Friday, May 2, 2003 | 10:08 a.m.
WASHINGTON -- Nevada's congressional delegation generally applauded President Bush's speech Thursday and his handling of the war with Iraq.
Rep. Jim Gibbons, R-Nev., said the war was "absolutely" worth the expense in lives and money because the United States is safer now that terrorists have one less haven. That's true even if no weapons of mass destruction are found, he said.
"Saddam Hussein had 12 years to hide these materials," Gibbons said. "We are not going to find them in 12 days. We are just now interviewing scientists involved in the weapons programs. We have just begun to search the vast array of underground tunnel systems we had no knowledge about before."
Gibbons also said he doesn't believe Saddam to be capable of disappearing for this long without a trace, so he is likely dead,
"We'll know about it very soon," said Gibbons, a member of the House Intelligence Committee. "My hope is that he is (dead). I think he's in a million little pieces at the bottom of a 60-foot crater in the middle of Baghdad."
Gibbons, an Air Force pilot veteran of the first Gulf War, said the war would be completely over "when there is no one left to surrender." He said there would be a gradual reduction of military forces in the Middle East, similar to withdrawals from Bosnia and Serbia.
The state's other lawmakers also said they expect weapons of mass destruction to be found.
"I think those who are critical of weapons of mass destruction not being found are looking for a way to be critical," said Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev. "The positives (of the war outcome) outweigh that. And the jury's not in yet."
Nevada lawmakers, like most in Congress, say it is too early to tell how long significant numbers of troops will remain in Iraq, or how much it might cost. Congress is committed to troops remaining in the region until a framework for democracy is established, Nevada's delegation said.
"The hard part is coming," Rep. Shelley Berkley, D-Nev., said. "This is going to be a long, arduous task."
In addition to ridding the world of a tyrant, the U.S. attack on Iraq sent a clear message, Nevada lawmakers said.
"The United States, by this military action, put the rest of the world on notice that we will not tolerate attacks on our nation or any other, and that if attacks are makde then they will feel the wrath of the United States and the full force of our military," Berkley said.
Sen. John Ensign, R-Nev., said the war is already paying dividends in diplomatic cooperation from nations like North Korea and Syria.
"People understand what we are capable of doing -- they saw it in living color," Ensign said.
Rep. Jon Porter, R-Nev., said the war on terror will continue now that Hussein has been toppled. "I will support our troops and our commander-in-chief in this effort to root out any terrorism that threatens our freedom," Porter said.
Reid said the dramatic setting of Bush's speech would be remembered beyond his words.
"Who's ever seen anything like that?" Reid asked. "A president giving a speech on an aircraft carrier with 5,000 sailors gathered on the deck?"
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