MSNBC Hardball - Transcript
Monday, November 28, 2005
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MATTHEWS: Welcome back to HARDBALL. Three U.S. congressmen who spent Thanksgiving with the troops in Iraq were in a harrowing car accident on Saturday, when their vehicle was forced off the road on the way to the Baghdad Airport.
Republican Congress Tim Murphy of Pennsylvania, had to be flown to a military hospital in Germany, along with wounded soldiers. He just returned home this afternoon and he joins us now by phone.
Congressman Murphy, thank you so much for coming on HARDBALL tonight. What happened?
REP. TIM MURPHY (R), PENNSYLVANIA (on phone): Well, we were in a vehicle after we just finished visiting with General Casey in Baghdad, headed to the airport, when our vehicle went off the road. I dont know all the details right now.
But what happened was, it hit something, went up in the air, and landed hard and thenI mean, not up in the air, up in the air just a little bit. And then landed on its side. At that point, this is an armored vehicle, like a small armored bus, and we hit the side, and came down and I smashed the side of my head and my neck pretty bad.
MATTHEWS: You OK?
MURPHY: Im OK. They took a lot of emergency precautions. I got to see how incredible theour medical teams operate to take care of our wounded. They were just phenomenal and I think made a big difference for me, so I was real pleased.
MATTHEWS: What was going through your head as you took that road to the airport? Were looking at stock pictures of it now. But everybodys talked about the fact that its safer now it was.
MURPHY: Well, actually, I think they took us on a different road. So it was much narrower, and another vehicle was coming at us. I think thats why we may have been pushed off the road and did these things.
But all around there, I mean, the military operated as they were supposed to. They made sure this was not a problem, not an ambush, not a bomb. But again, the story goes back to how these guys are just phenomenal and how they operated.
And throughout our trip, whether it was talking directly with the soldiers or the generals or even President Karzai of Afghanistan, they continued to tell the story of their morale is up. Yes, there was concerns for the families of how the talk has been in Washington lately, and theyre concerned about boosting the morale of al Qaeda. But these guys are incredible professional team out there doing the right thing.
MATTHEWS: What is your sense? Are we good for a couple more years over there or are we going to have to come out sooner than that?
MURPHY: I think the idea of looking at a time frame on any case is wrong. I think the right thing is to really use this according to certain criteria or conditions that are met.
Even when we met with the general, who is the leader of the Iraqi security forces, he was very proud as he was telling us how theyre controlling sections of Baghdad, how theyll continue to do that, how as they do that, they want the Americans and coalition forces to pull back.
He was just very proud to show how they were taking care of the terrorists themselves. And they want to continue that pace. But Iraq also has to elect their own government in a couple of weeks. They expect an increase in some problems over the next couple of weeks. But theyre bound and determined to work hard and win. And theyre just proud folks and want to control their own country.
MATTHEWS: So youre not with Jack Murtha, your fellow Pennsylvanian congressman about a fairly quick, six-month pullout.
MURPHY: Well, again, time frame is the wrong frame. This has to be on facts and not just saying, "lets set an artificial timetable." To me, thats like putting a sign in your front yard saying, "Ill be gone, a notice to all burglars, Ill be leaving the house at this time." We shouldnt do that.
The al Qaeda and the terrorists need to know that we believe that the Iraqi government can take control. Theyre going to try and undermine that. When I was in the hospital, a little 7-year-old boy was lying next to Congressman Skelton and I. His parents had been killed by the terrorists, by al Qaeda. He was wounded. Thats the kind of thing the people of Iraq will face, and we need to understand that theyre going to be merciless and then killing people, and not letting them have a government, but the Iraqi people are going to be strong.
MATTHEWS: Hey, its great. Thank you for coming on in this circumstance. Wed like to have you on when youre able-bodied again. Youre back in action.
Thank you very much Congressman Tim Murphy, Republican of Pennsylvania.
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