Connecticut Members of Congress Divided on Iraq, United on Energy
SOTU-NORWALK
Norwalk Hour
Anthony Rotunno
Boston University Washington News Service
1/25/07
WASHINGTON, Jan. 25 – Despite President Bush’s plea for bipartisan support in his State of the Union address Tuesday, Connecticut members of Congress are still divided on the president’s plan to send 21,500 more troops to Iraq.
“This is not the fight we entered in Iraq, but it is the fight we are in,” Bush said in front of the Democratic-controlled Congress. “It is still within our power to shape the outcome of this battle. So let us find our resolve, and turn events toward victory.”
Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., said in a statement that he was firmly opposed to Bush’s troop surge. “The nation has overwhelmingly rejected the direction this war has gone in, and the direction the president seems insistent on moving forward with.”
Dodd proposed a resolution earlier this week that would cap the number of American troops in Iraq, but it was not passed.
In separate statements, both Sen. Joseph Lieberman, I-Conn., and Rep. Christopher Shays, R-Conn., said it was imperative the United States not fail in Iraq.
“It would be disastrous to our national security if we fail in Iraq,” Lieberman said. “That is why Congress should not impede this new effort.”
Shays said that a bipartisan solution needs to be found, but that the Iraqi government needs to make “political compromises” before more troops are sent.
“The Iraqi government needs to confront the militia,” Shays said. “We need to set benchmarks with timelines. The failure to meet deadlines has to have consequences.”
Despite mixed feelings on Iraq, all three members of Congress said they supported Bush’s plan to diversify America’s energy supply. “For too long our nation has been dependent on foreign oil,” the president said in his speech. “And this dependence leaves us more vulnerable to hostile regimes, and to terrorists.”.
Shays said he looks forward to the day when the nation is not bound by relationships with foreign fuel providers. “Energy is a no-brainer,” he said in an interview following the address. “We can’t be held hostage by Russia, the Middle East or Venezuela. We should not be dependent on foreign fuel.”
Lieberman said energy independence is “a national security imperative.” Dodd said he was “heartened” by Bush’s plan, but that “actions speak louder than words.”
“I urge the president to meet with Republicans and Democrats…and demonstrate his willingness and desire to work to address these critical issues in a bipartisan manner,” Dodd said.
Lieberman said Congress should put progress before partisanship as it enters the new session. Shays agreed, saying he hoped the president’s address marked the beginning of an effective bipartisan dialogue.
But after the speech was delivered, Shays said that some reactions were not so reassuring.
“I listened to some of my colleagues’ comments to the president, and some were really outrageous,” Shays said. “You wonder if there was any interest in working on a bipartisan basis.”
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