‘What would this reduction involve? What is a limited presence? What does “targeted” mean?’



Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell made the following remarks (as prepared) on the Senate floor Friday regarding the Levin Amendment to the Defense Authorization Act.



“The Senate has now had a full day to debate the Levin Amendment. And the questions I raised about it yesterday remain unanswered. Americans need to know what they’re being asked to consider. The troops who are fighting Al Qaeda in Iraq need to know. So I’ll ask my questions again.



“The Levin Amendment says the Secretary of Defense shall ‘commence the reduction of the number of United States forces in Iraq not later than 120 days after the date of the enactment of this Act.’



“What would this reduction involve?



“The Levin Amendment calls for U.S. forces in Iraq to have ‘a limited presence’ after the reduction.



“What is a limited presence?



“The Levin Amendment says our Armed Forces should only be used to protect U.S. personnel, to train Iraqis to fight, and to engage in ‘targeted counterterrorism operations against Al Qaeda.’



“What does ‘targeted’ mean?



The Levin Amendment says ‘the Secretary of Defense shall complete the transition of U.S. forces in Iraq to a limited presence and missions by April 30.’



“How does the author define ‘complete’?



“A number of papers across America reported this morning that yesterday’s House vote means that ‘most’ U.S. troops would be out of Iraq by April?



“I ask the authors of the Levin Amendment, is this true?



“This one and a half page amendment is the centerpiece of the Democratic Leadership’s strategy for Iraq. They want us to choose this over the Petraeus Plan.



“Now listen to General Petraeus. Just before we began this debate, he made a simple request: ‘I can think of few commanders in history who wouldn’t have wanted more troops, more time or more unity among their partners. However, if I could only have one thing at this point in Iraq, it would be more time.’



“A Democratic-led Senate voted to 81-0 to send General Petraeus into Iraq. A bipartisan majority of 80 senators told him in May that he had until September to report back on progress. His strategy has led to what even skeptics describe as an encouraging turnaround against Al Qaeda in Anbar, a province which accounts for about one third of Iraq’s territory.



“Yet just one month after this strategy became fully-manned, Democrats are declaring it a failure and asking us to rally behind a one-and-a-half page alternative that raises more questions than it answers.



“We’ve been down this road before. When the President decided to change course in Iraq last year, Democrats said his new strategy wouldn’t work. They called it a failure before it began. And now, just one month after that strategy became fully manned, they’re calling it a failure again — even as it’s started to show signs of military success.



“The Iraqi foreign minister told us what would happen if America walks away from this fight right now: a sharp increase in violence, thousands of civilian deaths, and a regional conflict that could involve several other countries in the region.



“Yet the Democratic Leadership has yet to address the consequences of withdrawal. Here’s they’re response to concerns about a victory by Al Qaeda, genocide, and a regional war in the Middle East: ‘Blame Bush.’ That may work on the stump. But it’s not a very sophisticated foreign policy. And it’s not going to solve the grave problems we face in Iraq and the broader Middle East.



“Fortunately, many brave people are facing this problem head on. Our top commander in Iraq says he can win this fight. He told us he wouldn’t risk a single American life if he didn’t think he could. All he’s asking for is time. Can we at least give what we agreed to in May?



“This Amendment is not a responsible alternative to the Petraeus Plan. It’s a page and a half of vague proposals. All of us are frustrated with this war. But we have committed to listen to General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker — we did so through legislation.



“We need to listen to our top commander in the field. He deserves 60 days. More than 160,000 American soldiers and Marines are fighting in Iraq right now. They believe in this mission. They are executing a plan, and they have a leader. He’s asking for more time. Let’s be fair and honor the legislation we passed in May.



“Let’s wait for the report.”



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