CONGRATULATING THE INTERIM GOVERNMENT OF IRAQ ON ITS FORTHCOMING ASSUMPTION OF SOVEREIGN AUTHORITY IN IRAQ -- (House of Representatives - June 24, 2004)

Mr. FRANK of Massachusetts. Mr. Speaker, I know that this is being carried on C-SPAN, but I think we should broaden our broadcast efforts. When we did the tax bill last week, I thought eBay should have been transmitting it. Today I think it really belongs on the Cartoon Network.

There is much in this resolution I agree with, but what is most important is what is left out. The gentleman from California, a very distinguished and thoughtful legislator, although, unfortunately, in the minority and not in a position to write resolutions, said that it is our democratic responsibility to express legitimate criticisms of the administration. I agree. Sadly, because the majority is in control, there are none of them in this resolution.

This resolution is a cartoon. It describes an Iraq that resembles nothing as much as Brigadoon. I expect maybe it will appear once every hundred years. I agree with many of the aspirations of this resolution. I agree that our troops deserve credit for the terrible situation in which they have been put. But if one read this resolution and had not read the newspapers or watched television about Iraq , one would not know what country was being discussed.

The gentlewoman from California alluded to our congratulating Mr. Bremer for ably advancing the goals of making Iraq safe, secure, stable, sovereign, and democratic. The Iraq that is safe, secure, stable, sovereign, and democratic, are there two countries named Iraq? Is this Iraq anywhere near the Iraq that we have been worried about? I wish Iraq could become that. But to congratulate ourselves as if it already had is simply not accurate.

I am troubled by the procedures we are seeing. The majority obviously feels concerned that the public no longer shares its view so they have decided to legislate opinion. They have a pattern now of coming forward with resolutions which include some things Members agree with, like support for our troops and aspirations, and then they wrap into that a lot of misrepresentative, inaccurate descriptions of reality and then demand that people vote it. We are told if we do not vote for a resolution that talks about Iraq as a safe, secure, stable, sovereign, democratic state, that somehow we are not in favor of the troops. It is a misrepresentation of the situation of Iraq , and a grievous misuse of the legislative process.