Keith Ellison

Mr. ELLISON

Mr. ELLISON. Congressman, let me tell you, tomorrow marks the beginning of the seventh year of the war in Iraq. Throughout that time, we have lost more than 4,000 of America's bravest men and women. The number, to date, that I have is 4,259, but of course the way this war has been going, it could be 4,260 or 4,270. We have spent over $600 billion, with long-term cost projections in the trillions, and we have seen Iraqi civilian casualties estimated at the hundreds of thousands. We know that there are over 30,000 Americans who have been injured. And of course the numbers of deaths are easy to count, but the injuries are more difficult because not all the injuries are manifested in terms of a limb or a scar; but of course we've seen those, too. Let me tell you, if you go to Landstuhl Air Force Base, the hospital there in Germany, you see bright-eyed, young people who have suffered catastrophic injuries, and of course we've seen them back home. We all know, Congressman, that the purported reasons for going to Iraq--you remember what they are. Would you care to tick off a few of the reasons you and I were told, as Americans, that we needed to go into Iraq? Do you remember what some of those reasons were back almost 6 years ago, Congressman?

Mr. ELLISON. Congressman, as you have done your work, you're fresh off the campaign trail, I wonder, did you ever have any occasion to talk to family members who said, you know, my son came back, but he's kind of different than he was when he left; he used to have a smile, he used to have a joke for everybody, and now it seems like the weight of the world is on this 22-year-old guy, now it seems like my daughter can't find her smile again? In my great State of Minnesota, we had a young person who sought mental health care, and there wasn't enough room and they couldn't get in right away. And before this person could come back, they took their own life because they couldn't get the helicopters out of their head, they couldn't get the horror, they couldn't get these kind of images out of their mind, and yet, we've learned that suicide is a serious issue for our fighting men and women, particularly in connection with Iraq. Have you encountered these kind of medical challenges that our veterans are facing in connection with this war?

Mr. ELLISON. Yes, sir.

Mr. ELLISON. Congressman, if you would yield back, I can tell you that as a Member of Congress myself--now I'm a sophomore Member, and you and I are closer to not being Congressmen and being long-term veterans--my heart always breaks a little bit whenever I talk to a spouse who says my wife or husband is going to be leaving here for a year or 18 months, or how about the situation where a woman walks up and says, see this baby who is 9 months old? She never met her daddy. Is this the kind of thing that you saw while you were on the campaign trail?

Mr. ELLISON. Congressman, if you would yield back for a moment, I would like to ask you again; in the course of your work, you're walking around Colorado, you're walking around your district, you're talking to folks, did you talk to any American families who had loved ones who were stop-loss, who are now on their second, third, fourth deployment? Did you see anything like that as I yield back to you, Congressman?

Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Speaker, I am here to talk about a very critical anniversary before us tonight, the Iraq anniversary. The Iraq war anniversary is tomorrow, Mr. Speaker, and it is critical that we give this moment due attention. I am here as the person who leads our Progressive Special Order hour, the Progressive Message, and I want to just start off by thanking Mr. Jared Polis of Colorado who is here with me tonight who is a member of the Progressive Caucus and who has some very clear remarks to share with me right now. Congressman, let me yield to you and can you reflect on this auspicious occasion, the anniversary of the Iraq war.

Mr. ELLISON. You are fresh off the campaign trail, Congressman. You have been knocking on doors, talking to folks, and you know what people are thinking. You haven't been around here long enough to get jaded, and so your level of enthusiasm for the work is still very fresh. What are the American people saying about our involvement now on its sixth year in Iraq?

Mr. ELLISON

Mr. ELLISON. The gentleman from Missouri made a very eloquent and clear statement. We are here with the Progressive Caucus message tonight. We are talking about voting representation for the District of Columbia, and we have just been joined by a gentleman from the great State of Maryland, who has been a very able and strong representative of many, many issues. I am just curious to know if the gentleman from Maryland, Elijah Cummings, former chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, leading member on the Committee for Oversight, has a view on this issue of a voting representative for the District of Columbia?

Mr. ELLISON. They have to pay, but when it comes to making decisions in Congress, they don't get to play; is that right?

Mr. ELLISON. Let me ask, we know that there is no voting representation for final passage issues for the people of the District of Columbia. Are they exempt from military service, are they exempt from taxes?

Mr. ELLISON. Let me thank the gentleman for his quick message. Though not directly related to what we're talking tonight, we are happy to yield to a colleague at any time, particularly in light of his very good message. But, again, Keith Ellison here coming today with a progressive message. The Congressional Progressive Caucus comes every week to make the point that there is a progressive vision for America, that we have a vision that is inclusive, that brings Americans of all colors, all cultures, all faiths together, and this progressive message is going to be heard and will be heard every week, week in and week out. This is the Progressive Caucus, and we are here with a progressive message. And what I want to do without any further delay is to ask my good friend from the great State of Missouri to weigh in on this critical issue of D.C. voting rights. Mr. Cleaver, Congressman from the great State of Missouri, how do you understand this critical issue of D.C. voting rights?

