WASHINGTON, Dec. 19 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued the following statement today opposing a Senate amendment to the fiscal 2008 Consolidated Appropriations bill that provided additional funding for the war in Iraq:
"Our troops are spending their fifth Christmas season in Iraq. Under the President's plan, they can look forward to spending at least another decade there. The President contends that the presence of 30,000 additional U.S. troops over the past few months has improved security, but the Iraqi government has not used this opportunity to move aggressively toward national reconciliation.
"Last month, the House voted to provide $50 billion for Iraq, conditioned on deploying only fully trained and equipped troops and on setting a reasonable goal for when all of our forces can return home. The President and his Republican enablers in Congress rejected that bill. Their plan is for a war without end.
"I cannot support spending billions more in Iraq with no strings attached, particularly in the same week that the President said we cannot afford to fund basic priorities here at home, such as the education of our children, and increased investment in medical research and hiring more police officers on the street.
"Democrats will be relentless in our efforts to bring our troops home honorably, safely and soon."
Office of the Speaker of the House
