3/19/03 McCain's Floor Speech on Iraq

MARCH 2003: McCain Said He Was Proud Of US and Presidents Leadership In Decision To Liberate Iraq. But to allege that somehow the United States of America has demeaned itself or tarnished its reputation by being involved in liberating the people of Iraq, to me, simply is neither factual nor fair. The United States of America has involved itself in the effort to disarm Saddam Hussein, and now freedom for the Iraqi people, with the same principles that motivated the United States of America in most of the conflicts we have been involved in, most recently Kosovo and Bosnia, and in which, in both of those cases, the United States national security was not at risk, but what was at risk was our advocacy and willingness to serve and sacrifice on behalf of people who are the victims of oppression and genocideThe people of Iraq, for the first time, will be able to realize those inalienable rights. I am proud of the United States of America. I am proud of the leadership of the President of the United StatesI believe the President of the United States has done everything necessary and has exercised every option short of war, which has led us to the point we are today. I believe that, obviously, we will remove a threat to America's national security because we will find there are still massive amounts of weapons of mass destruction in IraqSo perhaps the Senator from West Virginia is right. I do not think so. Events will prove one of us correct in the next few days. [Congressional Record, 3/19/03]

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