January 09, 2007

Barbara Lee Responds to Bush’s Call for Escalation in Iraq

(Washington, DC) – Congresswoman Barbara Lee (D-Oakland) issued the following statement in response to President Bush’s speech tonight calling for more troops in Iraq and increased funding for reconstruction:

“Tonight President Bush went on prime time television to present to the nation the results of his listening tour on what to do about Iraq.

“Four years into this war, the President has suddenly taken an interest in listening, but he certainly is not hearing the American people.

“The President proposed an escalation of the war in Iraq at precisely the time when the American people are calling for us to bring the war to an end. He’s like the man who finds himself stuck in a hole and decides the best way out is to keep digging.

“The question that Congress and the American people must now answer is how many people should die so the President can avoid admitting he has staked his presidency and his legacy on an unnecessary war whose implementation his administration has botched at every turn? How many have to die so the President can save face?”

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