Submitted by Bob Fertik on February 28, 2007 - 12:58pm.ImpeachForChange OutOfIraq
It's been nearly 4 months since the American people voted Democrats into power for one overriding reason: to get U.S. troops out of Iraq.
And after 4 months of closed-door meetings, Democratic leaders in both the Senate and the House have failed to come up with even the beginnings of a plan to deliver what the overwhelming majority of Americans (everyone except FOX News kool-aid drinkers) want.
Why? Because they have run up against a brick wall: George Bush, Dick Cheney, the Republican Party, and the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy (a.k.a. Council on National Policy) have absolutely no interest in "changing course."
The Republican plan is simple: to keep U.S. troops in Iraq forever (as Atrios reminds us daily).
Why? Atrios never explains so I will: so U.S. oil companies can control Iraq's massive oil reserves for as long as the world runs on oil. (Dennis Kucinich was right in when he said this to Tim Russert on 2/23/2003, and he's been right ever since.)
If Democrats in Congress - and progressive bloggers - haven't figured this out by now, then they're just plain stupid. All of the pre-war "intelligence" was bald-faced lies that were manufactured simply to justify Bush's war for oil.
Given this harsh reality, what can Congressional Democrats do to get U.S. troops out of Iraq?
1. Cut the Funds. Every single day, Republicans go on TV to dare Democrats to cut funding for the war. Every poll shows the public supports it. So why won't Democrats do it? I have no idea. All I know is that Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Democrats will never do it - period, end of discussion.
2. Impeach Bush and Cheney. In 1973-74, the threat of impeachment caused Richard Nixon to scale back the Vietnam War. If that failed and Democrats had to actually impeach and remove Bush and Cheney (with the help of Republicans who don't want Bush/Cheney in charge during the 2008 election), Democrats would get to vote for their replacements and they could choose an anti-war Democrat (like Al Gore or Russ Feingold) or an anti-war Republican (like Chuck Hagel). So why won't Democrats do it? I have no idea. All I know is that Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Democrats will never do it - period, end of discussion.
3. Filibuster all war funding bills, starting with the $93 billion Supplemental in early March. Russ Feingold could start this filibuster with the support of the handful of Democratic Senators who truly want to end the war: John Kerry, Ted Kennedy, Barack Obama, and Ben Cardin. All we need are 40 of the 50 Democrats for the filibuster to succed. With millions marching in the streets and calling Senators from their homes, this is a winnable battle. Write these Senators (personalize if you can):
russ@progressivepatriotsfund.com, info@tedkennedy.com, support@johnkerry.com, media@barackobama.com, info@bencardin.com
Dear Senators,
The only way to end the Iraq War is to cut the funds, starting with the $93 billion Supplemental in March.
I urge all of you to work together to filibuster the Supplemental. You only need 40 votes to sustain the filibuster and force the Bush Administration to change its disastrous course.
Millions of us will do everything we possibly can to support your efforts, including demanding that all Democratic Senators support you - but it's up to you to take the lead.
Sincerely,
[Your name and postal address]4. Raise taxes on the rich to pay for the war, starting with an amendment to the $93 billion Supplemental in early March. If Democrats don't want to take the blame for cutting funds for Iraq, they can simply force Republicans to cut the funds, simply by adding a tax on the rich to pay for it. Since Republicans will never vote to tax the rich, adding this as an amendment to the Supplemental would guarantee that Republicans defeat the bill - or Bush vetoes it. I proposed this on 12/7/06 and again on 2/7/07. Call your Representative at 202-224-3121 (the Capitol switchboard - ask for your Congressperson) and urge him or her to add a War Tax to the Supplemental.
Update 1: Chris Bowers is struggling to find a way to force conservative Democrats in Congress to support the Murtha plan in the House (impose training and equipment requirements on troops sent to Iraq) and the Biden plan in the Senate (rewrite the 2002 Authorization for Use of Military Force). Bowers is wasting his time because both the Murtha plan and the Biden plan are a waste of time since Bush has said repeatedly (and Kagro X has blogged repeatedly) that he will ignore any legislation that limits his
dictatorial"Commander-in-Chief" powers.Update 2: Pelosi says she'll push the Murtha plan, but now it's worse than a joke: "The proposal, however, would allow President Bush to waive the rules if he wanted to deploy troops faster or under different standards than allowed by the measure... Current rules allow the Defense Department to waive those conditions. She wants to raise that waiver to a presidential decision."
Source: Four Ways to End the Iraq War Democrats.com
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