WASHINGTON, D.C. – Shortly after President Bush vetoed Congress’ supplemental funding legislation for the war in Iraq, Representative Xavier Becerra (CA-31), Assistant to the Speaker of the House, issued the following statement:
“The president, for the time being, has chosen to reject the funding for which he asked.
“It is disappointing to see President Bush refuse to acknowledge the reality on the ground in Iraq, the wishes of the American people, and the good faith efforts of Congress to provide our troops an exit strategy from this quagmire.
“With a stroke of his pen, the president has vetoed his own benchmarks for success, showing the Iraqi government that there are no consequences for failing to meet their commitments. If we are to believe the Iraqi government’s promise that Iraqi troops will take responsibility for securing all of Iraq’s provinces by November, as the president told us in January, why reject a plan to redeploy our troops when that critical goal is met?
“The president’s veto is a rejection of the American people’s call for a new direction, and a denial of the ongoing failures of his policy of open-ended war.”
# # # Becerra.House.gov # # #