Rep. Wexler: Gen. Petraeus testimony eerily similar to Westmoreland and Vietnam

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Wexler: I vehemently opposed the surge when the president announced that last winter and instead I call for troops be withdrawn. In your testimony today you claim that the surge is working and that you need more time. With all due respect General, among unbiased nonpartisan expert consensus is stark. The surge has failed based on most parameters. In truth, war related deaths have doubled in Iraq in 2007 compared to last year. Tragically, it is my understanding that seven more American troops have died while we’ve been talking today. Cherry picking statistics or selectively massaging information will not change the basic truth.

And please understand Gen. Petraeus, I do not question your credibility. You are a true patriot. I admire your service to our nation, but I do question your facts. And it is my patriotic duty to represent my constituents and ask you, question you, about your argument that the surge in troops be extended until next summer, especially when your testimony stating that the dramatic reduction in sectarian death is opposite from the National Intelligence Estimate, the Government Accounting Office, and several other non-biased, non-partisan reports.

I am skeptical General, more importantly the American people are skeptical because four years ago very credible people, both in uniform and not in uniform, came before this Congress and sold us a bill of goods that turned out to be false. And that’s why we went to war based on false pretense to begin with.

This testimony today is eerily similar to the testimony the American people heard on April twenty eighth nineteen sixty seven from General William Westmoreland, when he told the American people, "America was making progress in Vietnam."

General you say we’re making progress in Iraq, but the Iraqi parliament simply left Baghdad and shut down operations last month. You say were making progress, but the nonpartisan GAO office concluded that the Iraqi government has failed to meet fifteen of the eighteen political, economic. and security benchmarks that Congress mandated. You say we’re making top progress? War related deaths have doubled. An ABC/BBC poll recently said that seventy percent of Iraqis say the surge has worsened their lives. Iraqis say the surge is not working.

I will conclude my comments, General, and give you a chance to respond, but there’s one more thing if I may. We’ve heard a lot today about America’s credibility. President Bush recently stated we should not have withdrawn our troops from Vietnam because of the great damage to America’s credibility. General, there are fifty eight thousand one hundred ninety five names etched into the Vietnam war Memorial. Twenty years from now, when we build the Iraq war memorial on the National Mall, how many more men and women will have been sacrificed to protect our so called credibility? How many more names will be added to the wall before we admit it is time to leave?

Robert Wexler is a Democratic member of Congress serving his sixth term in the House of Representatives. He has earned a reputation as a straight-forward and articulate legislator who energetically advocates for his constituents. Wexler has been named one of the "50 Most Effective Legislators in Congress" by the influential magazine Congressional Quarterly and was named to the Forward 50 list as one of the most influential leaders in the American Jewish community.