my time i thank the gentleman for his his observations  perhaps i'll take him up on that that offer that might be instructive for both of us and perhaps for the american people as well understand the gentleman perspective we differ that's not  surprising i'm sure to the viewers and i will say this is just mr leader if i can that this is about discussing schedule we have a very short time frame we have fourteen days left to their scheduling this session before the election and we're coming back for a lame duck session i understand that but i was simply inquiring of you whether or not those matters which we believe are important might be on the schedule i'm not thirty on tuesday september twelfth two thousand and six for morning our debate without objection the speaker actually damask and sent that the business in order under the calendar wednesday rule be dispensed with on wednesday next without objection  from georgia ashley animists consent to address the house for one minute for the purpose of making an announcement without objection the committee on rules might meet the wake of september the eleventh to grant a rule which could limit the amendment process for floor consideration of h r two thousand and sixty five the federal prison industries competition and contracting act any member wishing to offer an amendment should submit fifty five copies of the amendment and one copy of a brief explanation of the amendment to the rules committee and room h three twelve of the capital twelve noon on tuesday september the twelfth two thousand and six members should draft their amendment judiciary which was filed with the house on july the twenty first two thousand and six members should use the office of legislative legislative council to ensure that their amendments are drafted in the most appropriate without objection the chair appoints the following conferees on h r five one to two from the committee on armed services for consideration of house bill and the senate amendment and modifications committed to conference the servers hunter weldon of pennsylvania hefley saxton mchugh everett bartlett of maryland meehan snyder smith of washington loretta sanchez of california mrs tallis or misters brady of pennsylvania and andrews from the permanent select committee on intelligence for consideration of matters within the jurisdiction of that committee under clause eleven of rule ten misters hoekstra la hood and mrs harman and the committee on education and the workforce for consideration of section five seventy one and five seventy two of the house bill and section five seventy one five seventy two ten eighty one and eleven zero four of the senate amendment and modifications committed to conference mckeon klein and george miller of california from the committee on energy and commerce for considerations of sections three fourteen six zero one six zero two seven ten thirty one fifteen thirty one seventeen and thirty two one of the house bill and sections three thirty two through three thirty five three fifty two six zero one seven twenty two twenty eight forty two thirty one fifteen and thirty two zero one of the senate and then and modifications committed to conference mr barton of texas gilmore and ingle from the c government reform for consideration of sections three forty three seven twenty one eight eleven eight twenty three eight twenty four eleven zero three eleven zero four and thirty one fifteen of the house bill and sections three seventy one six hundred eighty six eight twenty three nine twenty two ten zero seven ten forty three ten fifty four ten eighty eight ten eighty nine eleven zero one and thirty one fifteen of the senate amendment and modifications committed to conference mr tom davis of virginia shays and waxman on the committee on homeland security for consideration of section ten twenty six of the house bill and section ten forty four the senate amendment and modifications committed to conference mr chang of new york reichert and thompson of mississippi from the committee on international relations for consideration of sections ten twenty one through ten twenty three twelve zero one two twelve zero four twelve  six title thirteen sections thirty one thirteen and thirty one fourteen of the house bill and the sections ten fourteen ten twenty one hundred ten twenty three ten fifty four ten ninety two twelve zero one three twelve zero eight twelve ten twelve fourteen title thirteen sections thirty one twelve and thirty one thirteen of the senate and then and modifications committed to conference mr hyde leach and lantos from the committee on  judiciary for consideration of section ten twenty one of the house bill and sections six sixty six ten forty four ten eighty six ten eighty nine ten ninety one and ten ninety four the senate amendment and modifications committed to conference conyers from the committee on resources for consideration of section six zero one six zero two and ten thirty six of the house bill and section six zero one of the senate amendment and modifications committed to conference misters pombo walden of oregon from the committee on science for consideration of sections three twelve and nine eleven of the house bill and sections three thirty three eight seventy four and ten eighty two of the senate amendment and modifications committed to conference  gordon from the committee on small business for consideration of sections eight seventy four and ten ninety three of the senate amendment and modifications committed to conference mr manzullo mrs kelly and mrs velasquez from the committee on transportation and infrastructure for consideration of section sections three twelve five fifty one six zero one six zero two and twenty eight forty five of the house bill and sections three thirty three eight five eighty four six one ten forty two ten ninety five twenty eight forty two twenty eight fifty one through twenty eight fifty