ACCESSION NUMBER:00000
FILE ID:97110301.txt
DATE:11/03/97
TITLE:03-11-97 CONGRESSIONAL REPORT, MONDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 1997
TEXT:
(Iraq) (320)
CONGRESS URGES SWIFT RESPONSE TO IRAQ
Top Republican and Democratic congressional leaders are urging a quick
response, including possible military action, if Iraqi President
Saddam Hussein does not permit U.S. inspectors to be part of the U.N.
weapons inspections teams.
"I suspect that something will have to be done relatively soon,"
Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott (Republican-Mississippi) said
November 2 on NBC's "Meet the Press."
All of our U.N. allies, including Russia and China "have been calling
on Saddam Hussein to allow these inspectors to stay," Lott said,
adding that he thinks Iraq is trying to block the U.S. inspectors
because "they were very close to finding some more very dangerous
weapons."
Appearing with Lott on the televised program were Senate Minority
Leader Tom Daschle (Democrat-South Dakota), Speaker of the House Newt
Gingrich (Republican-Georgia) and Minority Leader Dick Gephardt
(Democrat-Missouri).
"Obviously, there's bipartisan support. The actions taken by Saddam
Hussein are completely unacceptable, and I think we have to act
sooner, rather than later," Daschle said.
The united congressional front came as Baghdad November 2 again barred
two American inspectors from entering Iraq, the second such refusal in
a week.
"The United States will take whatever steps are necessary to enforce
an ability to inspect. This is a country that we know has had an
ongoing effort to develop weapons of mass terror, and we can't
tolerate it. We defeated them militarily. They need to abide by the
rules, and we should be prepared to take whatever steps are necessary
to enforce those rules," Gingrich said.
"The only thing that he (Saddam) seems to understand is action, and
that's what's going to have to happen," Gephardt said.
On October 29 Saddam ordered the expulsion within a week of ten
Baghdad-based American weapons inspectors working for the United
Nations weapons inspection team.
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