Well, no...
Atrios:...there's me, too.
Apparently I'm the only person who is bothered by this, but it's probably inappropriate for "Clinton strategist" James Carville to maintain his pundit seat at CNN during the primary season.
A Democrat - without prefix, without suffix, without apology.
Atrios:...there's me, too.
Apparently I'm the only person who is bothered by this, but it's probably inappropriate for "Clinton strategist" James Carville to maintain his pundit seat at CNN during the primary season.
…as far as it goes. Robert Kennedy, Jr. ...
“You can’t talk honestly about the environment today … without being critical of the president.”My modest amendment…
You can’t talk honestlyHat tip to The Democratic Daily.about the environmenttoday … without being critical of the president.
Goldy highlights SB 6142, Republican State Sen. Janea Holmquist's sixteenth offering of the session:
A member of the legislature may not introduce as prime sponsor more than fifteen bills during a legislative session, excluding committee substitute bills.It may be a better idea than Sen. Holmquist knows.
...about Laura Bush, from Shakespeare's Sis…
How can she pretend she doesn't understand the significance, the fear, the pain, of one bombing a day, when her husband's entire presidency has been built around one day of bombing?
House Armed Services Committee Chairman Ike Skelton, via The Gavel…
"Simply put, the war in Iraq is sapping our strategic base and leaving us with a broken Army."
Dr. Black:
“Republicans want to continue the war and Democrats want to end it. It’s that simple.”
Newsweek:
“We’re putting down roots,” says Philip Carter, a former U.S. Army captain who returned last summer from a year of policing and training in the hot zone around Baquba. “The Americans are no longer willing to accept failure in order to put Iraqis in the lead. You can’t let the mission fail just for the sake of diplomacy.”And here I thought putting Iraqis in the lead was the mission.
Hotlineblog:
Anyone else find it interesting that HRC is using bigwigs like Bill Clinton and Madeleine Albright to push a Dean-style grassroots online fundraising campaign?…yes, someone else does.
…a passage from the Prairie Populist.
"When I find good people in the party opposed to me, instead of discouraging me, it encourages because it gives us much to fight for in getting them out of the other party into our own."
William Jennings Bryan,
Democrat
Maybe, if the answer weren't so tragic for so many.
When former defense chief Donald Rumsfeld and President Bush were planning the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, did they never think to determine how the wounded would be helped? Did they not know that today’s injured soldiers are dealing with far more horrific injuries than in the past because battlefield medicine keeps more of them alive?The truth is, they just didn't care.
John Roberts: Even some fierce critics of the war feel it's far too early, that the troop increase should at least be given a chance.Name one.
...it's random ten time.
k.d. lang & the re-clines - Three DaysI guess the appearance of The Ramones on this list would be considered an outlier by pollsters and statisticians, but always a welcome one.
Ian Tyson - Someday Soon
The Ramones - Sheena Is A Punk Rocker
Linda Ronstadt - Love Is A Rose
Kris Kristofferson - Sunday Morning Coming Down
Robert Earl Keen, Jr. - The Front Porch Song
Sam Bush - The Ballad Of Spider John
Rick Shea & Patty Booker - I'm No Good Without You
Woody Guthrie - Roll On Columbia
Rodney Crowell - The Rock Of My Soul
...of hiding under the table was simply the lovely and talented Miss Audrey Hepcat's scheme to avoid the camera, but this shot proves I'm still smarter than the family cat, doesn't it?
Fun with the Upper Left visitor log...
Date & Time:
Feb/22 8:13 AM
IP Address:
198.81.129.194
Country:
United States
City:
Fairfax
Organisation:
Central Intelligence Agency
Referrer:
http://www.google.com/search
…a poverty draft.
Many of the hometowns of the war dead aren't just small, they're poor. The AP analysis found that nearly three quarters of those killed in Iraq came from towns where the per capita income was below the national average. More than half came from towns where the percentage of people living in poverty topped the national average.
Fun facts from Brendan Daly at The Gavel.
