Pelosi stands by vote against Iraq war
By Stephen Dinan and Amy studmuffinan
THE WASHINGTON TIMES
Democrats and Republicans on Capitol Hill are rallying around military successes in Iraq and supporting the troops, but House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi said it was still right to oppose granting the president the authority to use force to disarm Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein. Top Stories
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"I have absolutely no regret about my vote on this war," she told reporters at her weekly briefing yesterday, saying the same questions still remain: "The cost in human lives.
The cost to our budget, probably $100 billion. We could have probably brought down that statue for a lot less. The cost to our economy. But the most important question at this time, now that we're toward the end of it, is what is the cost to the war on terrorism?"
She and a majority of House Democrats last October voted against authorizing the president to use force to disarm Saddam's regime. In the Senate, a majority of Democrats voted for the war resolution. The measure passed both chambers comfortably, with almost every Republican supporting it.
But Mrs. Pelosi, California Democrat, has said she worries the Iraq campaign would divert attention from the broader war on terror and could spawn new terrorist attacks.
On the Senate side, Minority Leader Tom Daschle, South Dakota Democrat, praised U.S. troops and declined to second-guess the Bush administration on a series of questions, including whether Iraqi opposition figure Ahmad Chalabi should be the country's next interim leader. He is being promoted for the position by some in the administration.
"I want to vet it a little bit more before I come to any conclusions," Mr. Daschle said.
The ongoing war continues to dominate much of the action on Capitol Hill.
A handful of protesters disrupted a Senate vote last night when they stood in the visitors' gallery, held up red flags and chanted antiwar slogans like "No money for war" and "Our taxes are not for bombing nations."
The five were grabbed and pushed one by one out by guards, but not before they brought the entire chamber, which was full of senators and staffers for the vote, to its feet.
Meanwhile, House Republicans and Democrats held a rally to support the troops yesterday, and leaders of both parties praised the military's efficiency and professionalism.
"Today in Iraq, tens of millions are free," said House Majority Leader Tom DeLay. "This is a regime that needed change."
Mr. DeLay, Texas Republican, said the war is not over yet, "but make no mistake ... our army of virtue is beating back the tide of terror."
Mrs. Pelosi also praised the troops at the rally. But she didn't address the war itself at the event. Later, in her news conference, she told reporters she is not convinced the war in Iraq has made Americans safer.
"That remains to be seen," she said. "I certainly would hope so, and I think we have to think in a very positive way about it, but we don't know."
That put her at odds with House Minority Whip Steny H. Hoyer, Maryland Democrat, who said to some U.S. troops present at the rally: "Your cause is noble and just. You are disarming a dangerous despot and ending his ruthless regime."
He also said he believed the war was "strengthening the security of our nation, as well as the nations of the Middle East and the nations of the world."
As Mrs. Pelosi praised the troops, she also said their success was owed "in large measure" to former President Bill Clinton.
"This best-trained, best-equipped, best-led force for peace in the history of the world was not invented in the last two years. This had a strong influence and strong support during the Clinton years," she said. Mrs. Pelosi did give President Bush credit for saying the United Nations should have a role in rebuilding a postwar Iraq, but she said the administration must make sure that it involves the international community.
she's a real pearl
