The following text is the floor statement made today by Rep. Ed Markey (D-MA) on the Iraq Resolution Disapproving of Escalation:

Madame Speaker, I rise in support of the resolution.

This debate marks the beginning of the end of an ill-conceived, mis-managed, and ultimately failed War in Iraq.  

The war in Iraq was launched on the basis of false and misleading intelligence about a non-existent nuclear weapons program.  

--When the inspectors looked for nuclear weapons in all the most likely places, there was nothing there. 
--When they looked on all the unlikely places, there was nothing there. 
--When this was reported to the world, the world said “don’t invade.” 
--But when this was reported to the President of the United States, he chose to invade Iraq.

In other words, the President did the OPPOSITE of what the evidence dictated.

Our troops continue to fight heroically to prevent Iraq from sliding into anarchy, but they are losing ground to a deep, emotional, cycle of religious strife and revenge that goes back 14 centuries.  

The American people are now speaking out with one clear voice, in frustration and in anger, demanding change, demanding a New Direction in Iraq.

This week, we have a choice.  We can say NO to the President’s failed war in Iraq, we can say NO to the President’s escalation, and we say NO to the unnecessary loss of another American soldier, Marine, or airman.  Or, we can once again vote to stay the course and continue on with this failed policy.

But I would not dismiss this resolution’s importance simply because it is non-binding.  Twenty-four years ago, this House took up another non-binding resolution when it first debated my Nuclear Freeze resolution.  We passed the nuclear freeze twice in this House.  It was non-binding, and it never passed the Senate, but it nevertheless changed the course of this nation’s nuclear weapons policy.   It did so because of the pressure it put on the White House to change.  And it was followed by binding legislation that halted tests of anti-satellite weapons, cut funding for Star Wars, and cut in half the planned size of the MX missile force.

The Administration’s failed strategy has already ended any chance of a successful short-term outcome.  The just-released, deeply pessimistic National Intelligence Estimate on Iraq simply confirms this situation.

We are in the middle of a sectarian civil war in Iraq right now, and the presence of our troops is preventing the Iraqi people from taking responsibility for their own security and for the political solution that must follow.

This war should never have been fought.  Period.
--It was a mistake,
--the American people know it was a mistake,
--our military leaders know it was a mistake, and
--a bipartisan majority in the United States Congress knows it was a mistake.  

Let’s pass this resolution, and send a strong signal to the Bush Administration that it is time to stop the escalation, bring this war to an end, and bring our troops back home.

I urge adoption of the Resolution.