three and twenty eight fifty five of the senate amendment and modifications committed to conference mr young of alaska low beyond zero and over starr and the committee on veterans  fairs for consideration of sections six sixty six six eighty two six eighty three six eighty seven seven twenty one and nine twenty three of the senate amendment and modifications committed to conference  ritual of the school year where millions of american students return to class and all for an essay entitled what i did on my summer vacation mr speaker for a special group of eleven twelve and thirteen year olds from the fifth congressional district of arizona it is quite a daunting challenge because mr speaker that select group of young men nicknamed the dogs the all stars of our to give little league advanced all the way to the little league world series in williamsport pennsylvania this special team went out as winners they won their final game but due to a rule for a tie breaker had the unfortunate experience of not advancing in fact of the nine teams that won two games at williamsport sadly only the team from iowa to the did not advance but they are more than exceptions mr speaker they are true champions not only the best in the west but a team that went out winners and williamsport mr speaker i ask unanimous consent to include in the house record the roster of this team and their championship season and would remark and i think my friend and i close mr speaker of the observation that they have now entered the history of this house that as well as the history the gentleman liberals who has expired gentleman from california  without objection mr speaker the truth squad on waste fraud and abuse is charged with holding the bush administration accountable for its mishandling of taxpayer dollars that is something that this republican congress has failed to do on issue after issue from katrina to iraq to border security to healthcare we have seen outrageous waste of american tax dollars and this congress has repeatedly failed to hold the administration accountable for it today the truth squad is unveiling the golden drain away what you see next to me in this picture the golden drain is an award will be displayed in my office and it will be given each week rip recipient who has been most derelict in their doing as stewards of american taxpayer dollars we will award this award next week for the first time all told the truth squad has identified over one hundred fifty billion dollars of american tax dollars that have gone down the drain of waste fraud and abuse and not as enough mr speaker it's time for accountability it's time for a new direction it's time to audit america's books a lady from florida without objection thank you very much mr speaker mr speaker americans are frustrated back in may the senate passed the no illegal alien left behind bill which has rights and benefits to law breakers on a silver platter clearly we have a large hurdle to overcome in compromising with this very atrocious bill however with each day that we fail to pass meaningful border security reform americans become anxious that we will do nothing or even worse that we may cave in to the senate i heard from more than fourteen thousand constituents over the last month who in phatic lee told me that they do not want amnesty for lawbreakers listen up america we must stand united behind the border security bill passed by the house h r forty four thirty seven and proclaimed to americans that we agree with that and will never g the request is granted the lady from california mrs speaker i ask unanimous consent that today following legislative business and any special orders heretofore entered into the following members may be permitted to address the house for five minutes to revise and extend their remarks and there in extraneous material this intifada or again mr mccarthy new york mr skelton missouri mystery manual illinois mr plough new jersey mr washington as well as the california mr shift california without objection gentlemen from minnesota mr speaker i ask unanimous consent that today following a legislative business in any special orders heretofore entered into the following members may be permitted to address the house revise and extend their remarks and include there in extraneous material mr polk today on september fourteenth five minutes each mr nussle today five minutes mr jones september twelve thirteen fourteen and fifteen five minutes each mr mr gilcrest september twelfth thirteenth fourteenth and fifteenth five minutes each and mr gohmert today for five minutes without objection under the speaker's announce policy of january fourth two thousand and five and under a previous order of the house the following members are recognized for five minutes each mr de fazio of oregon purposes does the gentleman from missouri right battalion of american soldiers have been sent to stop the korean and vans this battalion of four hundred six soldiers was under man under trained and poorly equipped the soldiers fought a on the part of our military after world war two today mr speaker i'm concerned that the low readiness levels of the army in the marine corps are going to once again in danger our troops spoken about readiness problems before and  continues to concern me as this situation worsens i may be blunt our ground forces and their reserves face a crisis with manpower and equipment shortages that will be challenged to complete their missions should they be called to respond to an emergency of use the word readiness many times before but i feel it necessary to clearly define its meaning readiness describes the condition of our military forces it's a measure of how well they are man trained and equipped to complete the full range of missions necessary to defend our nation this is why the falling readiness levels of our army and our marine corps are so disturbing they indicate that we may