TOTAL NUMBER OF TROOPS FROM REMAINING PARTICIPATING COUNTRIES: 4,395 (Countries: Poland, Romania, Australia El Salvador, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Latvia, Albania, Czech Republic, Mongolia, Lithuania, Armenia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Estonia, Macedonia, Kazakhstan, The Netherlands, and Slovenia; does not include Denmark’s 460 troops the government just announced would be withdrawn by the end of summer 2007)
AVERAGE TROOP COMMITMENT PER COUNTRY: 220 – however, nearly half of the participating countries have committed 100 or fewer troops to the coalition. (Czech Republic, Lithuania, Armenia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Estonia, Macedonia, Kazakhstan, The Netherlands, and Slovenia)
NUMBER OF COUNTRIES NO LONGER PARTICIPATING IN THE COALITION: 16 (Hungary, Nicaragua, Spain, Dominican Republic, Honduras, Philippines, Thailand, New Zealand, Tonga, Portugal, Singapore, Norway, Ukraine, Japan, Italy, and Slovakia.)
COUNTRIES TRANSITIONING OUT OF THE COALITION: 2Moldova’s 11 troops recently returned home and the country has not decided whether or not to send in a new deployment. [AP, 2/21/07] Denmark’s government announced plans to withdraw their 460 troops by August 2007. [CNN, 2/21/07]
...to my Army.
“We’re behind the power curve, and we can’t piddle around,” Maj. Gen. Harry M. Wyatt III, commander of the Oklahoma National Guard, said in an interview. He added that one-third of his soldiers lacked the M-4 rifles preferred by active duty soldiers and that there were also shortfalls in night vision goggles and other equipment....The freaking brigade combat team - combat team - is short of rifles and bound for war.
Capt. Christopher Heathscott, a spokesman for the Arkansas National Guard, said the state’s 39th Brigade Combat Team was 600 rifles short for its 3,500 soldiers and also lacked its full arsenal of mortars and howitzers.
From Jake Tapper, via The Carpetbagger Report.
“If a major contributor to the Democratic party had been indicted for allegedly trying to provide material support for terrorist training camps — as happened to a GOP fundraiser on Friday — what would happen? What would be the response on talk radio? Cable news?”
From driftglass...
...if you find that you are a Conservative, then you can quit bothering to hunt for phantom enemies within, like the Liberal Press and the Dirty Hippies, because you – personally and specifically -- are the enemy.
You – personally and specifically -- are what is wrong with America.
…to the neglect of wounded veterans reported in the Washington Post and elsewhere, and I feel like I should have something to say about it, but it's been over 40 years now since Ron Kovic told the same tale about another war, almost twice as long since the Bonus Marches.
…if inconvenient truth about Willapa Bay, and everywhere else, really, from Arthur Ruger, who follows the path from global issue to personal problems. Great stuff.
More of this.
...I know the issues. But more importantly, I know where I stand on the issues. I'm for universal health care and against privatizing Social Security. I'm for stem cell research and against the president's Iraq policy. I'm for comprehensive immigration reform and against CAFTA. You'll never have to check which way the political winds are blowing to know where I stand.More.
Steve Benen:
We want Reid to do more. I suspect Reid wants Reid to do more. So, let’s get him a bigger majority and a Democratic president, and I suspect we’ll see more.Wisdom there from Yglesias and Publius, as well.
The Blue State has a snippet from Fox News Sunday (emphasis found)...
WALLACE: "..aren't Democrats perfectly entitled to say we shouldn't be sending more troops after the ones that are already there?"Newt pretty well covers the entire problem with Republican governance, at least on the Congressional level. In fact, individual members of Congress, from either chamber, may offer advice endlessly, and many do. For the Congress itself, though, as an institution, to offer advice, there is only one available avenue. It's called legislation. That's why, I suppose, it's called the Legislative branch of our government.
GINGRICH: "There's a different — look, I can offer advice. The Senate can offer advice. Any American can offer advice. There's a difference between offering advice, which I think we should do, and legislating."
…via Darryl.
