Stop $33.5 Billion for War Escalation

UPDATE 5/27 5:00 pm: House Appropriations Committee Hearing Postponed.  (Now let's change postponed to canceled!)

UPDATE 5/27 12:30 pm: Ray McGovern asks David Obey to Listen to David Obey, and Obey plans to include the schools money, which may mean Republicans vote No, which would mean we only need 40 Democrats.

UPDATE 5/27 12:30 pm: Rep Barbara Lee Will Bring Amendment to Block War Escalation Funding, and Rep. Chellie Pingress Asks Pelosi for a Clean Vote on the War Funding

UPDATE 5/27 11:30 am: Senate now voting overwhelmingly against requesting a non-specified non-binding timetable for eventually leaving Afghanistan.

UPDATE: House Appropriations Committee mark-up starts at 5 p.m. and may run late, Thursday, in room 2359 Rayburn House Office Building: webcast.

The Senate is voting now, the House Appropriations committee tomorrow, and the full House after June 7.  This means we need to be phoning senators today.  But the House remains our best chance.  So call these members of the Appropriations Committee now.  And call your own representative this week, and plan to meet them in person next week.

House Appropriations Committee Members to Call:
Chairman David Obey (202) 225-3365
Sam Farr, California (202) 225-2861
Michael Honda, California (202) 225-2631
Marcy Kaptur, Ohio (202) 225-4146
Barbara Lee, California (202) 225-2661
José E. Serrano, New York (202) 225-4361

How to reach your representative and your two senators:
Capitol Hill Switchboard: (202) 224-3121

Keep track of where your representative stands at
http://defundwar.org

photo by James Nord

What to say:
If you do not try to block the war escalation funding, I will try to block your reelection in November.  If you support peace, I will support you.  Please commit publicly to voting No, no matter what nice things that could be passed separately are packaged into the same vote.  Please join the 58 congressional candidates from every political party who have signed a statement against war spending at http://caws.us.  Also ask them to support the War Is Making You Poor Act, and support it yourself.

Draft version of the bill: PDF.

Congressional Candidates Opposing War Spending Now Include Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians, Greens, Independents, and Socialists

Fifty-eight congressional candidates and 20 activist organizations are opposing any more funding for the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, and inviting more candidates, incumbents, and organizations to join them.  The 58 candidates, from 25 different states, include 19 Democrats, 18 Greens, 17 Libertarians, 2 Independents, 1 Republican, and 1 Socialist (and more may be added to the website by the time you read this). Forty-nine are candidates for the U.S. House of Representatives, and nine for the Senate.

UPDATE: Here's where Senator Coburn's opposition stands. And education funding is out, possibly because the House needs Republicans to pass the war escalation money.