Democrats Prepare For 5-year Anniversary Of "Mission Accomplished"

Congressional Democrats are preparing a flurry of activity on Thursday to mark the five-year anniversary of President Bush's now infamous "Mission Accomplished" speech marking an end to major combat operations in Iraq.

Democratic aides from both chambers told the Crypt they planned on highlighting the anniversary as Congress continues to debate an Iraq war supplemental spending bill.

Aides and members said they were planning on marking the anniversary throughout the day on Thursday with floor speeches, press conferences and other actions.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) sent out a set of talking points on Tuesday night highlighting casualties in Iraq, the economic costs of the war and the effect the war has had on military readiness.

"Five years later, the war in Iraq continues to take a grave toll on our troops and their families, our military readiness, the fight against terrorism, our standing in the world and on the American economy," Pelosi wrote in the document.

Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Robert C. Byrd (D-W.Va.) kicked things off with a floor speech Wednesday afternoon.

"Years from now, I expect that history books will feature the sorry "Mission Accomplished" episode as the epitome of this administration's reckless and arrogant foreign policy, which has reaped disastrous consequences for our nation and the world," said Byrd.

"The complete lack of foresight and planning by the President for what lay ahead became tragically clear in short order…More than 97% of the more than 4000 Americans killed in Iraq lost their lives after the President's flashy declaration of victory."
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