Les Aspin Quotes

Les Aspin — American Politician born on July 21, 1938, died on May 21, 1995

Leslie "Les" Aspin, Jr. was a United States Representative from 1971 to 1993, and the United States Secretary of Defense under President Bill Clinton from January 21, 1993 to February 3, 1994. In Congress, Aspin had a reputation as an intellectual who took a middle-of-the-road position on controversial issues. He supported the Reagan administration regarding the MX missile and aid to the Nicaraguan Contras, but he opposed the B-2 bomber and the Strategic Defense Initiative. He played a major role in convincing the House to support the January 1991 resolution supporting the use of force by President G.H.W. Bush against Iraq, after it invaded Kuwait. As Secretary of Defense, he faced complex social issues, such as the roles of homosexuals in uniform, and of women in combat. He faced major decisions regarding the use of military force in Somalia, Bosnia, and Haiti. He proposed budget cuts and restructuring of forces as part of the downsizing of the military after the end of the Cold War. The loss of American lives in Somalia because of inadequate military support led to his resignation... (wikipedia)

We ought to be providing protective sanctuaries for the Kurdish rebels. That means finding some places where they can come and to which we will then be able to provide food and water and medical help.

Before we give you billions more, we want to know what you've done with the trillion you've got.

That was not part of the U.N. resolution; it was not part of the mandate to go on to Baghdad and, frankly, if we had gone into Baghdad and pushed Saddam Hussein off, we would have inherited an even bigger mess than the mess we inherited with the refugee problem.

There's a certain amount of sympathy here for the Bush administration's problem, which is they would like to get rid of Saddam Hussein and they would like to have the Kurds autonomous.

We should have done more damage to the Iraqi forces before they withdrew from the Kuwaiti theater.

Les Aspin Quotes

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