Afghanistan & Iraq
We've been in Iraq for five long years. In that time, we've lost 4,000 American soldiers, including eight from here in our own community. Another 60,000 have been wounded. And I am doubtful that we'll ever get an accurate count of just how many Iraqis have been killed.
Even beyond the tragic human toll, we've been saddled with an enormous financial drain. So far, the war has cost over half a trillion dollars, with no end in sight. It equals more than $819 million just from Tennessee's 9th Congressional District. To put that number in perspective, imagine the White House knocking on every door and saying "Your share of the war comes to $4,681. Please pay up." Even among those who support the war, I suspect they would find few takers.
Yet that's precisely what the war has cost each and every family in this nation.
In October 2007, I visited Iraq. I wanted to see firsthand how our soldiers live, and what they are expected to endure. As I spoke to them, I heard tales of families torn apart by the extended deployments to Iraq. I heard tales of fathers who left behind pregnant wives and hadn't even met their newborn children yet. And most tragically, I heard tales of good men and women who had watched their friends, their brothers in arms, die on a battlefield thousands of miles from home. General Petraeus told me their stories are exaggerated, but they sounded quite sincere to me.
While I was in Iraq, I met with Prime Minister Maliki. I wish I could report that I have some level of confidence in the new Iraqi government after that meeting, but I simply do not. It is not because the Iraqi government is incapable of stepping up and assuming control of its own nation and providing security for their own people. It is simply that they have not chosen to do so. Indeed, why would they? Right now, their security is provided by 130,000 Americans.
The Iraqi government will not step up and assert control unless it is forced. And that is why I support setting a firm timetable for leaving Iraq. That's not to say there should be no flexibility in the event that something cataclysmic happens, but we need to have an exit strategy.
When we're free of our commitments in Iraq, we can get back on track and do what we should have all along: pursue Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda—those who were behind the attacks on September 11th.