House passage last week of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans' Health, and Iraq Accountability Act, was a testament to the consummate political skills and wisdom of Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. This superbly-crafted, common-sense Act agrees to fund the Iraq War for the remainder of fiscal year 2007, but also:

* Requires the Iraqi government to meet key security, political, and economic benchmarks that President Bush laid out in his January 10, 2007 speech to the nation.

* Mandates that failure to meet these benchmarks will mean the beginning of U.S withdrawal from Iraq and restriction of economic aid to the Iraqis.

* Prohibits the deployment of troops who are not "fully mission capable" - fully trained, equipped, and protected.

* Honors the promises made to our veterans by funding our obligation to this new generation of veterans.

* Requires that redeployment of U.S. troops must begin by no later than March 1, 2008, and be completed within 180 days.

* Mandates that following redeployment, U.S. troops remaining in Iraq may only be used for diplomatic protection, counterterrorism operations, and training of Iraqi Security Forces.

* Greatly increases funding to defeat al Qaeda and terrorists in Afghanistan.

House Democrats Responded to the Will of the American People

This is precisely the legislation, and boundaries on the Iraq War, that the American people wanted when they overwhelmingly elected Democrats in November 2006 to control Congress.

And predictably, President Bush angrily denounced the bill and pledged to "veto it if it comes to my desk." The bill next moves to the Senate where passage is far less certain, since Democrats barely hold a razor-thin majority.

Regardless of Republican plans to squash it, House Democrats bravely and resoundingly responded to the American people by passing this overdue legislation.

And regardless of Republican desire to prolong and even escalate the Iraq War, U.S. troops will inevitably leave Iraq, sooner or later. It's now only a question of when, not if. And a question of how many more deaths and permanent injuries will occur before Republicans grasp the awful realities of the Iraq War.

The Lessons of the Iraq War

The next step is for all American to absorb the lessons of this misguided war. I thought Sen. Barack Obama enumerated those lessons simply yet eloquently in his March 21, 2007 remarks on the Senate floor.

For your quick reading, you can find those remarks here at Senator Barack Obama: The Lessons of the Iraq War.

As Sen. Obama said of the Lessons of the Iraq War:

"We are so blessed in this country to have so many men and women like this – Americans willing to put on that uniform, and say the hard goodbyes, and risk their lives in a far off land because they know that such consequences and sacrifices are sometimes necessary to defend our country and achieve a lasting peace.

That is why we have no greater responsibility than to ensure that the decision to place them in harm’s way is the right one.

And that is why we must learn the lessons of Iraq."

Related Reading
Iraq War Statistics & Results as of March 14, 2007
Senator Barack Obama: The Lessons of the Iraq War
About the Presidential Veto (U.S. Gov Info)
Democratic Party website: House Passes U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Health and Iraq Accountability Act