[Reichert] described a meeting with anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan during which one of her companions pointedly asked Reichert how many more soldiers’ lives he was willing to sacrifice to the Iraq War.I don't know the answer to that myself, or what it has to do with the question that he finds so offensive, but I certainly hope it wasn't very many.
Recreating the moment, Reichert trained his hardest gaze on me as if I was that upstart activist and said, “That question offends me. Do you know how many partners I’ve lost as a cop?”
...a passage from the Prairie Populist.
"Truth grows in the open field; the sunshine nourishes and strengthens it. It is secret influence which is constantly corrupting government and securing special privileges for the few at the expense of the many."
William Jennings Bryan,
Democrat
Kos:
“If the most important thing to any of you is choosing someone who did not cast that vote or has said his vote was a mistake, then there are others to choose from,” Mrs. Clinton told an audience in Dover, N.H., in a veiled reference to two rivals for the nomination, Senator Barack Obama of Illinois and former Senator John Edwards of North Carolina.Me too.
Thank you, Hillary. I think I will.
Dan Bern - Live Another DayAnd a completely non-random anni-vale-versery week dedication to the Brilliant and Beautiful Bride of Upper Left...
Billy & The Beaters - At This Moment
Melissa Gibson - Welcome To Stay
Peter Tosh - African
Curtis Mayfield - We're A Winner
Oasis - Stand By Me
Clarence Bucaro - Streets Of Juarez
The Ramones - California Sun
Tom Paxton - Who Will Feed The People?
Lyle Lovett - North Dakota
The Turtles - Happy Together
"….back to the guillotine."OK, not really.
"I’m being facetious, of course. I make this suggestion merely to point out that what we seek — a pleasant way to kill someone — does not exist."Execution, even where permitted, is, thankfully, unusual. It is inherently cruel. Its value as an avenue of vengeance, it's only effective value, demands cruelty.
…you saw this, right?
1) Over 90% of of the attacks that are killing U.S soldiers in Iraq are SUNNI inspired. They are, like, a whole different group of people than the Shia, Mr. Bush. And supported by your three-minutes-in-the-closet friends and financial benefactors the Saudis.Well, now you have.
2) 15 of the 19 hijackers on 9/11 were from Saudi Arabia, not Iran.
3) Bin Laden - yeah, Saudi not Iranian (and still at large, why is that?).
4) Say 'hi' to Bandar Bush for us.
5) Saudi Arabia, not Iran, was one of the three countries that recognized the Taliban-led government in Afghanistan--yeah that one.
6) Tell you brother to lay off the Thai hookers.
7) Saudi Arabia sought nuclear weapons, and may still be doing so.
...but the Preznit may end up with one positive accomplishment after all. US News via AmericaBlog...
Bush has ignored the voters' clear message sent three months ago. He could be poised to take his party down with him when he retires to Crawford, Texas, in 2009.One can only hope.
"Every veteran, including myself, in this House and in this nation is very proud of our soldiers.Sic 'em, Jim!
They have done what they were ordered to do, at great personal sacrifice.
It's time for new orders to be issued.
It's time to end the U.S. role in the Iraq civil war and bring our soldiers home."
Chris Matthews on Mitt Romney...
"...what kind of conversion are we talking about whereby a person can simply say 'I swear to God I never believed what I believe.'?"Hat tip to Digby.
Dr. Darryl...
The “theory” of intelligent design is to evolution what a theory of angels holding up airplanes on strings is to aerodynamics.Great rant about science education by a real live professor of science.
Republic Congrescritters John Shadegg and Pete Hoekstra pen a 'Dear Colleague' about the anti-escalation resolution in the House (Steny Hoyer's posted a .pdf version of the whole miserable thing. The Carpetbagger Report has the plain text)…
...The debate should not be about the surge or its details. This debate should not even be about the Iraq war to date, mistakes that have been made, or whether we can, or cannot, win militarily. If we let the Democrats force us into a debate on the surge, or the current situation in Iraq, we lose.So, they know they lose on the facts and merits. So what have they got? Something shiny, I'm sure...
