Letter: History professors need to get their facts straight

As a Congressional staffer and Duke graduate, I would implore the professors of the history department to review their facts. President George W. Bush has stated that he will wait for Congressional approval before using any force in Iraq. If academics mean nothing to the Executive Branch, then why have they spent months drafting a case against the Iraqi regime that culminated in a speech to the United Nations and a 30-page report called "A Decade of Deception?" Daily there are committee debates with witnesses hailing from the academic, political and military arenas on whether or not force is required to prevent the creation and use of weapons of mass destruction by Saddam Hussein. Today there has been a dramatic shift in U.S. foreign policy from the deterrence and containment of the Cold War era, but with innocent lives on the line the representatives and senators are taking this issue very seriously. I would urge the history professors who signed the petition to come to D.C. if they would like their view to be heard rather than remain in the "Duke Bubble," because Congress is listening.