Mr. Speaker, today, my hopes for peace have given way to the reality of war. Although I agree with President Bush that Saddam Hussein is a dangerous man, I am not convinced that a military attack against Iraq is in the best interest of our nation. For this reason, I voted against a resolution last year that was the equivalent of a declaration of war which authorized the President to launch a military strike to disarm and possibly overthrow Saddam Hussein.

 

The issue is not whether or not Saddam Hussein is a dangerous dictator who should be disarmed. Just this past Sunday, we marked the fifteenth anniversary of Saddam Hussein's chemical weapons attack on a predominantly Kurdish village in northeastern Iraq where 5,000 civilians died. The international community has an important obligation to ensure that Saddam Hussein cannot repeat his aggression of the past, and as the world's most powerful country, we must be committed to lead. Through U.N. inspections, continued monitoring and increased scrutiny of Baghdad, I think we can meet that responsibility.

 

Mr. Speaker, we must realize that a possible military attack against Iraq would represent a major shift in American diplomatic and strategic thinking. For nearly fifty years, we relied upon deterrence to check Soviet expansionism. Deterrence brought us victory in the Cold War without having to fight a hot, shooting war under the shadow of nuclear annihilation. That same strategy has kept Iraq at bay for more than a decade. Now that doctrine is on the verge of being discarded.

 

There are several other critical questions to which we've heard very few answers. We must have a clear plan on how an attack on Iraq would transpire, including identifying our military options, determining our strategy to change the regime, calculating the potential casualties, and estimating how much an operation would cost and how it will be funded.

 

We must also see a plan to build democratic and free-market institutions in a post-Saddam Iraq. History teaches us that how we win the peace is just as critical as how we win the war. Thus far, these crucial issues have received little attention.

 

For those of us who counseled a peaceful strategy to disarm Iraq in the months before this point, it is now time to unite in our support for the 300,000 brave men and women in the region. I fervently and completely join the President in the hope and prayer for the safe and quick return of our soldiers to their homes and families.

 

I know that members of our military serve this nation's ideals and they demonstrate those ideals in their code and in their character. I have seen their love of this country and devotion to the cause of peace and freedom. I know that their mission is dangerous, and I personally thank them for their service. May God bless our troops and their families, and may God bless America.