January 9, 2009 CONGRESSIONAL RECORD — HOUSE H143 

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a 

previous order of the House, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. POE) is recognized for 5 minutes. 

(Mr. POE of Texas addressed the 

House. His remarks will appear hereafter in the Extensions of Remarks.) 

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LET’S NOT FORGET IRAQ 

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a 

previous order of the House, the gentlewoman from California (Ms. WOOLSEY) 

is recognized for 5 minutes. 

Ms. WOOLSEY. Madam Speaker, this 

week was the beginning of the 111th 

Congress, and it is absolutely clear we 

face enormous challenges. We must 

deal with an economic crisis that is 

robbing the American people of their 

savings, their jobs and their homes. We 

must tackle our problems in health 

care, energy, education and the environment. The domestic agenda is going 

to be long, it is going to be hard, and it 

is going to demand our time and our 

energy. 

But I rise today to make this plea: 

Let us not forget Iraq. About 140,000 

American servicemembers remain in 

harm’s way in Iraq. Military families 

and veterans continue to struggle and 

to suffer, and the occupation continues 

to cost us over $11 billion a month. 

That is money that is desperately 

needed to help the American people 

right here at home. Yet Iraq seems to 

have disappeared from our radar 

screens, from our newspapers, from our 

media. The three major television networks have decided to remove their 

full-time reporters. With Iraq off television screens, I am concerned that it 

will be out of sight and out of mind. 

But forgetting Iraq would be wrong. 

It would be dangerous. The dying 

hasn’t stopped. Nearly 100 civilians 

have been killed in the first few days of 

this month alone. In addition, over 300 

died in December and over 300 died in 

November. Many, many more are sure 

to die in the days and months ahead, 

not to count those that are being injured and displaced. The number of 

Iraqis being killed today is about the 

same as the number that were being 

killed in 2003 and 2004. 

There are other issues that demand 

our attention as well; the new Status 

of Forces Agreement, which is bound to 

create confusion and new problems for 

our troops. And we must come up with 

a plan, a plan to meet the refugee crisis. Four million refugees must be resettled. The humanitarian crisis goes 

on and on. 

But despite all these problems, there 

is reason for hope. The administration 

that decided to destroy Iraq in order to 

save it will be gone in 2 weeks, and I 

am confident that the new administration, with President Obama and Secretary of State Clinton leading the 

way, will put us on the right path. 

They are committed to ending the occupation within 16 months. I actually 

urge them to do it even sooner and to 

ignore the voices that will advise them 

to leave residual forces and permanent 

bases behind. I also urge them to engage the international community and 

Iraq’s neighbors, including Iran, in a 

diplomatic effort to stabilize the Middle East, which is absolutely essential. 

A full redeployment of our troops in 

a new diplomatic effort will send a signal to the world that a compassionate 

America is committed to peace; that it 

is committed to human rights instead 

of war and instead of torture. 

Madam Speaker, the pundits and 

neocons who got us into the Iraq mess 

in the first place are calling it a victory. This is the second time they have 

called it a victory. They would like us 

to close the book on Iraq and to move 

on. But the occupation is still standing 

in the way of peace, it is still undermining our moral authority in the 

world and is draining our Treasury at 

the worst possible time. 

We have more than enough domestic 

problems to deal with, but ending the 

occupation of Iraq must also be at the 

very top of this new administration’s 

agenda. I am confident that it will be, 

because we will finally have the leadership in the White House and the State 

Department that will do the right 

thing. 

Madam Speaker, let’s not forget Iraq. 

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The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a 

previous order of the House, the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. 

JONES) is recognized for 5 minutes. 

(Mr. JONES addressed the House. His 

remarks will appear hereafter in the 

Extensions of Remarks.) 

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ENSURING FAIRNESS IN THE 

HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mrs. 

GILLIBRAND). Under a previous order of 

the House, the gentleman from Georgia 

(Mr. PRICE) is recognized for 5 minutes. 

Mr. PRICE of Georgia. Madam 

Speaker, here we find ourselves at the 

end of the first week of this new session of the 111th Congress. There is a 

lot of talk and has been a lot of talk 

since the election about bipartisanship. 

There has been a lot of talk on both 

sides of the aisle about bipartisanship, 

and that is important. I am a strong 

supporter of bipartisanship, and everybody talks about it. Bipartisan discussions, however, require bipartisan action. If action in a bipartisan way 

doesn’t follow those discussions, then 

credibility is denied. 

Now, I firmly understand and appreciate that elections have consequences, 

and the election of this past November 

resulted in a House, the United States 

House of Representatives, with a membership ratio of 59 percent on the Democrat side and 41 percent on the Republican side. So on the floor of this 

House, that is the ratio, and it is reflected in votes even this week. 

Nobody would argue, I don’t believe, 

Madam Speaker, that every single 

Member, every single Member of this 

House is important. We all represent 

virtually the same number of people, 

and it is pivotal that each and every 

Member be given the appropriate and 

equal opportunity to be involved in the 

process, because that is what gives 

credibility to representative government. 

Now, as you and I both know, Madam 

Speaker, and as our colleagues know, 

the bulk of the congressional work is 

done in committees. That is where the 

critical issues are debated, that is 

where the hard work is done, that is 

where the issues are tossed back and 

forth and where solutions are hammered out. 

Now, when voices are silenced, either 

by not being able to speak in committee for various problems with rules 

or when individuals are not even allowed to sit in committees, then it 

does a disservice to each and every 

American. We are better when we are 

tussling with those ideas, when we are 

working as hard as we can to come up 

with the appropriate solution for our 

Nation. We are not better when we are 

just talking about politics. 

Again, in reviewing the ratios on the 

House floor, they are 59 percent Democrat, 41 percent Republican. Most 

Americans, if you asked them, would 

say that is what ought to be reflected 

in the committees, because that is 

where that hard work is done, that is 

where those issues are hammered out. I 

agree those ratios should be reflected 

in committee. If they aren’t, then 

America is cheated and democracy is 

cheapened. The committee ratios are 

incredibly important because they determine the work product that occurs 

in this House. So, again, Madam 

Speaker, the House of Representatives, 

59 percent Democrat, 41 percent Republican. 

Now, when we look at committee ratios that have just come out this week, 

it appears that on some of the most 

pivotal committees where issues like 

taxes and financial services and health 

care are going to be decided, that ratio 

has not held. The ratio appears to be 

closer to 63 percent Democrat, 37 percent Republican. This is a significant 

decrease of a significant number of 

seats, and it disenfranchises many 

Americans across this Nation. It is a 

matter of fairness, Madam Speaker. It 

is a matter of fairness. The American 

people may not care about the specific 

processes here, but they do care about 

fairness. 

So I call on the Speaker, I call on the 

majority leader, I call on the majority 

party, to make certain that the committee numbers, the numbers, the ratios of Democrats to Republicans in 

our committees, reflect the appropriate ratio that is reflected on the 

floor of the House of Representatives. 

Madam Speaker, it is a matter of fairness. 

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The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a 

previous order of the House, the gentleman from Oregon (Mr. DEFAZIO) is 

recognized for 5 minutes. 


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