Grayson says he'll 'whip' votes against striking Syria

[n2doc]

Florida Rep. Alan Grayson says he'll work to convince other House members to vote against the U.S. attacking Syria, and has started an online petition, dontattacksyria.com, to galvanize public support.

The liberal Democrat from Orlando has been an outspoken critic of the wars and is getting national attention once again with Syria. He appeared on CNN over the weekend. Grayson may not have to work hard.

On Sunday, House members got a classified briefing in Washington on Sunday but it didn't seem to do much good. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, R-Miami, told Roll Call that she did not think a resolution would pass. “I think that the president has a very skeptical Congress and even more skeptical public to deal with,” she said. “So far he doesn’t have congressional authority, he doesn’t have the American people with him, and he doesn’t have an international coalition. So there are big hurdles that’s he’s got to go through.”

http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/grayson-says-hell-whip-votes-against-striking-syria/2139513

[idwiyo]

1. K&R I hope he does!

[tritsofme]

2. I'm sure other members view him as a credible authority

on the subject, lol

[sabrina 1]

25. Considering he is one of the most intelligent members of Congress I would

and especially on ME issues, I would think you are correct, other members do view him as a credible authority. He's certainly in the majority regarding his views on this issue.

What really matters though, since we all know the pressure that is placed on members of Congress to vote the 'right way', is the opinion of the masses, the people, all over the world. Especially those who are informed on these matters, unlike the average American internet poster who have no clue about what is going on there, but will jump onto one side or the other with zero reasoning for their positions.

I certainly trust Grayson who has proven his ability to get to the bottom of issues that are so vitally important to this country's future than any partisan on either side who generally present nothing other than their clearly partisan views.

What is good to see today as opposed to the Bush years, is that people here and in Europe are looking past politics and directly at the issues mainly because people are way more informed now that no longer depend on the Corporate media for information.

[tritsofme]

28. In the end he is a backbencher.

If he is the face of Democratic opposition, the White House has very little to worry about.

[sabrina 1]

30. They WH? I think it's the American people who are important here, what is best

for them.

Interesting. I always thought that politics was about the people, not about individual politicians.

Very revealing though what we have been learning over the past several years, disturbing but necessary.

Grayson is representative of the majority of the people on this planet right now on this issue.

I hope the WH will join the majority in backing away from what is being condemned word wide and take the advice of the UK Parliament and start prosecuting the Bush War criminals and provide some justice to the millions of their victims that they so deserve.

We have no moral authority on these issues, as the world and even our allies are now telling us until we:

1) Stop supporting dictators around the world as we are currently doing and ...
2) Clean up our own war crimes history which is still waiting for justice. IF we mean it when we say 'this cannot be tolerated'.

Until then we are viewed as nothing but hypocrites, no matter how Congress votes.

Thank the gods for people like Grayson right now so the world can see that not all Americans or their Reps are so anxious to start another disastrous war.

[Speed8098]

42. "Thank the gods for people like Grayson right now so the world can see that not all Americans

or their Reps are so anxious to start another disastrous war."

[countmyvote4real]

51. +1

[frylock]

59. is that important to you? the personalities that make up the democratic "leadership?"

[99Forever]

3. Alan Grayson, the rational adult in Washington DC.

We NEED him in the White House.

[HardTimes99]

6. Can you imagine the character assassination Grayson would be subject to, were

any putative candidacy of his to gain traction? Would make Dean's treatment in 2004 look positively banal by comparison.

[99Forever]

8. Grayson's brand of honesty and integrity...

... scares the shit out of the establishment toadies, and the lapdog media that sells their tripe for them too, for damn sure. Our only hope is that REAL America has had our fill of the bullshit and WE take our nation back.

[The Green Manalishi]

49. Grayson could take it.

And he (and WE) would fire right back.

Grayson/Warrren or Warren/Grayson is what I can get behind.

[newfie11]

7. I'd vote for him in a heartbeat. Nt

[LWolf]

4. Link to the petition:

http://dontattacksyria.com/

[lyonn]

23. signed

Watched Grayson yesterday asking for people to sign this petition. Thanks LWolf

[HardTimes99]

5. Just signed the petition, making me 16523. Petition drive is hoping for at

least 25,000 signatures:

http://dontattacksyria.com/

[magical thyme]

58. I'm 38,050. New goal is 50,000. 76% of the way there!

[ctsnowman]

9. K & R

And signed the petition down thread.

[Jefferson23]

10. Work it. K&R. n/t

[Rebellious Republican]

11. FLORIDA

Who whudda thunk!

[Erose999]

15. If bold progressive-ism can win seats in the backyard of Mickey Mouse it can win seats anywhere.

Grayson is one of the few in Congress I'll donate to.

[Rebellious Republican]

19. I think GOP mantra is wearing thin everywhere.

[reformist2]

21. If it weren't for all that big money brainwashing, we'd be a 70-30 nation.

[nashville_brook]

32. Central Florida dems/progressives had an AMAZING year in 2012

due to a lot of hard work and dedication...and very little ongoing support. What happens in Florida happens b/c Floridians are busting ass to make shit happen.

[Rebellious Republican]

36. Spot on!

[caledesi]

56. True...very true. (live in Tampa). nt

[AsahinaKimi]

12. Go for it..

Grayson sama! Ganbareyo!

[Rebellious Republican]

20. You bet I will.

[Nanjing to Seoul]

37. And don't stop when you get it, Alan

Wo he Grayson wangquan tongyi. Rang Grayson hen duo haoshi!