Rather, the debate must be about the global threat of the radical Islamist movement.Oooh. The Boogeyman. Good one. Of course Iraq's only making that threat worse, but it's worth another shot, isn't it? Should work as well as it did in, say, November '06.
From DNC Treasurer Andy Tobias, via AmericaBlog...
Of the 107 Senators and Congressfolk with perfect 100% ratings from HRC (Human Rights Campaign) in this past Congress, 103 were Democrats and only four Republicans. Of the 156 who rated ZERO, 152 were Republicans. The difference could hardly be more stark.Would someone get this to those Log Cabin people?
...in some ways, and just a minute in some others, but it was 19 years ago today that my best friend became my Brilliant and Beautiful Bride. People laugh when I tell them I feel lucky every time I come home and find that my key still fits the lock. I mean it. I'm a very lucky man.
Maybe you only know it when you see it, and the A.P.'s Andrew Taylor shows commendable signs of anti-wankerism as he reports that "Even though the cost of providing medical care to veterans has been growing rapidly — by more than 10 percent in many years — White House budget documents assume consecutive cutbacks in 2009 and 2010 and a freeze thereafter."
The proposed cuts are unrealistic in light of recent VA budget trends — its medical care budget has risen every year for two decades and 83 percent in the six years since Bush took office — sowing suspicion that the White House is simply making them up to make its long-term deficit figures look better.Thank you, Mr. Taylor. I suppose a perfect response might have used the "lie" word, but I understand the stretch that entails for a journalist. Still, you used the truth to create context in an admirable way.
The Army is working to fill a shortfall in Iraq of thousands of advanced Humvee armor kits designed to reduce U.S. troop deaths from roadside bombs — including a rising threat from particularly lethal weapons linked to Iran and known as "explosively formed penetrators" (EFP) — that are now inflicting 70 percent of the American casualties in the country, according to U.S. military and civilian officials.The only credible explanation for the failure to solve this problem by now, after nearly four years of active combat a lack of concern that has led to a failure to make the protection of our G.I.s a first priority.
From Kagro X on the Edwards blogger brouhaha...
This fight, if Edwards is going to be called upon to make it, must be everyone's fight. If the other campaigns cannot demonstrate that they would have displayed the same courage we call upon Edwards to display, then they benefit from the right's strategy of divide and conquer. And to the extent that they benefit, they give a pass to and encourage such attacks in the future, and are powerless to stop them when the next one comes. All they can do is hold on tight, cross their fingers, and pray they're not the next target. And that's no way to win anything. Certainly not the White House....Since those words first appeared, the wingnuts who ginned up the whole 'controversy' have put pressure on the Clinton and Obama campaigns to denounce Edwards and the decision not to fire his blogging team lest they be branded as his allies in a campaign against Christianity.
…from Senator Dodd.
On Tuesday, February 13th, I plan on re-introducing the Restoring the Constitution Act of 2007. The bill will restore Habeas Corpus protections to detainees, bar information acquired through torture from being introduced as evidence in trials, and limit presidential authority to interpret the meaning and application of the Geneva Conventions.Good deed.
Become a citizen co-sponsor.
…it is all about race. Via Ezra Klein...
According to the Justice Department, "[in] 2005 there were 3,145 black male sentenced prison inmates per 100,000 black males in the United States, compared to 1,244 Hispanic male inmates per 100,000 Hispanic males and 471 white male inmates per 100,000 white males."I can't really say that I had no idea, but I admit my imagination was unduly stunted. The actual numbers are just shameful. This can't be the kind of country we want to be. This isn't the kind of country we're supposed to be.
Please. But Hillary's making the pitch…
"I know what Gingrich tells people privately, I know what DeLay tells people privately, I know what Karl Rove tells people privately. I'm the one person they are most afraid of. Bill and I have beaten them before and we will again."I'm not sure what anyone tells anyone privately. If I were, well, it wouldn't be private, would it? I do know that it's no secret that Republican pols and fundraisers wave the Clinton name like the bloody flag, though, openly and to apparent productive effect. A few on the left do, to. I'm not sure, though, how that particular brand of notoriety translates into electability.
