Stockman: 25 Years After the Wall Fell, We must Continue Reagan's Fight for Freedom

Statement

Congressman Steve Stockman released the following statement Monday:

25 years ago this week, the world celebrated as the great symbol of the Cold War and Communist tyranny fell. In a day, people rejoiced and crossed the Wall at will, and the opening was irreversible. Freedom won and today, the Berlin Wall is but a line in the pavement.

President Reagan, Pope John Paul II, Lech Walesa and Margaret Thatcher all played major roles in bringing an end to Communist tyranny, as well as many brave dissidents within the Soviet empire who at great risk kept spreading the message of freedom.

Many remember President Reagan's famous speech at the Wall; "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" While his challenge was directed to the Soviet leader, his real audience was the people of East Germany, who drew inspiration and support from the speech, and began to seek greater freedom.

But behind the speech was an entire strategy aimed at peacefully ending the Soviet empire and bringing freedom to millions; described in the words of Reagan as "here's my strategy on the Cold War: We win, they lose."

This week we join in celebrating two and a half decades of freedom in Berlin and Eastern Europe. Until that time, Communism seemed invulnerable and permanent, and few could imagine the Soviet empire would one day collapse and the Berlin Wall would fall. How joyous that day was, as was the remembrances on this, the 25th anniversary.

The battle between freedom and tyranny continues today. The citizens of China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and many other nations yearn to be free; and under Putin, Ukraine is being invaded and other independent nations are being threatened.

President Reagan's policy of peace through strength succeeded in freeing millions, but under President Obama and his appeasement-based policies, the forces of tyranny are again on the rise.

There are serious lessons to be learned from how our government changed history by supporting or ignoring freedom movements. President Eisenhower betrayed the brave people in Hungary in 1956, and President Johnson similarly betrayed the people Czechoslovakia in 1968 as the people of those nations formed free governments, and freedom was crushed in both nations.

President Obama turned his back on the millions of Iranians who stood their ground for freedom, and today we are faced with a nuclear Iran. That would not have been possible had the freedom movement had strong support from the President.

The Soviet empire ended in large part because President Reagan had a strategy to defeat Communism and actively supported freedom, most noticeably in his stirring cry to "tear down this wall!" He did not turn his back on freedom, and President Bush continued his policies to see the conclusion of Reagan's dream.

We would be wise to return to President Reagan's example of peace through strength, and create similar strategies to support freedom in Russia, China, Iran, North Korea and other countries around the world.

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