IRAN IN THE CROSSHAIRS -- (House of Representatives - October 2, 2007)

On October 2, 2007 Jim McDermott delivered the following speech on the House Floor.

Mr. Speaker:

Out of a sense of duty and a growing fear I stand to say that I hear the drum beats of war coming again from this Administration.  This time, Iran is in their cross hairs.

It’s ironic that the alarm is sounded today, the birth date of Mahatma Gandhi, and the United Nation’s first World Nonviolence Day in honor of Gandhi’s commitment to peace.

Perhaps the contrast between a man of peace and an Administration of War will underscore the need and the urgency for Congress to act before the President orders a military strike.

I listened and sounded the alarm in 2002 concerning Iraq.

But the President and Vice President had already set in motion their invasion plan and those who got in their way were rendered pre-invasion casualties.

Back then, too many in the media, the Congress and across the nation were willing to accept a war without justification or justice. 

Now, at least, the American people overwhelmingly recognize the tragic consequences of the Iraq war and occupation. 

At least one development in 2008 may make this time different than 2002.

The Internet has grown exponentially. 

Today, credible and factual information is readily available.  The Blogosphere is on fire sounding the alarm. 

And we will have no one to blame except ourselves if we let this Administration take us to war against Iran.

Go to your computer and Google Iran War. The search returns over 74 million hits.  Let me read a few of the top search results.

Day One - The War With Iran.

Iran: The Next War: Rolling Stone.

America’s Hidden War With Iran: Newsweek.

Is a U.S.-Iran War Inevitable? – Time.

The Iran Plans: The New Yorker.

And, US trains Gulf air forces for war with Iran.

Some see the same signs that I do and they are writing across a broad spectrum of media - trying to be heard above the drum beats of war.

However, the President and Vice President are again using friendly fire through right wing media to disarm the American people, while they lay the groundwork and shop for a provocation to launch a military strike.

Journalist Tim Shipman at the Telegraph in London writes: “American diplomats have been ordered to compile a dossier detailing Iran's violations of international law. Some US diplomats believe the exercise…will boost calls for military action by neo-conservatives inside and outside the administration.”

In The New Yorker, renowned journalist Seymour Hirsh writes:  “The revised bombing plan for a possible attack, with its tightened focus on counterterrorism, is gathering support among generals and admirals in the Pentagon. 

Hirsch adds: “A Pentagon consultant on counterterrorism told me that, if the bombing campaign took place, it would be accompanied by a series of what he called “short, sharp incursions” by American Special Forces units into suspected Iranian training sites. Cheney is devoted to this, no question.

Does that sound like a diplomatic solution to you?

For at least a year, we’ve been lulled into believing that this Administration cannot fool the American people again.  But I say that is just the kind of wishful thinking the Administration is hoping for. 

It gives them time to spin the rhetoric and plot the missile tracks into Iran. 

We stand on the brink of a conflagration in the Mideast, spreading from Iraq to Iran, to Pakistan, and the entire region. 

The legacy of this Administration could well be wars without end and wars without borders.

Waiting for the next election may be too late.

As a medical doctor, I was trained to listen to the patient.  I’ve been listening to this President and he is telling us that Iran is his next military target.

Congress is all that stands in the way and I urge the House to act before it is too late.

Thank you.

Revision date: October 27, 2007