Mr. ELLISON. Mr. Speaker, as we come in week and week out, the progressive message is up again, as we come back every Thursday in order to make the progressive position clear on the critical issues. I'm going to be joined tonight by a number of colleagues who are making their way to the House floor, but tonight our topic is going to be the very critical issue of District of Columbia's voting rights, the District of Columbia's voting rights, which is a vital and essential issue which has been dogging our country for many years. We certainly hope that this issue of D.C. voting rights is an issue that the country focuses its attention on. D.C. voting rights is a question of giving rights and conferring rights upon Americans who pay their taxes, Americans who send their children to war, Americans who are equal in every way to Americans who live in the various States. And because of this important role that they play in our country, this equal role, we're looking forward to seeing legislation come out that will allow members of the District of Columbia to be able to have a representative who can cast a vote in our Congress. We are looking forward to this in the near future. But before we get to that topic, I want to yield to the gentleman from Virginia, who is going to take a moment to make a critical statement. Year of the Military Family

Mr. ELLISON. The gentlelady is all the way from California. It takes you 4\1/2\ hours to fly here. Why do you care about whether D.C. has a vote or not? I yield to the gentlelady.

Mr. ELLISON. I certainly thank the gentleman and do thank him for coming down here, Congressman Cummings, sharing his views about what he knows personally about the people of the District of Columbia and the surrounding area, sharing his views about how children ask their parents about who is sticking up for me, who is speaking up for me. And, unfortunately, in the District of Columbia, parents have to say well, we have a delegate who is really, really good, but she doesn't get to vote on some stuff. So I have just been joined by other members of the Progressive Caucus, one of whom is Congresswoman Barbara Lee, who is a Member from the great State of California and is also the Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus; and we also happen to be graced with the presence of that very special delegate that we have all just been talking about, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton. I think it's important to say that Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton is not on her own here, she is not fighting the fight by herself. I am all the way from Minnesota, and I feel passionately about the importance of the District of Columbia having a representative. And I look forward to seeing Eleanor Holmes Norton's vote up there on that board count equally with everybody else. But this is the position of the Progressive Caucus, that we believe firmly in the idea of equal representation. Yes, it is true that the Washington Post has done research on this issue and it is the will of the American people for the District of Columbia to have a vote. With that, I'd like to invite the gentlelady from the great State of California to weigh in on this topic of the District of Columbia having a vote, standing equal with the rest of the country, being able to express an opinion. I yield to the gentlelady from California.

Mr. ELLISON. Thank you for yielding back, gentlelady from California. Let me now recognize the person who we have all been building up to for a moment. Again, Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton is not by herself on this. We are standing shoulder to shoulder with her. But there is also no doubt that she has been quarterbacking this issue, she's been spearheading this issue. No matter what kind of metaphor you want to use, she's been in the leadership of this issue and has offered tireless, unrelenting leadership. At this time I want to yield to the gentlelady to sort of lay out the issues for us on this critical issue of D.C. having a representative vote in Congress. I yield to the gentlelady.

Mr. ELLISON. Well, you know, Congressman Cummings, you represent a district very close to the District of Columbia and, therefore, you know people who live in the District and you know people who work in the District and I am sure many of them are your friends, your colleagues, your constituents, you have come to know on a personal basis over time. What is their opinion? I mean, did the public want this or is this just something that D.C. wants? What do the public opinion polls say? I mean, it looks like the Washington Post might have done some research on this issue. What, in your view is the public opinion of giving Washington D.C. a representative vote in the Congress?

Mr. ELLISON. The other three might be, but one of the wheels isn't being represented and holding up, and the cart just doesn't run smoothly. It almost sounds like you are saying that America is a better country, and the values of the people are more accurately reflected when everyone has a vote here. Is that your opinion?

Mr. ELLISON. What you are describing to me is kind of like pushing a cart in a grocery store when one of the wheels isn't really running right.

Mr. ELLISON. The gentleman from Maryland just offered views on this important topic, and that is this, you have made a very clear case that a representative vote for D.C. is fair, it's moral, it's right, and it's the proper thing to do. But how will it benefit people across America for D.C. to have a vote?

Mr. ELLISON. Would the gentlelady yield for just a moment? Ms. LEE California. I would be happy to.

Mr. ELLISON

Mr. ELLISON. Early childhood, health care.

Mr. ELLISON. Wait a minute, do you mean to tell me that if you take every country in the world from Palau to Brazil, Russia to Israel, from Argentina to Brunei, you add them all up, you mean we still spend more?

Mr. ELLISON. I had a feeling you did.

Mr. ELLISON. Could we afford the things that will make our country ready for this new age, this green economy. Let me ask you, Congresswoman Woolsey, what are your views on this subject?

Mr. ELLISON. Yes, and that's quite a pretty pity, quite a bit of money there. As a matter of fact, let me just say that Congressman Frank, like yourself, Congresswoman Woolsey and many others, Congresswoman Lee, have been working with the Center for American Progress and have adopted one of their proposals for reducing defense spending. That proposal, coupled with ending the war in Iraq, will be at the center of this plan to reduce military spending. First, a timely withdrawal from Iraq could create $105 billion of savings in 1 year if the recommendation for the Center for American Progress report, ``Building a Military for the 21st Century,'' is followed. That's where this chart actually comes from. If we were to take these proposals and reduce the Virginia Class Submarine and this destroyer, if we were to deal in a very sensible way with offensive space weapons. What do we need to be fighting in space for? I have no idea. To reduce our nuclear arsenal which, you know, under the nuclear nonproliferation treaty, countries that don't have nuclear weapons shouldn't get them, but countries that do have them should be reducing them. This could be a significant savings. Then waste procurement and business operations, a 7 percent reduction. We could save $60 billion. How many college educations is that? How many teachers, how many cops? Could we afford a universal single pair health care system?