‘We will not let Memorial Day pass without doing our duty’



Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell made the following statement Thursday on the supplemental emergency spending bill:



“It’s now been 101 days since the President asked Congress to approve an emergency war spending bill. One hundred and one days, 31 votes, and this bill is finally on its way to conference.



“Yesterday the Senate once again rejected the notion of an arbitrary surrender date. We made a responsible bipartisan commitment to get a bill to the President’s desk that he can sign before Memorial Day.



“My expectation is that the conferees will strip the surrender date and extraneous funds from the original bill.



“There’s also general agreement that we must hold the Iraqi government accountable to a political process that allows for reconciliation.



“The Senate will not cut funds for troops in the field. And we will finish this process by Memorial Day. This is a victory first and foremost for our troops. And it’s a clear renewal of our strong, confident commitment to security and the national defense.



“At the end of next week, we’ll stop to remember those who’ve sacrificed for this country. We should not forget that many are in the field of battle now. And we will not let that day pass without doing our duty to these brave men and women and finishing this bill.”





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