(Host) Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards says he’ll vote against President Bush’s plan to appropriate $7 billion for Iraq, when the measure comes before the full Senate in the near future. Speaking on a conference call with regional and national reporters, Edwards said he’ll vote against the bill to send a strong message to the Bush Administration.
The North Carolina senator says he’s concerned the president is pursuing the wrong policies in Iraq. Edwards says Bush isn’t aggressively encouraging the United Nations to be part of the peace and reconstruction process in Iraq:
(Edwards) “I have not changed my mind about Saddam Hussein, I have not changed my mind about the need for this mission to be successful and for our participation in it. None of that has changed. But I think we need a policy that will work. This president’s policy is not working and I think if, in fact this was before us and it failed, the administration would do what they are responsible for doing. They would come back to us with a plan that would in fact work.”
(Host) Edwards defended his vote in favor of the congressional resolution giving the president the authority to take military action in Iraq. Edwards says it was critical for the United States to take steps to remove Saddam Hussein from power.