not be able to defend our nation's interests wherever they may face challenges the most striking example this problem is with a quick over forty percent of the army and marine corps ground equipment is now an employee into iraq or afghanistan and is wearing out as much as nine times faster than normal only three years in iraq has placed as much as twenty seven years of wear on our equipment forcing the department of defense to cannibalize the equipment of none deployed units and the national guard this cannibalization of equipment has left the army without a single combat brigade in the continental united states ready for all of their wartime missions simply put the war in iraq is seven our strategic base and leaving us with a broken army the armed services committee is nearing agreement to add twenty billion dollars to the defense authorization act for next year to try to help fix this grave situation this will help but the department's readiness problems are too large to be fixed by a one time investment together the army and marine corps need in  twenty nine billion dollars in two thousand and seven to repair or replace equipment damaged in iraq and afghanistan the man is only part of the overall bill represents a snapshot in time of a problem that is large and continues to grow the problem is developed over due time to mismanagement and a failure on the part of the administration to adequately plan for iraq it cannot be solved overnight congress can continue to provide band  aids for readiness shortfalls by funding through supplementals of the army and marine corps are limping along they cannot keep pace with falling readiness levels the only way to truly solve this problem is for the ministration to commit to fully funding in the of the department of defense this country is at war americans have a right to expect the administration to realistically budget for national defense the stakes are high mr speaker mission founded in one thousand nine hundred one by a dozen early settlers on lake minnetonka was that a congregational church grew to seventy members within two years in one thousand nine hundred new church was built but it burned down four years later remarkably it was rebuilt by a determined congregation in only seven months that in one thousand nine hundred eighty eight the church officially became was that a community church and ground was broken for a new building at ferndale road in ways that a boulevard in was outa where this dynamic community of faith is located today with nearly three thousand members was that a community church is one of the five largest congregations of the united church of christ my family and i are grateful members of this loving and nurturing congregation our church is a place of spiritual growth compassionate support and committed service for one hundred twenty five years why is that a community church has been a place of growth and renewal fellowship outreach community service music ministries and children and youth ministries for one hundred twenty five years why is that a community church has been there to help people in need people suffering the ravages of poverty homelessness hunger addiction broken homes disease and despair one hundred twenty five years of providing food shelter clothing transportation counseling and support groups i said a community church mr speaker is a key partner of interfaith outreach and community partners a partnership of faith communities other community organizations and individuals that serve low income people in eight of our west suburban communities why is that a community churches extensive commitment to do the lord's work here on earth also includes programs such as adoptive family families moving forward hurricane relief losen fishes meals on wheels salvation army bell ringers the legendary women's fellowship annual rummage sale and the sleep out for the homeless to name but a few days at a community church mr speaker is truly a church that lives out the biblical command to love god love others and serve the least amongst us the church is also a lively hub of activity in the lake going to talk area for seniors children and their friends and people of all ages from music performances authors workshops scouting groups support groups basketball games nursery schools you name it it's all there it was a community church was that a community church has also been blessed with truly visionary and dedicated leadership over the past one hundred twenty five years on this historic anniversary were especially grateful for our current senior minister reverend dr john ross and the entire p years as well as the other church staff lay leaders teachers musicians choir members volunteers and other friends and members of life at a community church mr speaker on this special anniversary of was at a community church let us pay tribute to one hundred twenty five years of ministry and mission and pray that this wonderful community of faith will provide many more years of burchill growth thomas recognized for five minutes the speaker you can always tell when the republicans fear an upcoming election because they start apologizing for their past transgressions so it should come as no surprise that the president finally acknowledge the presence and use of secret cia prisons the american people happen to think that the us constitution is a dumb document that was never intended to be shredded and discarded like last week's newspaper but that's exactly what is happening by the president and his rubberstamp republican congress we do not have to subvert the freedoms and principles that make us americans so that the president can fumble his way through finding and fighting terrorists like bin laden we still believe in the rule of law the first amendment the constitution and the bill of rights we believe in the geneva convention and the president undermines the american credibility power and