Emergency Supplemental Appropriations

Floor Speech

Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, later this morning, we will have some important votes related to national security. Passage of the defense portion of the supplemental will fund the surge forces in Afghanistan and our ongoing military efforts in Iraq.

Thanks to the McChrystal strategy, American forces have already brought a lot of pressure on the Taliban in Afghanistan. We need to keep that pressure up if this counterinsurgency strategy is to succeed, and it must.

This is why I encourage all Members to vote against the Feingold amendment, which calls for a plan of withdrawal of the forces from Afghanistan. When it comes to funding our operations in Iraq, we must be committed to providing the assistance and forces necessary to provide security as the Iraqis work to form a new government.

We will also have votes related to the security of our borders. This is clearly a very pressing issue. We should respond with the urgency that the situation demands and the unity that Americans expect on matters of national security.

In these days of economic uncertainty, Americans are watching the Senate very closely. The $13 trillion national debt has concentrated a lot of minds on what we are doing here. Some have tried to defend the extenders bill and the nearly $100 billion it would add to the debt. I think most Americans would say the real emergency here is the $13 trillion debt. Even some Democrats seem to agree with me. That is why we are seeing a quiet revolt over in the House on this bill. We must do something about our debt.

On the oilspill, there appears to be some good news this morning. We hope what we are hearing proves to be true. Americans are eager to hear what the President has to say this afternoon. More important, they are eager to see what the administration plans to do. But for now, we are all hoping that the efforts to stop this leak are sustained.

I yield the floor.

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