Cliff Buchan
News Editor

During a visit to Forest Lake Friday, Congressman Mark Kennedy defended the U.S. policy in Iraq and warned that Iran is of concern.

Kennedy, here for a Chamber of Commerce legislative breakfast, said his three visits to Iraq over three years have given him confidence that the U.S. mission in Iraq is succeeding.

ìOur end game remains the same,î Kennedy said, using the word ìwinningî as the ultimate goal. But the Republican congressman who is running for U.S. Senate this year, agreed that defining winning can be difficult.

Kennedy said he is convinced the Iraqi military is improving and ìmaking great progress.î He said the goal is to position the country to a point where it is able to fully govern itself.

ìThat is something we need to pray about,î Kennedy said.

But Kennedy did not specify how long he envisions the need for U.S. troops in Iraq. ìThis is the long war,î Kennedy said.

He said the effort in Iraq is a war against insurgents, but also a battle for the hearts and minds of people. And if the latter is successful, it will rid the country of the ìhelplessnessî that breeds terrorism.

But Kennedy also expressed caution that Iran could pose future problems in the region. He called Iran a country ìof grave concern.î

The Iranian push for nuclear standing in the world is something that needs to be discussed by the United Nations Security Council, he said.

ìWe need to take tough action,î he said. ìThe discussion ought to be on Iran and Syria.î

Other issues

Kennedy also expressed optimism that the Patriot Act extension has now been approved and there is some home for a line-item veto as a means of ending pork barrel politics in Washington.

He said he was pleased the Patriot Act had been renewed, saying it gives authorities the tools they need to deal with global terrorism threats.

Kennedy, as House author of a bill to give the president line-item veto authority, said he remained hopeful the provisions would pass the House and Senate. It is needed, he said, to end funding of Alaskan bridges to ìnowhereî and rain forest projects in Iowa.

ìWe need to get the nonsense out of there,î he said of capital funding projects that canít be justified. He said it was time to ìcut the junk.î

On the countryís energy policy, Kennedy agreed it was time to end the countryís reliance on oil and move to alternative forms of energy. He said he would support the elimination of tax credits for big oil companies and the creation of tax credits for companies working to establish forms of renewable fuel sources and those that push for conservation of energy.

ìI donít think we are going far enough or fast enough,î Kennedy said.

As a candidate for the U.S. Senate, the Republican said he was focused on his job representing the Sixth District. He said he was one of nine of the 434 congressmen who did not miss a single vote last year.

Top of Page

Forest Lake Times
P.O. Box 218
880 SW 15 St.
Forest Lake, MN 55025
651-464-4601
Fax 651-464-4605