leadership around the world by just missing a document so important that it is incorporated into the manuals of the us armed forces america is not a democracy at your convenience mr president without the protections provided by the first amendment the american people might never have known about the abuses at abu ghraib without the first amendment the american people would never have known about the authorized taps of the american people even when there is a secret court specifically set up enable america to defend itself without destroying the constitution and the bill of rights in the process the american people still believe in the rule of law and they can see that the president suspended the constitution the geneva convention in the bill of rights because he finds them inconvenient the policies of this administration and the republican congress have not made america safer but america is in danger on a whole new front presidential indifference to the principles and ideals that we are fighting for the president was given the tools and the resources after nine eleven but he pulled out before the job was done he diverted our soldiers and resolve from afghanistan to iraq it was a bad decision then and it has become disastrous now in both places but with an automatic rubber stamp congress in the house the senate the president could tell him what to think tell him out of vote and get whatever he wanted there was no balance in our government to ask the tough questions and hold the president accountable there still is no balance in our government that can protect the american people and our founding principles from the brute force of the republican power machine the president finally admit he authorized secret cia prisons and in the next breath demands that congress authorized him to keep doing what every once and if the republicans remain in power they will do exactly what the president wants no debate no balance nothing short of outright misrepresentation of the american people republicans misrepresent the american people when they rubber stamp everything the president wants that's not how america works and it's not how democracy works america is about balance debating different points of view coming together as one nation standing on common ground but that fundamental pro choice requires accountability and there has been none under the republic yes for goodness sakes the republicans couldn't even swear in big oil c n n c e o s when they were called to capitol hill over skyrocketing prices americans couldn't require these people to swear to tell the truth maybe they did maybe they we'll never know and that's what the midterm elections are really all about america's tilted not merely to the right but off the map entirely new cons who no one of elected are telling the president and the vice president what they are expected to do and what the rick public in congress will pass the american people made on understand the rules of congress but know this the republicans delay every vote on the floor of this house until they can twist enough arms to get what the neo cons behind the curtain want debate is gone accountability is gone and that's why the republican control should be gone americans the republicans have squandered their chance to govern republicans and shortchanged the american people for twelve long years with free speech and free press now the american people know it november is about restoring democracy to the nation best able to protect it november is about restoring balance to a republican congress that has forgotten that it works for the people not for the neo cons no democracy can survive without a congress that looks at the president's policies and ask questions and sometimes says no this the president has had a free hand for far too long and this election is a this gentleman is recognized for five minutes thank you a speaker you know we hear people across the aisle talk about geo rubberstamp congress well i can point to you that that's the reason there is no immigration or border bill right now is because this is not a rubber stamp congress the president wants some things that we simply cannot provide but when we talk about  the allegations about republicans or the president shredding the constitution let me tell you friends he doesn't shred the constitution he has sworn to protect it and i am proud that people who want to destroy the way of life that we have in this country people that believe that freedom and democracy and self government is a terrible thing that i think that that leads to debauchery and  and therefore you need some holy ayatollah that tells you everything you can or can't do that since women back to being chattels as they never should have been but still are in some areas of the world that's what they want to do this country they want to destroy people they want to kill us and we have a president that understands that now across the aisle we have some folks who want to be part of the blame america first crowd that they want to know want you to know oh gee we're so bad we're so terrible look at abu grab you know i asked good friend sam johnson that service here in the congress what he thought about if he had been given a choice between the absolute horror that he went through in the north vietnam prison compared to what happened to abu ghraib it was noted it was a no brainer what happened there was abuse the people have gone to prison they've been punished what happened to american prisoners in north vietnam or north korea what happened to american prisoners but among those killers those just bloodsucking kill and democrat democracy want to destroy people  terrorists she hottest cutting our people's heads off with dole instruments on camera and that's who you want to embrace their regime and some people here in washington the before saddam went down he flew over their own never mind that saddam was a martyr and