...a passage from the Prairie Populist.
"There is a growing class in this country, an increasing number of our citizens, who recognize that the best legacy a father can leave to his children is not fortune, but a government that will protect his children in their enjoyment of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and guarantee to them a fair share of the proceeds of their own toil."
William Jennnings Bryan,
Democrat
Steve Benen at the Carpetbagger Report…
Obama’s campaign has, for quite a while, suggested that he’s not only bringing about political change, but more importantly, generational change. The point couldn’t have been more clear this morning — Obama used the word “generation,” by my count, 12 times in his announcement speech.You know, the torch is passed and all that. Theoretically great stuff, I suppose, if it were so.
Via Atrios.
Meanwhile, Rep. John Murtha, D-Pennsylvania, chairman of the House Defense Appropriations Subcommittee, said on Thursday that he's planning hearings this spring on executive and congressional travel on military aircraft.I haven't had anything to say about the Pelosi airplane controversy because, well, there really isn't one. I figure anytime Tony Snow and I agree, there's no controversy.
Murtha said he's requested from the Defense Department records on travel and logistics from the past two years. He asked the Defense Department to hand those over within a month.
Oh please.
Having banked on the promise that Democrats would force a change of course in Iraq if they won control of Congress, some of the people who helped the Democrats get there are growing impatient.And the evidence? Two suburban voters from Illinois, who apparently thought a Democratic Congress in January would mean troops home by February. Are Mr, Fahrenwald and Ms. Rone typical? Who knows...
National independent polling organizations haven't assessed reaction to the stalled Senate debate.
…until Blogger decides to let me post.
Nanci Griffith & John Prine - Speed Of The Sound Of LonlinessAnd a bonus cut, because it took a little longer than that...
Jimmy Buffett - Boat Drinks
Herman's Hermits - I'm Into Something Good
Ilona Knopfler - Unchain My Heart
Rickie Lee Jones - Danny's All-Star Joint
Neil Young - Comes A Time
Major - Smart Casual
Tim Hardin - Reason To Believe
Carrie Newcomer - The Gathering Of Spirits
Sly & The Family Stone - Stand!
The Clarks - Shimmy LowThat last is a power pop gem that people who like that kind of thing will love.
...for the lovely and talented Miss Audrey Hepcat.
Glenn Greenwald...
"As long as Matt Drudge -- and Rush Limbaugh and Fox News, etc. -- rule the world of national journalists, little can be accomplished on any front. Diluting their influence and forcing actual facts into these public discussions is of the utmost urgency, and the growing (though admittedly still incomplete) ability of the blogosphere to achieve that objective is the true significance of the Edwards story."
Goldy at HuffPo.
By standing up to Malkin and Donohue when it would have been much easier to cave, Edwards has decided to take a blow on behalf of a nascent progressive netroots movement most establishment Democrats neither fully understand nor appreciate.I know a couple days can seem like eternity in the middle of a fight, but there's nothing wrong with taking the time to get it right. Another 'not-endorsing yet' cheer for Edwards.
Whether or not he is my candidate, this blogger is going to stand up for Edwards in return.
…of providing aid and comfort to democracy. So sez the General. As in the General.
"There's no doubt in my mind that the dialogue here in Washington strengthens our democracy. Period."
Gen. Peter Pace, USMC, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff
“For some reason, the military seems more afraid of gay people than they are against terrorists, but they’re very brave with the terrorists. If the terrorists ever got a hold of this information, they’d get a platoon of lesbians to chase us out of Baghdad.”
Rep. Gary Ackerman (D-NY)
"It does not take any courage at all for a congressman, or a senator, or a president to wrap himself in the flag and say we are staying in Vietnam, because it is not our blood that is being shed. But we are responsible for those young men and their lives and their hopes.…and does the right thing.
"And if we do not end this damnable war those young men will some day curse us for our pitiful willingness to let the executive carry the burden that the Constitution places on us."
