Mr. Murtha then and now: Rwanda and Iraq

Does anyone remember the Rwandan Genocide? You know the one that President Clinton called the 'biggest regret of his Administration'?

You know, 800,000 to 1,000,000 dead or more, because they couldn't find some of the VILLAGES, not to speak of the bodies in same? Mass killing in Central Africa that the Left decried so much? Nudge a few brain cells loose?

Well the US had a nice, little mission going on there, which was the cause of Mr. Clinton's regret. Part of UNAMIR.

About two and half months AFTER that, when all the US was doing was to have a few medical personnel on the ground and a few soldiers to protect them and not really doing a thing to clean up the mess, Congress finally decided to ACT! Yes, Congress took action!

I know, get your nitro tablets handy, the sloth that we have had for the past two years does not prepare one for the idea of Congressional Action. Be that as it may, Congress did take action! Yes! Via this little number from the Congressional Record, September 13, 1994: APPOINTMENT OF CONFEREES ON H.R. 4650, DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 1995

Now to some the following language must come as a shock as it might totally go against everything they BELIEVE that the Democratic Party stands FOR, in such places like Bosnia, Somalia, Kosovo... but never Iraq! Heaven's no! I am sure the Democratic Party stood FIRM and those EVIL Republicans using the patented Karl Rove TARDIS made things worse. However the record IS the record:

Mr. McDADE. Mr. Speaker, I offer a motion to instruct conferees.
The Clerk read as follows:

Mr. McDade moves that the managers on the part of the House at the conference on the disagreeing votes of the two Houses on the bill H.R. 4650, as they resolve Senate amendment numbered 214, relating to fiscal year 1994 funding for Rwanda, be instructed to agree to the following provisos contained in Senate amendment 214:

``Provided further, That no funds are available for United States participation in operations in or around Rwanda after October 7, 1994''; and

``Provided further, That any change in the mission from one of strict refugee relief to security, peace-enforcing, nation-building or any other substantive role, shall not be implemented without the further approval of the Congress''.

Mr. McDADE (during the reading). Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent
that the motion be considered as read and printed in the Record.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Pennsylvania?

There was no objection.

Now Mr. McDade is just having this read in from the Conference report to reconcile the House and Senate bills so they agree. But did you notice that the gentleman from Pennsylvania was on the floor? And that he gave no objection to this?

Mr. McDade went on to describe that any MORE funding might cause that dreaded 'Mission Creep' and 'overextend' the military and, well, here are some of his own words:

Mr. Speaker, when our troops were dispatched to the Rwanda area beginning in late July, many of us feared what was starting out as a mission of mercy by our troops would be transformed into a more difficult, expensive, lengthy, open-ended and dangerous mission. Much as our involvement in Somalia changed from relief to peacekeeping, and finally taking sides in a civil war, the terrible conditions in Rwanda could draw our military into a similar quagmire.

Yes they had Somalia on their mind... little thing like 'Blackhawk Down' and dead American soldiers dragged through the streets to the cheering masses. A little thing that Osama bin Laden would cite as showing how much of a 'weak horse' the US *is*. And it seems you just cannot get involved in a modern war without the quagmire, unless it only takes a day and a half to run. But, then they were only 'funny black people' now, weren't they, to those in Congress? Getting dragged into a Civil War with 800,000 to over 1,000,000 DEAD might be too difficult because some people were STILL LEFT ALIVE!

It was, indeed a failure, and how did Mr. Murtha, the big-hearted, sweet natured man who would now 'right wrongs'... how did he respond to this! I bet he got up in arms and denounced this as cowardice! Yes! And then would show the WORLD the strength of the US Armed Forces and only have those EVIL Republicans stop him. A TRUE FIGHTER!

Remember now, to you folks on the Left touting that the Democrats are so good to MINORITIES and only wish to save those 'funny brown folks' in Iraq from slaughter, HERE we have the Democrats who have just witnessed a slaughter of 'funny black people' overseas. So here we have the opportune moment where Mr. Murtha will show his TRUE COLORS to ensure that RIGHT is DONE!

Or not:

So I ask for your support for this motion, setting sensible limits on our mission in Rwanda.

Mr. MURTHA. Mr. Speaker, I have no objection.

Mr. McDADE. Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Without objection, the previous question is ordered on the motion.

There was no objection.

So, to those of you on the Left who bemoan the ugly death toll in Iraq, remember that when the Democrats in Congress saw worse by at least a factor of TWENTY, they ran. Mr. Murtha fears 'the quagmire' everywhere... except, a couple of weeks later, nice, sunny Haiti. THERE he has NO PROBLEM giving an open ended extension to the President.

Guilty conscience?

Or cowardice?

You can make the call as it was and IS unprincipled and dishonorable as are his actions to this very day. And now he has an enemy that has already struck as at home who would LOVE a loss for the United States in Iraq and the Middle East.

Because they seek EMPIRE.

Over All of Us.

And to John Murtha Haiti is more important than the genocide in Rwanda or fighting in Iraq today. And again he wants the US to run.

When will America stop running?