July 06, 2005

Mr. Durbin replies to Howie

Michelle Malkin is at it again with several good topics including my very own Senator DICK Durbin. Gee typing Dick instead of DICK didn’t last long. Michelle has a good story on how left wing hackers used fraud, theft and hacking to attack Protest Warrior as well. And she has added even more this afternoon. Wow. Also it’s quite a coincidence that just yesterday Mr. Durbin replied to my email.

The full text of Senator Durbin’s reply is below my comments. I should have saved my initial email too.

Stop the Bush Bashing. Your efforts to help are a welcome contribution but the continuous Bush bashing works directly against the soldiers you speak so highly of. The war is going on right now and to continue to harp over the conditions in which it was started is counter productive. To support the troops you must also support the Commander in Chief. Work hard for the troops because the war over hearts and minds on the home front is just as important as the war on the ground. They need to know they have our support. The terrorists/baathists think “we the people� will give in. You assist them in that task by dragging up the same old talking points that have been going around and hurting home front morale for months now.

Well now that I’ve done my ranting I would like to thank Mr. Durbin for his reply. I’m nothing if not polite and I appreciate the reply even if I don’t agree with most of it. Still no vote for you from me Mr. Durbin. But you’re getting warmer on a couple points. Cooperation instead of confrontation might do it sir. At least he said he would keep my/our concerns in mind.

Click to read Senator Durbin's reply. My question was simply what was his take on Iraq and what should be do about it.

Dear Mr. Howard:

Thank you for contacting me about the situation in Iraq. I appreciate hearing from you.

I believe risking the lives of our men and women in uniform by going to war should be our last option, to be used only when all other options fail. I did not feel we had reached that point when the President committed our troops to war, nor did I support the Congressional resolution authorizing a unilateral war against Iraq. Far too many of our men and women in uniform have died in this war, including many from our own Illinois communities who serve in the National Guard and Reserves. My deepest sympathies go out to the families and friends of those who have lost their lives in this endeavor, as well as to the many other American soldiers who have suffered life-changing injuries.

It is clear we were not prepared for the situation we face today. In addition to the loss of life, this war is costing us more than $1.5 billion a week. Yet, even though the Congress gave the Administration every dollar it requested, too many soldiers have traveled the dangerous roads of Iraq in inadequately armored Humvees, with widespread reports of soldiers lacking vital equipment such as protective body armor and modern defensive equipment on helicopters. The failure to properly equip our military personnel is unconscionable. I have pressed hard for the deployment of up-armored Humvees and the best equipment we can give our forces. I also worked successfully to increase the level of combat pay we provide to our troops and have fought to make up the salary difference for federal employees who take a pay cut when they are mobilized to perform active service as a member of the National Guard or Reserve, just as many state and local governments and private companies have done for their employees.

The sad truth is that, from the beginning, the Bush Administration discounted any evidence that did not fit with its view that Saddam Hussein was an imminent threat to the United States and that Iraq could be easily rid of him and turned into a democracy. It is clear that the main reasons offered for going to war with Iraq -– that its possession of weapons of mass destruction and its close ties to global terrorist groups represented an imminent threat to the United States -– were gross exaggerations. Similarly, Administration officials greatly underestimated the difficulties associated with the post-war occupation and reconstruction of Iraq. Despite warnings from both internal and independent experts, Bush Administration officials insisted that U.S. troops would be welcomed as liberators and reconstruction would not place a financial drain on the U.S. Treasury. The reality has been quite different, and the Bush Administration's unilateralist policies have left the United States bearing the bulk of the costs -- in human lives as well as financial resources.

Unfortunately, it is easier to get into a war than to get out of one. Setting a timetable for withdrawal is not prudent at this time, but I cannot accept the Administration's failure to establish a clear plan to end the conflict and return our troops home. President Bush has taken America to war without enough troops to secure Iraq or a comprehensive plan to win the peace. Vice President Cheney's recent declaration that the insurgency was in its last throes has not been confirmed by a single military leader and is challenged every day with new reports of lives lost.

America has invested too much and lost too many soldiers to turn its back on the people of Iraq. We cannot cut and run and leave chaos in our wake, but we cannot achieve our goal of a safe and stable Iraq until the
President puts forward a comprehensive plan for success and a clear strategy for how we will achieve it. That is the President's responsibility to every American soldier. And it is Congress' responsibility to insist that he do so.

In pursuit of one element of that goal, I introduced an amendment to the 2005 supplemental spending bill to require the Administration to provide Congress with regular, comprehensive assessments of the progress being
made in training and equipping Iraqi security forces. This measure, which was adopted as part of the emergency appropriations bill, directs the Pentagon to report to Congress every 90 days on the estimated strength of the Iraqi insurgency; the status of efforts to recruit, train, and equip Iraqi security forces; and Iraq's progress toward achieving important milestones toward political stability. In addition, the reports shall include an assessment of how many U.S. forces will be needed in Iraq in 6, 12, and 18 months.

The sooner the new Iraqi government is able to stand on its own and responsibly govern the people of Iraq, with a trained and fully functioning security force, the sooner we can bring the tens of thousands of U.S. soldiers there back home to their families. I will continue to do all I can in support of efforts to achieve this goal.

Thank you again for your message. I will be sure to keep your concerns in mind as this situation develops further.

Sincerely,
Richard J. Durbin
United States Senator

Mr. Durbin, I had to do a bit of reformatting to make your letter fit on the page well. But the text is intact as sent to me by your office. Thanks again for the reply.