The Administration

Secretary Rumsfeld deserves the thanks of all Americans for his leadership in the war on terror.  I trusted his opinion following the attack on America on September the 11, 2001. It was undoubtedly one of America's darkest days and Secretary Rumsfeld demonstrated leadership in making the right decision to go after the terrorists on their turf, not ours. I am also pleased the President now has the opportunity to appoint someone new to the position that will reassure Americans that he is a President capable of making needed change to provide Iraqi stability, U.S. security, and change tactics in the war on terror without risking defeat.

Yesterday's elections sent a message to the President, and the entire U. S. Congress, that greater flexibility is needed to do a better job in achieving positive results in Iraq.  Recent reports indicate that the young Iraqi government is moving in the right direction to quell the violence, disarm the insurgency, and empower the Sunni minority.

I hope the President's choice of former CIA chief Robert Gates, will have a perspective that will allow the American people to have greater confidence in our mission.

In May 2004, I called for the resignation of Secretary Rumsfeld as well as Deputy Secretary Wolfowitz when the Abu Ghraib prison scandal became public.  At the time I said that the prison abuse scandal demonstrated that the United States was reeling on the precipice of a major foreign policy debacle.  Our standing as a nation had been lowered to the point that the world no longer viewed the U.S. as the ambassador of peace but as a principal threat to world peace.

Two and one-half years later, the Administration continues to pursue a policy in Iraq without the benefit of any strategic or political compass.  Yesterday’s Congressional elections, and the ascendancy of the Democratic Party to the leadership of the House of Representatives, represents a clear repudiation of Secretary Rumsfeld’s failed Iraq policy.

It is past time to change course in Iraq.  It is my hope that today’s resignation of Secretary Rumsfeld is a signal that the Administration is not staying the course, but instead will chart a new path that enhances the security and safety of both Iraq and the U.S.

It's clear that these inflammatory, absurd comments by President Bush are a last-ditch effort to motivate the right-wing Republican base and to fear-monger.  But it's equally clear that this demagoguery is not working for the President or the Republican Party this year.  The American people see right through such comments, which are fueled by political desperation.  Americans know that Democrats are absolutely committed to protecting our people and strengthening our national security with tough, smart policies.

I applaud the courageous men and women from the Riverside County Sheriff's Department, the FBI, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Fire Arms and other local agencies; whose talents and relentlessly thorough investigation quickly revealed the cause of the wildfire and led to the eventual arrest of Mr. Oyler.

It is a tragedy that the senseless and horrendous murder of five brave US Forest Service employees was the result of a suspected arsonist. If Raymond Lee Oyler is guilty of this offense, there can be nothing less than a sentence that imposes the maximum penalty under law.

I ask our community to pray for swift justice; and to never forget those victims of the Esperanza Fire: our brave first responders who lost their lives, the families who have lost their loved ones, and our neighbors and friends who lost their homes, property and personal possessions.

The President resisted calls from his critics to give in to North Korea’s demands — understanding that this threat could only be met by a unified international response — and instead worked with the international community to apply international pressure on Kim Jong Il’s dangerous, criminal regime. This multilateral response is working.

The President was right to call for additional, tough measures at the United Nations, and the first results are clear. His decision to have the response to this threat be a multinational response was the right one.

October 30: Today was a typically busy and exciting day, with radio and print interviews, and as we've hit trip 560 with a Rotary Club speech in Clear Lake City. I was also delighted to finally read my opponent directly addressing me. It was a direct insult (she called me "ill-tempered") in the Dallas Morning News. She's taken offense at my description of her and her voting record of 95.6 percent votes in accord with the Bush Administration as a "puppet. Read more...

Last week, all six of Michigan's Democratic U.S. Representatives wrote National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) President John Engler.  We asked a simple question: Why are you putting your Republican agenda ahead of the American manufacturers you say you represent?

On September 28, NAM's Board of Directors decided to withhold its support of H.R. 1498, a bill that would have expanded the ability of domestic manufacturers to take action against China due to currency manipulation. The board's decision contradicted the recommendation of the group's economic policy committee and has since created a wide rift in the trade group as member companies have publicly questioned Engler's decision to refuse to stand up for a top priority of many domestic manufacturers.

NAM has previously acknowledged undervaluation of the Chinese yuan and its effects on American manufacturing, but refuses to call for meaningful action from the Bush Administration or Congress. Read more...

It is long past time for Congress to convene a modern-day Truman Commission so that we can aggressively reign in the waste and corruption that are bogging down the American reconstruction effort in Iraq.

I first called for the creation of such a body in May of 2005. It was obvious then, as it is now, that the substantial failures of our own contractors were subverting America's efforts abroad. Consider what we have learned in recent years:
In early 2005, a report issued by the Special Inspector General for the Iraqi Reconstruction found that $9 billion spent on reconstruction work was unaccounted for.

For months before this, accusations of price gouging by Halliburton had been gaining momentum, as the public had gradually become aware that the White House-connected corporation had been overcharging the U.S. Army for gasoline in order to inflate its profits by millions of dollars. By May of 2005, new reports revealed that yet another $100 million earmarked between 2003 and 2004 for small building projects throughout Iraq was completely unaccounted for, much of it likely lost to fraud. Read more...

There’s a "perfect storm" gathering that may well sweep away Republican control of the Congress this fall. It is a storm fueled by three developments:

First, profound economic trends have strained working families to the breaking point. Workers have been left out of our nation’s economic recovery -- and their disenchantment is exacerbated by the failures they see in Iraq and Washington.

Second, voters are painfully aware of these problems and pocketbook issues will be top voting issues this fall. And finally, the AFL-CIO is making the largest effort in our history in an off-year election, driving home these pocketbook issues with a huge ground campaign. Read more...

It’s obvious that today’s announcement is motivated by Republicans' desperation and fear of what lies ahead on November 7. My Democratic colleagues and I have repeatedly called on the White House to provide the American people with not just a set of specific benchmarks but also a strategy for helping the Iraqi government and security forces meet them. In return, we have been repeatedly dismissed, told that “staying the course