Sick of the Dem Congress Funding the War? Join the Democratic Donor Strike against the DCCC and DSCC
Join the Democratic Donor Strike against the DCCC and DSCCMore from United for Peace and Justice:
http://democrats.com/donor-strike-2007Once again our Democratic "leaders" are betraying our troops by keeping them in Iraq forever to be murdered or maimed for no reason except the insatiable greed of Bush-Cheney's oil cronies.
On Tuesday, House Democrats plan to approve $30 billion more for Afghanistan. Then Senate Democrats plan to approve $70 billion to cover Iraq as well. Then House Democrats plan to approve the full $70 billion.
Why are our Democratic "leaders" betraying us? Because they want Bush to sign -- not veto -- the $522 billion omnibus spending bill to fund the government this year. We have no Democratic "leaders" -- we have utterly incompetent negotiators who lose 100% of their battles, no matter how much public support they have.
Our Democrats in Congress clearly do not care about the voters who elect them, whether Democrats or Independents, virtually all of whom want them to end the disastrous occupation of Iraq now. Our Democrats in Congress do not care about the troops fighting in Iraq and their families, who oppose the occupation even more than the rest of us, by 69% to 64%. The only support for the occupation of Iraq comes from hard-core Bush Republican voters who never vote for Democrats.
Who do Democrats in Congress actually care about? The donors who fund them -- period. So call your Representatives and Senators with a simple message:
Not one more penny for Iraq -- or not one more penny for your campaign.
If you have ever contributed to your Representatives or Senators or to any Democratic committee, be sure to tell them how much you will not give them.Let's all call Monday and Tuesday (between 9-5 ET) and shut down the Congressional phone system .
- Call your Representatives directly: http://clerk.house.gov/member_info/mcapdir.html
- Or call the Capitol switchboard at 202-224-3121
- Or call toll-free: 800-828-0498 - 800-614 2803 - 866-340 9281
It looks like the Senate leadership is ready to make a deal with the devil: If Bush funds their domestic programs, they will fund his illegal, destructive occupation of Iraq. Recognizing weakness, Bush appears ready to hold out and demand no increases to vital domestic programs, along with a $70 billion blank check for Iraq. The vote may come as early as tomorrow, Tuesday.
Clearly, the Iraqi people and the people of this country will be the losers in this deal.
On the House side, the signals are still mixed. On Friday, the chairs of the Progressive and Out-Of-Iraq Caucuses, Lynn Woolsey, Barbara Lee and Maxine Waters, wrote the Democratic leadership, saying that they will oppose any legislation that does not "strictly limit funding" to the protection of the troops and for their complete redeployment out of Iraq.
We have called, emailed, visited, occupied offices and refused to leave. Many members of Congress have gotten the message, but they need to be reminded, and those who haven't gotten the message need to hear it again.
This funding fight is prolonged and frustrating, but it is also urgently important. We ask you to take time today to send a message to your senators and representative.
Choose the method that feels right for you:
We know it's short notice, but try to gather some friends together and pay a visit to one or more of your legislators' local or DC offices today or tomorrow. (Click here to find their office locations.) Emphatically demand an end to the occupation. Your peaceful visit can be brief, or last long enough for you to read the names of civilians and soldiers killed in Iraq, or it can last until the member of Congress agrees to oppose all funding that is not tied to the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops and contractors.
If you are able to organize a visit, post the details on our calendar, so others can join you. Check to see if others in your area are planning a visit here.
If you can't put together a visit, flood your legislators' offices with phone calls. You can reach both of your senators and your representative through the Capitol Hill switchboard: 202-224-3121.
Tell them: Vote NO on any funding for the occupation of Iraq that does not require the rapid withdrawal of all U.S. troops and contractors.
- Write a brief letter to the editor of your local newspaper. You may have noticed that news about Iraq has fallen off the front pages. Other readers will want to know that Congress is considering a $70 billion blank check for Iraq. You may want to include the results of an LA Times/Bloomberg poll showing that even military families agree this war was a mistake and that troops should come home.
BackgroundCongress has not passed most of the Appropriations Bills necessary to fund the government and government services. The stop-gap funding measure ("Continuing Resolution") they passed last month expires on December 14, so they have to pass something before then in order to prevent a government shutdown. Pro-war legislators see this as an opportunity to force a vote on Iraq funding without any conditions. We are getting conflicting reports from staff and the media about what is happening behind the scenes -- but it looks likely that Congress will consider some Iraq funding measure -- for as much as $70 billion, along with an omnibus spending bill (that rolls all the appropriations bills for all departments into one giant spending bill). In the House, Democratic leadership had been promising that they would not take up anymore Iraq funding bills until next year -- but there are alarming indications they might renege on that promise.Yours, for peace and justice,
Sue Udry
Legislative Coordinator, UFPJ