blood sucking so you killed thousands and thousands of boys would go over and embrace saddam and then come back and cut and call our president the one in the wrong maher goodness the blame america first crowd those who want to blame bush and rumsfeld for the terrorist acts have missed the whole point since not being seventy nine there's been a war going on we just didn't know it we had a president then who allowed an act of war under international law the attack of our embassy in iran to go unpunished and for over a year all we did was beg them to please release our hostages it's in a bad message we were hit again and eighty three with the barracks we were hit all through the ninety's with acts of war including the first attack on our own continent at the world trade center in n three and what did the democratic administration and democratic congress do well that wanted to prosecute in civil court here in america instead of treating it as an act of war this president understands we're in told don't let the prisoners hear you cause they'll think you're with the red cross or somebody and one of the people with those made some noise and i heard somebody there and they started all of a sudden going from laughing and being a good idea and finally between their sales to oh please tell me i'm being tortured and all this baloney well they're playing to the crowd that was obvious i would submit have springboards all that concerned we need to put that hurricane frances back around the spring court building there's they're going to construction recently and  those people ramada grab so they can watch him directly and then look out their windows maybe let him use the restroom facilities so that they can supervise more closely what this administration is trying to protect us from you cannot blame president bush and rumsfeld for the current terrorist attacks unless you are squarely willing to put the blame for nine eleven on the clinton administration because that's when it was planned that was when it was prepared and almost completed and then it carried over and was finished during this administration and this president sought for what it was an act of war that had to be address the process for liberty as our forefathers said is eternal vigilance we cannot keep blaming america first as our friends across the aisle want to do we have to recognize as this president and this secretary of defense as we're in a war against us and we finally have an administration that recognizes that and is out to protect us ladies recognize a five minute this is speaker yesterday i had the honor to visit a group of folks gathered on the mall as part camp democracy a nonpartisan camp for peace for democracy and for the restoration of the all of law those who gathered are relentlessly working to promote peace and justice they bring great passion to our shared struggle they have led one of the most important and powerful grassroots movements in recent memory and because of the pressure they have applied and the eloquence with which they have made the case the immorality of the bush seraphic policy has been exposed mr speaker in a few months our troops will have been in iraq for as long as their grandparents fathers fought world war two but unlike the struggle against naziism this is been an unmitigated disaster a national tragedy a moral outrage more than two thousand six hundred fifty soldiers of our own are dead nearly twenty thousand wounded by the pentagon's own count and countless more psychologically traumatized and for what so we could make the world a more dangerous place and increase the terrorist threat so we could create more jihad us and inspire more hatred for americans among muslim extremists so we could foment a bloody civil war and rip a nation apart and it seems telling tens of thousands of innocent civilians for the cause of their so called liberation like the people at camp democracy i've been speaking out against this war and this occupation even before they began i've helped form force votes on resolution and join demonstrators at rall across the country most recently i introduced a bill that would rescind the president's authority to use force in iraq authority that was granted in two thousand and two under what we now know are false pretenses i will not give up this fight until every last american soldier has been returned and returned home to his or her family but even after that we will have plenty of work to do because iraq is only a part of the problem the real problem is a foreign policy that uses too much brawn and not enough brains the real problem is an approach to national security that said might is always right that s when in doubt shoot first and ask questions later what we need is to completely overhaul the way we handle global conflicts and prevent wars from starting in the very first place working with the friend committee working with juan and working with physicians for social responsibility i created the smart security plan which was introduced in the house in two thousand and five smart would do just what i was talking about smart stands for sensible multilateral american response to terrorism it emphasizes peacekeeping and clemency instead of invasion and occupancy it rejects war in all but the most extreme circumstances it fights terrorism was stronger global partnership some of the sounds of comedy with better intelligence with tough weapons inspections but without violating our civil liberties and fundamental freedoms smart report more resources into securing loose nuclear material and ensuring the united states lives up to the commitments we've made we've made in our nation on nuclear nonproliferation smarter wean us off middle eastern oil it would invest in renewable energy technologies the set of cold war weapons systems that have outlived their usefulness some of the would dramatically increase development aid and debt relief