Western MA (Olver constituents) Check in!

[thoughtanarchist]

You gotta love John Olver. Check out his voting record, check out his press releases, you can see a man who is consistantly representing us on the issues. I wish he were a bit more vocal, but I think we're in a good place when that's my biggest gripe with our house rep. Apparently, he needs a poke to sign onto an Iraq withdrawl resolution. Want to help? See below!


From TrueMajority.org:


Dear Thoughtanarchist,

The resolution in Congress pushing President Bush to plan an Iraq pullout is gathering steam. You probably didn't hear about this in the papers last week, but it will be news soon. Now's the time to give this resolution a big push.

Rep. Walter B. Jones Jr., Republican from North Carolina, led the way by introducing a bipartisan resolution calling for President Bush to come up with a plan by the end of this year to withdraw the troops from Iraq, and for the withdrawal to start no later than October of 2006.<1> Rep. Jones became famous for changing the name of the french fries served in the congressional cafeteria to "freedom fries" when France came out against invading Iraq. He also represents Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, where many new recruits go for basic training, so it is significant that he is publicly breaking with Bush policy.<2>

When we first alerted you about this opportunity, Rep. Jones had three other members of Congress as cosponsors. TrueMajority members sent 50,000 messages of support for the idea to Congress, and now the resolution has thirty cosponsors, including some of the most conservative Representatives.

This week, we and our friends at MoveOn, Working Assets, and other progressive groups are making a major push to double that number.

Representative John Olver has not yet signed on to support the "Homeward Bound" resolution. Please click "reply" and then "send" to forward a message asking that they sign on. If you aren't yet a member of TrueMajority, or if you'd like to personalize the message, click here:

http://action.truemajority.org/campaign/IraqExitStrategy

This is how quagmires like this end. First, public support drops, and polls already show that Americans' support for this war is declining.<3> Next, Congress begins to pressure the administration to come up with a way out. That is what this resolution does. Finally, if the administration continues to fight calls for withdrawal, Congress pulls the plug on the money. That is how the war in Vietnam eventually ended.

We understand that this resolution gives the Bush administration a long time to keep our troops in Iraq, but it is an important first step toward bringing them home. Not having a real exit strategy and timetable only helps the insurgents, who claim that we intend to stay. We need to get off that path if we want the people of Iraq to ever live in a stable, peaceful nation.

Please share this e-mail with anyone else you know who cares about peace.

Watching Washington for you,
Darcy Scott Martin

<1> CBS News: Lawmakers Urge Iraq Pullout
<2> Associated Press: GOP Congressman Wants Troops Out of Iraq
<3> Associated Press: Poll: Six in 10 want troops to leave Iraq

Here's the letter that we'll forward to your member of Congress:

Subject: Please support House Joint Resolution 55 for ending the Iraq occupation

Dear Representative Olver,

I was glad to see that Rep. Jones is leading a bipartisan effort to press President Bush to create an exit strategy and timetable for withdrawal of our troops from Iraq. Being an occupying force in Iraq with no end in sight only fuels the insurgency there. I ask you to join the thirty other cosponsors of the resolution, and to support it by voting for it.

Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely, (we'll insert your name here)

[Bill McBlueState]

1. I'm an Olver constituent!

There are a few of us around here, but I only found your post today.