War in Iraq

WAR IN IRAQ

Mr. ENZI. Mr. President, I thank the Senator from Nevada for his courtesy and his previous offer to let me speak. I am glad to have this opportunity to talk about a number of things that have come up today. We have talked a little bit about the war in Iraq. We have talked a little bit about the environment because Earth Day is tomorrow. We have talked a little bit about overtime and we have talked a lot about energy. I am going to cover those topics as well as some other things that need to be known.

I am going to start with the war in Iraq because last week I had the opportunity to go with Senator Sessions and Senator Chambliss to visit NATO and then to go into Germany and to visit with some of the troops that have been wounded in Iraq. Some of them have been wounded very severely. In fact, those who are not severely wounded do not leave Iraq. There are hospitals in Iraq that take care of them and then get them back into the fray. Those who have been injured worse are flown to Landstuhl Hospital in Germany where they are stabilized, treated, and then sent back to the United States for more treatment.

The three of us had an opportunity to visit that hospital. We split up into three groups so we could talk to more of the soldiers. We thought we would be able to perhaps pump them up a little bit after what they had been through. Quite the reverse happened. They pumped us up. It was a tremendous experience.

These people, men and women, to a person said: We are making a difference in Iraq. We know the people over there, we know our job, we are doing our job, the people are responding to what we are doing, and we are making a difference.

The other side is so worried that they are bringing in people to take us on. Every one of them wanted to be patched up as fast as possible and go back to help their buddies. They knew what the job was. They knew the people there. It was tremendously inspirational.

The next day we went to an Army training base that a lot of U.S. soldiers in the past had been assigned to and are still assigned to, but they have been moved to Iraq. They have been assigned to Iraq and they had just been on another overseas assignment, had been back about 8 months and were assigned to Iraq. Some of the spouses there had had husbands extended in Iraq. We wanted to find out what they were feeling, what they were thinking. It was a chance to visit with them, and so we did.

Again, we were the ones who were encouraged. I remember one of the spouses explaining that part of the job of a soldier is to watch the back of his buddy, and when some of the troops are pulled out prematurely there is nobody to watch somebody's back. Then the lady said: If my husband was the one who had to stay and somebody got pulled out, I would not be able to take it. So if my husband is the one who has to stay to protect somebody else, that is their job. That is what I want him to do. That is what he needs to do. That is what will make the difference.

What I noticed at both of those meetings was that other countries of the world say the reason we are the most powerful country in the world is because of the money we spend on being powerful. Some people would say it is because of the technology we have developed that makes us more equipped with more advanced things than any other country in the world. Both of those play a small role, but what makes the difference between the United States and the other countries is the people of this country, the young men and women who are serving in our Armed Forces-their dedication, their innovation, their ability to think, their ability to react, and their patriotism.

Then we have another secret weapon, and that secret weapon is the spouses and the families who are praying for and supporting the troops. That is a force other countries cannot reckon with, and we should be so appreciative.

I want to mention one other thing that might seem unusual. When we were meeting with one of the generals, the general prayed. Now, I am not sure that is acceptable under the Constitution as it might be interpreted by some judges, but he prayed. He knows that will make a difference.

One of the things that occurred to me while he was doing that is we often almost always remember to pray for our troops, but I think we probably ought to be praying for the opposition as well. We ought to be praying for the opposition to soften their hearts, for the opposition to realize what is happening in the world and the role they are playing. Praying can make a difference, and it is up to all of us to try that, with faith, and see if it will not support these admirable troops, their spouses, and their families.