[Speed8098]

13. Signed

[NorthCarolina]

14. All you pro-war against Syria elected officials, and apologists for the US authoritarian regime,

Grab yourselves a rifle (available on-line, or at your local WalMart) and head on over to the nearest military plane heading in that direction. Oh, and don't forget to bring your kids too...in fact make it a family outing.

[DirkGently]

16. That's my Congressman!

[sabrina 1]

26. Lucky you. I hope he runs for the Senate. He has demonstrated that the old 'no

Progressive Dem can get elected in that district' is false.

From now on I won't be listening to 'why you should not waste time on the progressive candidate in that dist.' nonsense. I will only support Progressives no matter what district they are in.

[forestpath]

48. You're lucky. Mine is a DINO.

[Ocelot]

17. Thank you Conressman Grayson (n/t)

[Douglas Carpenter]

18. God Bless him for doing that

[gopiscrap]

22. Good

[durablend]

24. Signed n/t

[Dustlawyer]

27. Come on Republicans, Obama's FOR it!

I know voting against a war is against your nature and your constituency (MIC), but OBAMA IS FOR IT!!!

Signed!

[Enthusiast]

29. God bless Alan Grayson. Too many stolen elections and false flags.

The public no longer "believes". Things were so simple during the cold war when the government could lie to the public so effectively. Now, after the bull in the China-shop Neo-Con Bush Administration, things don't go down so smoothly.

Look, the American people see that there is something fundamentally wrong with the nation. They know this "fundamental wrongness" is not due to terrorists or petty dictators.

[pjt7]

33. Excellent Points!

REC

[grahamhgreen]

34. Contribute (I just did): http://congressmanwithguts.com/

http://congressmanwithguts.com/

https://secure.actblue.com/page/graysonforcongress?cp=MTI6QUIwODY1NTQ0Nw%3D%3D

[Faryn Balyncd]

35. That Pelosi is on the wrong side of this is a disgrace. She should step aside.

[L0oniX]

38. Kay and Arr. n/t

[lark]

39. I Love Alan Grayson!

Wish we had a whole lot more people like him in Congress! He gets it right almost always, is always there on the side of the working class and sanity.

Go ALAN GO!!!

[Spitfire of ATJ]

40. If Obama loses this vote it won't be about Syria to Tweety....

He will claim it was about Obama spending the rest of his second term as a lame duck.

[malaise]

41. Go Grayson!!

[MindMover]

43. I wish the world was flat again .... and we had 7 million people on the planet ...

instead of 7 billion ... and I wish that we had 2 dozen countries in the world instead of 196 ....

[n2doc]

44. After we end up in a nuclear war with Russia, you may get your wish n/t

[MindMover]

45. Your premise of nuclear war jumps to a scenario which has been on the table ....

for 68 years .... and we have all lived with that shadow hanging over our heads .... and

your assumptions of nuclear war are not out of the concerns of very important people ...

But it does seem to me that you are using this statement as a scare tactic, almost like here is another horrendous possibility that might happen if we as part of a world community take targeted action against the butcher of Damascus ... for using WMD on his own ....

[n2doc]

46. You were the one wishing for a massively less populated earth

I guess maybe biological weapons are more along the lines you were thinking of? Chemical weapons don't have the scale needed to wipe out 99% of humanity. Despite your fear-mongering.


I suspect "very important people'" are still concerned about nuclear war. After all, the most important one, President Obama, was awarded a Nobel Piece Prize for nuclear de proliferation efforts.


And I am not the one trying to scare folks. However, you really look ludicrous talking about a 'world community' effort to take out/punish Assad. The only ones doing the 'effort' will the the good old USA. Even Israel is sitting this one out, unless they are attacked.

[MindMover]

47. I was simply trying to point out that we are in a different world than ....

what many of commentators seem to think we are engaged in ... it was an attempt to show what many on this site seem to want to do ... harken back to another time and place ...

We are here and now and we are still the leader of the free world ... but maybe not for long, the way we have been handling these issues ...

Now, if you and others do not like that or cannot accept that we are or are just trying to be as non interventionist as you can possibly be, I would ask you to look at another example of our hands off, non-interventionist policy ... Libya ....

I am not advocating punishing the butcher of Damascus, I have been saying all along that I want more than a slap on wrist or a shot over the bow .....

[L0oniX]

50. Please do so ...with gusto! n/t

[drynberg]

52. TIME TO HALT THE EMPIRE

Hint: We ain't the Sheriff of the friggin' world, and we got lotsa business at home more urgent than meddling with another nation's civil war. At most we should persue the world community through the UN to discover accurate details of what happened. Let's not get "fooled again".

[Blue_Tires]

53. Thank you, Alan....At least someone out there still "gets it"

[jsr]

54. A true voice of reason

[wisteria]

55. Grayson, doesn't understand the issue

and his is clueless about Assad. The idea that diplomacy should be tried and will work is naive. Kerry has already attempted to negotiate with this dictator - several times as a Senator. Assad turned around and started killing his own people to remain in ultimate power.

[Supersedeas]

57. courage under fire

[LittleGirl]

60. Why is there only ONE Grayson in Congress?

Where are the rest of the men or women willing to stand up for PEOPLE FIRST and not what the Government wants? It's always the right thing to do for citizens. Always.

Why is their only one Alan Grayson type like that? Doesn't anybody else in the left have any balls besides Grayson and Senator Sanders to grow that backbone and stomp your foot? It works for the righties.