Hawkish Democrat Calls for Iraq
Pullout
Yahoo News/AP
By LIZ SIDOTI, Associated Press Writer
November 17, 2005
WASHINGTON - One of Congress' most hawkish Democrats called Thursday for an
immediate U.S. withdrawal from Iraq, sparking bitter and personal salvos from
both sides in a growing Capitol Hill uproar over President Bush's war
policies.
"It's time to bring them home," said Rep. John Murtha, a decorated Korean
War and Vietnam combat veteran, choking back tears during remarks to reporters.
"Our military has accomplished its mission and done its duty."
The comments by the Pennsylvania lawmaker, who has spent three decades in
the House, hold particular weight because he is close to many military
commanders and has enormous credibility with his colleagues on defense issues.
He voted for the war in 2002, and remains the top Democrat on the House
Appropriations defense subcommittee.
"Our troops have become the primary target of the insurgency. They are
united against U.S. forces and we have become a catalyst for violence," he
said.
In a biting response, Republicans criticized Murtha's position as one of
abandonment and surrender and accused Democrats of playing politics with the
war and recklessly pushing a "cut and run" strategy.
"They want us to retreat. They want us to wave the white flag of surrender
to the terrorists of the world," said House Speaker Dennis Hastert, R-Ill.
"It would be an absolute mistake and a real insult to the lives that have
been lost," said Rep. David Dreier, R-Calif.
Just two days earlier, the GOP-controlled Senate defeated a Democratic push
to force Bush to lay out a timetable for withdrawal. Spotlighting mushrooming
questions from both parties about the war, though, the chamber approved a
statement that 2006 should be a significant year in which conditions are
created for the phased withdrawal of U.S. forces.
Murtha estimated that all U.S. troops could be pulled out within six months.
He introduced a resolution Thursday that would force the president to call back
the military, but it was unclear when, or if, either GOP-run chamber of
Congress would vote on it.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., stopped short of endorsing
Murtha's position, even though he's one of her close advisers. Her counterpart
in the Senate, Sen. Harry Reid of Nevada, said, "I favor what the Senate did,"
referring to the statement the Senate adopted.
Thursday's rhetorical dueling came in a week that had already seen Bush and
other top administration officials lash out at war critics, who they say
advocate a strategy that will only embolden the insurgency.
Some Senate Democrats have already laid out plans for bringing home U.S.
troops. Other House Democrats have called for the military to pull out, but
none has Murtha's clout on military issues.
Seldom overtly political, Murtha uncharacteristically responded to Vice
President Dick Cheney's comments this week that Democrats were spouting "one of
the most dishonest and reprehensible charges" about the Bush administration's
use of intelligence before the war.
"I like guys who've never been there that criticize us who've been there. I
like that. I like guys who got five deferments and never been there and send
people to war, and then don't like to hear suggestions about what needs to be
done," Murtha said.
Referring to Bush, Murtha added, "I resent the fact, on Veterans Day, he
criticized Democrats for criticizing them."
Murtha once worked closely with the vice president when Cheney was defense
secretary. During Vietnam, Bush served stateside in the National Guard while
Cheney's five deferments kept him out of the service entirely.
With a Bronze Star and two Purple Hearts, Murtha retired from the Marine
Corps reserves as a colonel in 1990 after 37 years as a Marine, only a few
years longer than he's been in Congress. Elected in 1974, Murtha has become
known as an authority on national security whose advice was sought out by
Republican and Democratic administrations alike.
Murtha's shift from an early war backer to a critic advocating withdrawal
reflects plummeting public support for a war that has cost more than $200
billion and led to the deaths of more than 2,000 U.S. troops.
Known as a friend and champion of officers at the Pentagon and in the war
zone, it is widely believed in Congress that Murtha often speaks for those in
uniform and could be echoing what U.S. commanders in the field and in the
Pentagon are saying privately about the conflict.
Murtha, who normally shuns the spotlight, said he was spoke out because he
has grown increasingly troubled by the war and has a constitutional and moral
obligation to speak for the troops.
But Republicans said Murtha does not represent the views of U.S. troops or
military leaders.
"This falloff of support among Democratic ranks is not shared by the
war-fighting forces. It's not shared by our troops," said Rep. Duncan Hunter ,
R-Calif., chairman of the House Armed Services Committee.
Several times a year, Murtha travels to Iraq to assess the war on the ground
and he often visits wounded troops in hospitals at home. And he sometimes just
calls up generals to get firsthand accounts.
"The war in Iraq is not going as advertised," Murtha said. "It is a flawed
policy wrapped in illusion."
His voice cracked and tears filled his eyes as he related stories of one of
his visits to wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in
Washington.
One man, he said, was blinded and lost both his hands but had been denied a
Purple Heart because friendly fire caused his injuries.
"I met with the commandant. I said, 'If you don't give him a Purple Heart,
I'll give him one of mine.' And they gave him a Purple Heart," said Murtha, who
has two.
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