i thank the gentleman for yielding , and i rise in strong support of this rule and the underlying resolution as well , because this house must show our troops , the iraqi people , and our terrorist enemies that we are committed to achieving victory in iraq . 
mr. speaker , just a couple of days ago , i spoke with a constituent of mine named pfc josh sparling . 
josh serves in the 82nd airborne division with the 3rd of the 504th , also proudly known as the blue devils . 
josh was wounded by an ied while serving with his unit in ramadi , iraq . 
he is currently at walter reed hospital recuperating from surgery , with doctors working literally to save his leg . 
when i talked to josh , he did not want to complain about his wounds nor the pain that they were causing him . 
no , this american hero wanted to talk to me about the progress being made on the ground in iraq , and how well the new iraqi troops performed in the field , and how committed the iraqis were to reclaiming their country from the terrorists . 
his proudest day in iraq was when he provided security in the iraqi election last october . 
he watched thousands of iraqis singing and celebrating on their way to polling stations . 
it made him proud that the american military was accomplishing their mission to spread peace and hope and freedom and democracy . 
he was disappointed that he was not in iraq right now with his unit providing security for yesterday 's election and watching the left flank of his buddies . 
mr. speaker , that is commitment . 
that is dedication , what we expect and what we get from our brave men and women in uniform . 
yesterday 's election was a great victory for the iraqi people , more proof of an historic pivot in that part of the world , and now is not the time to wave the white flag just as our iraqi allies begin the difficult business of forming a new democratic government . 
we can not redeploy troops based on political concerns instead of needs on the ground to secure victory . 
we must not let down all of our brave men and women in uniform who have served so remarkably . 
we can not let down over 11 million iraqis who yesterday stuck a finger in the eye of the terrorists as they stuck their finger in that blue ink . 
we can not give our terrorist enemies a victory which they can not achieve on the battleground . 
we need to send a message , this house needs to send a message , today that we are committed to completing the mission . 
vote `` yes '' on the rule and the underlying resolution . 
