Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2008

SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 2008 -- (House of Representatives - May 15, 2008)

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Mr. HOLT. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank Chairman OBEY for his leadership in crafting this bill and bringing it before the House. In brief, I wanted to let my colleagues know that the Select Intelligence Oversight Panel, which I chair, has been involved in this process. Our role has been to ensure that any intelligence programs included for funding in this supplemental package have been reviewed for their appropriateness and value to our troops in the field.

While the Department of the Defense is focused on Iraq and Afghanistan, the professionals in the Intelligence Community are focused on threats there and elsewhere around the world. A good intelligence system can save lives by preventing war, or, should war come, by helping to win the war as quickly as possible. We must ensure that the troops in combat get the best real-time intelligence and at the same time that policymakers get solid, independent, insightful intelligence about countries, trends, and potential conflicts around the world. I look forward to providing another update on our work once the base DoD appropriations bill is completed later this spring.

Regarding Iraq, I recently returned from a trip to that deeply troubled country. American troops are performing superbly in Iraq under continually difficult conditions. While in Baghdad, I met with soldiers--including those from New Jersey--and told them they deserve not just our gratitude, but all of the support they need when they return to help them get on with their lives. The situation in Iraq, however, is not in the power of our soldiers to control, as events have repeatedly shown.

It is impossible to hide the fact that the limited security gains achieved since last fall have not been matched by political reconciliation on the part of the Iraqis. The uneven performance of the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF) during the fighting with the Mahdi Army in late March 2008 has called into question the viability of the ISF as a national defense and police force, despite our having poured billions of dollars into the ISF.

Unfortunately, Iraq's central government continues to lack legitimacy in the eyes of its people, as the recent spasms of violence in Basra, Baghdad, and elsewhere in the country have clearly shown. No amount of American lives and money can erase that legitimacy gap. It is clear that the Iraqi government is unwilling or unable to take the steps necessary to reach a political settlement that will end the violence, and that is why I supported the amendment to this supplemental spending bill that would set a start date for our withdrawal from Iraq. It is important for us to take decisive action to end our combat involvement in Iraq and refocus our efforts on destroying al Qaeda and eliminating the conditions that breed international terrorism and refocusing our resources on pressing domestic and international needs.

While we continue our efforts to extricate our troops from Iraq, we must also prepare to help them once they return home and begin transitioning to the civilian world. I strongly support the provision in this bill that expands the education benefits veterans receive under the GI bill to restore the promise of a full, 4-year college education, and make the veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan part of an American economic recovery, just like the veterans of World War II were.

This bill also contains provisions to help America's most vulnerable citizens survive the current de facto recession our country is experiencing. The bill extends unemployment benefits for workers who have exhausted their benefits by up to 13 weeks in every State as well as an additional 13 weeks in States with high unemployment. Also included in this bill is the Protecting the Medicaid Safety Net Act of 2008 (H.R. 5613), which places a moratorium on seven Medicaid regulations that would cut services to seniors, families, and those with disabilities as well as cut payments to safety net providers. These are compassionate measures that are fully off-set, and I am glad they are in this bill.

However, I can't help but observe, Mr. Speaker, that these needs would have been met long ago if our country had not been forced to waste billions of dollars on a war of choice that should never have been fought. I will continue to do all I can to help end our involvement in Iraq and redirect our Nation's priorities and resources where they belong--on meeting the needs of our people.

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