Senator Reed speaks about foreign affairs

By: Justin Desjardins
Posted In: Campus News

Senator Jack Reed (D – R.I.) told Salve students now that the United States is in Iraq that the U.S. is committed to staying for as long as the rebuilding process takes. Reed serves on the Armed Services Committee and remains committed to ensuring that U.S. troops get the equipment they need as fast as possible.

He said that fighting the war on terror is essential for American security and the invasion of Afghanistan was necessary because it is important to go after any safe havens where terrorists may hide, especially since the September 11th attacks. The Senator views the war on terror as a long-term commitment. He wants to increase the number of regular armed forces so the U.S. will not be so dependent upon the National Guard.

Reed feels that the work for rebuilding Afghanistan is under funded and needs to be part of the President’s budget. He mentioned that the military will run out of funds for Iraq and Afghanistan before October 1, 2004, unless the President incorporates the rebuilding costs with the federal budget.

The senator agrees that the Afghan efforts are needed, but he disagrees with President Bush on the reason for invading Iraq. CNN reported that Senator Reed voted against the Iraq invasion, and Reed cited Former Treasury Secretary Paul O’Neil’s claim that the Bush administration began planning to over throw former dictator, Saddam Hussein, about ten days into his term.

Reed thinks that the United States, in the post Cold War world, still needs to be a strong nation, one that is patient with its economic and military power. He thinks that working with the international community through diplomacy to do away with weapons of mass destruction is the correct path to take.

Reed thinks that the U.S. should focus more attention toward the nuclear crisis in North Korea because weapons proliferation is a concern. The Senator was encouraged with the progress made through the recent six-nation summit, but he pointed out that the summit yielded no breakthroughs.

Senator Reed had to end the speech abruptly to catch a plane to Washington to fight against a gun bill that sits in the Senate. Dr. Christopher Kiernan, of Salve’s American Studies department, said

that it was unfortunate that the speech was cut short. Kiernan also said that Senator Reed displayed a quiet wisdom and agrees with Reed that America should be more focused with nuclear weapons on the Korean peninsula.