...Congressman Jim McDermott said he would introduce legislation that would set a deadline for U.S. withdrawal and say that after that date there would only be funding to pay for the "safe and orderly withdrawal" of troops.Have I mentioned how proud I am of my own personal Congressman?
McDermott said his legislation will be based on the 1970 McGovern-Hatfield Amendment that was used as an attempt to end American involvement in the Vietnam War.
"I don't think 20,000 more troops is Democratic, I don't think 20,000 troops is Republican. I think it's stupid."
Iraq war vet Jon Soltz, co-founder of VoteVets.org.
…but probably the best outcome he could hope for, given the rules put in place (i.e., no defense allowed)...
A judge declared a mistrial Wednesday in the court-martial of an Army lieutenant who refused to deploy to Iraq, saying the soldier did not fully understand a document he signed admitting to elements of the charges.Watada's lawyer seems to think double jeopardy is in play, but I doubt it. Best thing for all parties now would be a general discharge for the Lieutenant for the good of the service. The question is how anxious the military prosecutors are to create a martyr for the anti-war movement. I want him on the street, and on the podium, but Ehren Watada is probably a more potent symbol in a cell.
Prosecutors said 1st Lt. Ehren Watada admitted in the document that he had a duty to go to Iraq with his fellow soldiers.
Watada, however, said he admitted only that he did not go to Iraq with his unit, not that he had a duty to go.
…a bit of that ol' blogging ennui (now that 'new' Blogger has decided to let me log in for a while), another from the Norbizness archive of always on target posts.
"Hey! Somebody who I don't respect and who never agrees with me on anything has just written something that I support, in that it mirrors my pre-existing outlook! Game, set, and match, powers that be!"
…I've been trying to find a way to respond to Taegan Goddard's call for reviews/advice over at Political Wire that would have more value than a simple pander for the linkback. The previous post, thankfully, provides the necessary hook.
…of this kind of thing, but I'd imagine there are more folks on both sides thinking the same thing. The Hotline, via Political Wire...
Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R) told a group of reporters this morning that if he's still considered a second-tier candidate by September, "then he'll rethink his candidacy," reports The Hotline.It's good to keep in mind how very early it is in the '08 cycle. A batch of high profile, front-loaded announcements may catch the eye of political junkies, but there's plenty of time to for new faces to enter arena, and too much time for some to stay in it. Just as reality will inevitably dawn on some, opportunity may knock for others, before real choices will be made by voters and caucus attendees.
Broder on the DNC Winter Meeting, via The Carpetbagger Report...
One of the losers in the weekend oratorical marathon was retired Gen. Wesley Clark, who repeatedly invoked the West Point motto of “Duty, Honor, Country,” forgetting that few in this particular audience have much experience with, or sympathy for, the military.How dare he assume that a room filled with Democratic politicians and activists would not have "...much experience with, or sympathy for, the military."
Bush showed up at a retreat for House Democrats to do a little pandering to the new boss...
He said disagreeing with him over the war — as many in the room do — does not mean "you don't share the same sense of patriotism I do."I don't know about the folks in his audience, but I take some comfort in hoping that they're sense of patriotism is, like mine, very different than that of George Bush.
...a passage from the Prairie Populist.
"Is it the desire of any simply to make our flag feared? Let us rather make it loved by every human being. Instead of having people bow before it, let us have them turn their faces toward it and thank God that there is one flag that stands for human rights and the doctrine of self-government everywhere."
William Jennings Bryan,
Democrat
Same speech. Still right.
"...we are Democrats, the party of action – not reaction. We are Democrats, the party of principle – not appeasement."I'm still on the fence. Really. If someone else says something as impressive as the stuff Edwards is coming up with, I'll quote 'em.
Jim Croce - Hard Hearted Hannah (The Vamp From Savannah)I can't speak for God, but that Shana Morrison track is pretty tasty. Van's little girl's quite a singer in her own right.