for the poorest countries in the world to combat the deprivation and despair that often give rise to terrorism in the first place i attacked not by wrecking violent havoc around the world but by staying safe most honorable american value armed conflict around the world is destroying our bodies and our souls i'm particularly troubled by the devastating impact that war is having on our children our children are the worst most tragic victims children represent a disproportionate number of civilian deaths in conflicts worldwide and for many can survive their education is disrupted their communities destroyed their families separated i yield back the texas mcdermott of washington as well as in california mr shift in california i'm going to prison on policy of january fourth two thousand and five the gentleman from connecticut mr larson is recognized for sixty minutes as the designate of the minority leader thank you mr speaker and the speaker i rise this evening as we come to the floor again as part of what we've come to call our iraq watch and i'm grateful that we're joined by several colleagues this evening mr bishop from new york the smith during from washington state and others that will be  joining us throughout this this part of the evening now let me start as we always have by recognizing the value in service of the men and women who wear the uniform and as our leader nancy pelosi often says all remembered women who wear the uniform deserve a leadership that is worthy of the sacrifice that they make on a daily basis i am proud of this congress and as much as it's been able to distinguish the warriors from the war and so we continue to honor those brave men and women who wear the uniform of this country and who sacrifice daily on our behalf and yet  fold around the globe it specifically in the middle east as it relates to iraq what we find is even amongst those who were initially favored the war such as pundits like thomas friedman has now come to say that we've got to come to the realization that we are no longer midwife ing democracy in iraq but in essence babysitting an insurgent civil war and so this evening we come here to discuss iraq from the context of the mistakes that have been made and the need for accountability starting with the resignation of the secretary of defense at some point somewhere along the line there has got to be accountability for the actions that have transpired in iraq we were wrong about the information not to and going into the war in fact the strongest critics against us going into the war were people such as scowcroft eagleburger kissinger baker hardly left leaning liberals but people who understood international policy in the severe consequences that would result if we ended up going into iraq without the full support of the world and so americans everywhere kind of have to scratch their heads and say how is it that we could have the entire world with us when we invaded afghanistan and  virtually with no support in iraq it's clear from discussions with policymakers and former generals that a series of mistakes have been made not the least of which was going against our own national policy the weinberger doctrine which stated very clearly the united states should never go to war against another country inlets its vital interests are threatened and the powerful corollary to that and if we do go in we should go in with over well main force in both cases that doctrine and corollary were rejected in favor of the doctrine of preemption and unilateralism which has left our allies looking at us as we twist slowly in the wind of iraq as friedman says babysitting an insurrection in civil war where our most precious resources our men and women who serve this country are in harm's way we need a new direction we ought to send a very clear signal to the world to the people in this country that it's time for accountability time to say that mistakes were made and move on and we can start with dispence secretary rumsfeld stepping down as he should the head of the nine eleven commission has indicated both republican and democrat alike that we need to continue to adopt those resolutions or recommendations that they have found in their studies twenty of which still aren't implemented which is over half and so in order to prosecute the war on terror we've got to be able to accomplish those goals but without a congress that wants to hold the president accountable that isn't going to happen but a gentleman who has been doing just that and speaking in his district has been tim bishop of new york and at the time i'd like to yield to him thank my friend from connecticut for yielding and i also thank you for his ongoing leadership  this and so many issues other issues of importance here and in our congress let me just pick up on a few comments that were made with respect to oversight and accountability and i find it particularly ironic when one studies the tragic history of our involvement in iraq and whether it begins with the misuse of prewar intelligence or whether it begins in effect with  reasons that we were given for going to war none of which turned out to be accurate all of which turned out really to be more about marketing a war than about than about real threats that impelled our safety and security we are now being told by the very same people that have led us so far astray and have so weakened our nation and so exposed us to a war on terror that we must fight much more vigilantly than we have thus far we are now being told that these are the people that we must continue to keep in leadership positions in order to keep us free and safe and in fact it is their very leadership and i'm speaking specifically about the secretary of state and other civilian leaders part of the secretary of defense and other civilian leaders in the pentagon that had led us so far astray and when you chronicled the mistakes that were made in iraq