Lawmakers debate Iraq war resolution

WASHINGTON – One by one they stepped to the front of the House chamber Tuesday, where lawmakers have debated every major U.S. military conflict since the Civil War.

There was the Iraq veteran elected to Congress in November and now pushing for an end to a war he said was “immoral.”

From the other side came the stepmother of a Marine pilot who warned that any retreat in Iraq would aid only “the suicide bombers, the leaders of al-Qaida (and) the rulers of Iran.”

Deep into the night, a parade of lawmakers from both parties drew on philosophers, generals and former presidents to make their points. They talked of wars long over and those yet to begin.

It was the opening act in a weeklong rhetorical battle over a resolution renouncing President Bush’s latest proposal to quell the violence in Iraq.

The measure is expected to pass in the Democrat-controlled House, but it will not have a direct effect on the president’s plans to deploy 21,500 more troops in Iraq, in what has been billed as a last bid to restore order to Baghdad and other parts of the country.

The two-sentence, nonbinding resolution expresses “support” for U.S. forces and “disapproval” of the White House plan; Bush has said he will ignore it.

Still, Congress’ first full-scale debate on the war since Democrats won control of Capitol Hill has been cast as the prelude to a looming face-off over concrete efforts to end the U.S. involvement in Iraq.

In making their case for the resolution, Democrats on Tuesday contended it would help end what Rep. Ike Skelton, of Missouri, said was a “great American tragedy” that is destroying the military and weakening the nation.

Republican after Republican countered that the resolution represented what Rep. Duncan Hunter, of California, termed “the first sign of retreat” by America in the war on global terrorism.

By the time of Friday’s scheduled vote, most of the 435 members of the House are expected to have said their piece – a rarity that underscores the importance of the topic.

Many Democrats, including Iraq war veteran Patrick Murphy, of Pennsylvania, made clear that they want to follow the resolution vote with binding steps to force the Pentagon to begin withdrawing the more than 135,000 U.S. forces now in Iraq.

“Walking in my own combat boots, I saw firsthand this administration’s failed policy,” Murphy said in his floor speech. “It is immoral to send young Americans to fight and die in a conflict without a real strategy for success.”

Murphy is pushing legislation with California Rep. Mike Thompson, a Vietnam veteran, that calls for a phased withdrawal.

Rep. John P. Murtha of Pennsylvania – a Vietnam veteran whose call for a withdrawal more than a year ago helped energize Democratic opposition to the war – has said he plans to use congressional authority over the Pentagon budget to limit Bush’s planned troop buildup.

“We must be mindful of the sacrifices our military personnel are being asked to make in this war and the toll it is taking on them, on their families and on our veterans,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said as she opened debate on the resolution Tuesday.

“In the spirit of responsibility for our troops and the patriotism we all share, let us consider whether the president’s escalation proposal will lessen the violence in Iraq and bring the troops home,” said Pelosi, who sought to focus the debate over the resolution on the well-being of the U.S. military.

Many GOP lawmakers who spoke on the floor Tuesday adhered to a message delivered by their caucus leader, Rep. John Boehner, of Ohio, who cast the Democratic measure as a road to surrender.

“We know what al-Qaida thinks when America retreats from the battlefield,” he said. “They think we can’t stomach a fight.

“This is why they haven’t been afraid to strike us whenever they’ve had the opportunity.”