Press Release

Washington, D.C. — Congressman Elijah E. Cummings (D-MD), member of the House Armed Services Committee, released the following statement regarding today’s joint hearing of the House Armed Services and Foreign Affairs committees on the status of Iraq with General David Petraeus and Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker:

“At today’s hearing on the progress of Iraq, I was disappointed—but not surprised—to spend more than six hours hearing more of the same: ‘there has been some success, but we need more time.’ We have been dealing with moving target deadlines for far too long. Enough is enough.

“The purpose of the troop surge was to clear the way for political reconciliation in Iraq. With the GAO reporting that the Iraqi government has met only 3 of the 18 benchmarks to gauge success and reports that overall violence in Iraq has increased since the surge, it is clear that our strategy is not working. This war has cost us more than 3,750 lives and 450 billion taxpayer dollars too many.

“While General Petraeus did mention a troop draw down, he offered no guarantees or specific timetables. I find it difficult to regard this as anything more than a symbolic motion to garner public support and justify asking for even more time.

“I am further alarmed by Ambassador Crocker seeking support for two significant proposals to create permanent jobs for thousands of Iraqi people. While it is important to help re-stabilize the Iraq economy, it is unfathomable that American people would be asked to spend more tax dollars to employ the Iraqi people while our own unemployment rate in the U.S. is rising.

“I cannot comprehend why this Administration is working so hard to create the appearance of success in Iraq, especially as the American people continue to pay heavily. It is time for a new strategy focusing on responsibly redeploying our troops and implementing diplomatic measures to bring about political reconciliation as a foundation for military security. We must begin putting pressure on the Iraqi government to stand on their own. We cannot afford to continuously support an unstable and ineffective government while depriving the American people of their needs here at home.”

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