Shana Morrison - God Must Love Me
Edwin McCain - Ghosts Of Jackson Square
Willie Nelson - Hello Walls
Sinead Lohan - Diving To Be Deeper
Cheap Trick - Ain't That A Shame
Little Milton - Grits Ain't Groceries
Indigo Swing - Baron Plays The Horses
The Mamas & The Papas - Do You Wanna Dance
Peter, Paul & Mary - For Lovin' Me
...but this time the lovely and talented Miss Audrey Hepcat is just sitting there on an entirely different couch. Isn't that exciting?
…(not yet, anyway), but when he's right, he's right. John Edwards at the DNC Winter Meeting...
"This is not the time for political calculation. It's the time for political courage."2008 will be our best opportunity in a couple decades to elect a member of Paul Wellstone's fabled "Democratic wing of the Democratic Party" to the White House. In fact, I think boldness favors our side. We need to make "worth electing" a higher criteria than "electability" this time. This time, we need a Democrat without apology. Proud, principled partisanship must be a first requirement for the Democratic nomination.
…to stop global insanity. Upper lefties should contact (my own personal) State Senator Darlene Fairley, Chair of the Committee on Government Operations and Elections, and ask her to schedule a hearing on SJM 8003. Senator Fairley can be reached at fairley.darlene@leg.wa.gov or (360) 786-7662.
SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL 8003
By Senators Kohl-Welles, Kline, Pridemore, Shin, Oemig, Prentice, Poulsen, Regala, Spanel and Jacobsen
Read first time 01/22/2007. Referred to Committee on Government Operations & Elections.
TO THE HONORABLE GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, AND TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE AND THE SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, AND TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE UNITED STATES, IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED:
We, your Memorialists, the Senate and House of Representatives of the State of Washington, in legislative session assembled,Respectfully represent and petition as follows:
WHEREAS, The President has proposed an escalation in the number of United States troops deployed in Iraq; and
WHEREAS, United States involvement in Iraq has resulted in the deaths of more than 3,000 United States soldiers and the wounding and disabling of more than 22,000 United States military personnel to date; and
WHEREAS, This proposed escalation will further extend National Guard tours in Iraq, the costs to the states of the call-up of National Guard members for deployment in Iraq have been significant, as reckoned in lost lives, combat injuries and psychic
trauma, disruption of family life, financial hardship for individuals, families, and businesses, interruption of careers, and damage to the fabric of civic life in our communities; and
WHEREAS, The American troops have valiantly upheld their duty in 2 Iraq under dire circumstances; and
WHEREAS, More than 357 billion dollars has been appropriated by Congress to fund military operations and reconstruction in Iraq to date, money that could fund desperately needed education, health care, housing, nutrition, and other social services in our communities in the United States or humanitarian assistance abroad; and
WHEREAS, Previous budgets that have prioritized Iraq have led to cuts in critical block grants for states and have increased the federal debt, which compounded by interest payments, will likely lead to even larger cuts in funding for critical needs in the states; and
WHEREAS, Polls show that the vast majority of Americans do not support increasing the number of troops in Iraq; and
WHEREAS, Most military experts oppose escalation in Iraq and press reports indicate that even the Joint Chiefs of Staff have opposed such a strategy; and
WHEREAS, Legal experts on all sides have determined that Congress has not only broad authority, but a long tradition of limiting escalation or forcing redeployment of troops through the Constitutionally designate power of the purse;
NOW, THEREFORE, Your Memorialists, on behalf of the citizens of the state of Washington, respectfully pray that, in a period when the Iraq Study Group, leading military and diplomatic officials, and allies around the world are calling for a reduction in troops and withdrawal of the United States from Iraq, the United States government should not escalate its involvement in Iraq or increase troop levels.
BE IT RESOLVED, That, at a minimum, the President should obtain explicit approval from Congress if he wants to send more American troops to Iraq; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That Congress should pass legislation prohibiting the President from spending taxpayer dollars on an escalation in Iraq, unless the President first seeks Congressional approval; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, That copies of this Memorial be immediately transmitted to the Honorable George W. Bush, President of the United States, the President of the United States Senate, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and each member of Congress from the State of Washington.