Text of Rep. Keith Ellison’s floor speech

02/16/2007

Last update: February 15, 2007 – 7:38 PM


Make no mistake about it. The citizens of the 5th Congressional District of Minnesota sent me to Congress for one resounding reason -- above all else. Support our troops - but bring them home - and bring them home now!
I carry their message here today - on behalf of Phil Steger and the Friends for a Non-Violent World - on behalf of Chapter 27 of the Veterans for Peace - on behalf of every patriot who stands for Peace in the frigid cold every Wednesday night on the Lake Street Bridge in Minneapolis - I carry that message.

On behalf of the 3100 Americans killed - including 44 Minnesotans. I carry that message. On behalf of the 24,000 scarred and wounded young Americans - including 372 Minnesotans - I carry that message. On behalf of the families and loved ones of the damaged and deceased - I carry that message.

On behalf of the 8 BILLION American dollars thrown at Iraq each month - hard-working American tax dollars - that could be used to enrich the lives of 86,000 uninsured kids in Minnesota, or care for nearly 700,000 Minnesota Medicare patients. I carry that message.

On behalf of all Americans who were purposefully mislead - repeatedly -by this Administration on weapons of mass destruction - when none existed; on collusion between 9/11 and Saddam Hussein - when none existed; on regime change to be welcomed with flowers - instead of IEDs; on Iraqi oil paying for this war - instead of draining our treasury of $400 BILLION.

On behalf of those Americans - I carry that message. Stop the deception. Stop the killing. Stop the carnage. Support the troops, but bring them home now - restore our nation to its guiding principle - of peace; and diplomacy.

For 6 long years, while the deception deepened, we were told - bite our tongues; "you are with us - or against us," said the President. Support the troops -- with our silence.

It is poetic that this debate is taking place during Black History Month - when one of our most distinguished patriots, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., (in one of the last speeches of his life) spoke out against the Vietnam War. He said, "A time comes when silence is betrayal." And so it is!

On behalf of Dr. King's legacy - I carry the message of peace today.

To those who believe the principles of peaceful dissent that guided Dr. King are long gone, let me quote Marine General Peter Pace, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, just this past week: "There's no doubt in my mind that the dialogue here in Washington strengthens our democracy. Period."

He added...potential enemies may take some comfort from the rancor but...they "don't have a clue how democracy works."

Americans know full well how democracy works. They exercised it in striking red, white and blue colors this past November with their resounding message against this illegal, poorly executed and un-winnable civil war.

To those who agree we must exit Iraq, but cannot do so for fear of the chaos left behind. I tell you that chaos is already in front of us!

The bloodbath, civil war, terrorist haven, and failed state already exist. Our prolonged occupation cannot prevent what already exists. In fact - it fuels it further!

What paralyzes Congress most is that we must continue in Iraq to "support the troops." Try asking the troops - especially those in their third and fourth tours. The strangest part of this argument is that somehow the troops are responsible for continuing the President's course. The buck stops with our troops??? It is a travesty to suggest so.

Because this President refuses to accept the buck for his ill-fated policies -- the people responded in November by saying - then let it stop with Congress! And so it has - today.

We have heard the American people - and we will pass this resolution. And another, and another. We will remain vigilant in returning this country to the guiding principle of peace that has kept us safe and strong over 200 years.

Peace may not be good for Halliburton, or the Blackwater Security Firm. It is good for the lives and livelihood of the folks of Hilltop and New Hope, Minneapolis and St. Louis Park. It is good for Minnesota - and especially for America.

It is their collective voices we carry to the Floor today. It is their passionate plea of urgency that we reject the politics of fear, mistrust and supremacy - and embrace a return to the guiding principle of peace - to the politics of generosity, respect and inclusivity.

There are moments in history which are moments of conscience. In past times, we have done wrong when we haven't trusted the wisdom of the people.

Today we trust their wisdom with our votes. We were sent here as messengers of peace - today we have indeed begun to see the lights of peace at the end of this long dark tunnel called Iraq.