Then: Daschle said the 1998 resolution would "send as clear a message
as possible that we are going to force, one way or another, diplomatically
or militarily, Iraq to comply with international law." And he vigorously
defended President Clinton’s inclination to use military force in Iraq.
Summing up the Clinton administration’s argument, Daschle
said, "’Look,
we have exhausted virtually our diplomatic effort to get the Iraqis to comply
with their own agreements and with international law. Given that, what other
option is there but to force them to do so?’ That’s what they’re saying. This
is the key question. And the answer is we don’t have another option. We have
got to force them to comply, and we are doing so militarily."
and "Well, I don’t think the politics of personal
destruction Bob, have any place in the public debate. So much for changing
the tone in Washington.
But I think that we’ve got to stick to the debate and try not to personalize
these debates. It’s unfortunate. It isn’t necessary, and I don’t think it does
them a lot of good. "
Now: "I’m saddened," Daschle,
D-South Dakota, said in a speech to the American Federation of State, County
and Municipal Employees. "Saddened that this president failed so miserably
at diplomacy that we’re now forced to war. Saddened that we have to give
up one life because this president couldn’t create the kind of diplomatic
effort that was so critical for our country. But we will work, and we will
do all we can to get through this crisis like we’ve gotten through so many."
