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MoveOn Ad Blasts GOP Senators For Stalling "Surge" Debate
A couple weeks after airing ads attacking John McCain for his escalation plan, MoveOn is back up on the air again -- and this time, the group is targeting GOP Senators for stalling debate on the anti-escalation resolution in the Senate. The $130,000 ad campaign -- which specifically targets GOP Senators John Warner, Sam Brownback, John Sununu, George Voinovich, Arlen Specter, Mitch McConnell and Elizabeth Dole -- will run nationally on CNN and in some local markets in D.C., New York, New Hampshire, Kansas, Maine, and Virginia. The ad slams the Senators hard: "They're willing to send tens of thousands more troops to face danger in Iraq, but they don't have the courage to face a vote." View it here.
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But I thought several of those Senators being targeted were renegade samurai or ronin. I don't know what to believe now. Haha.
February 9, 2007 6:21 PM | Reply | Permalink
FactCheck with a rebuttal already:
http://www.factcheck.org/article476.html
I thought Warner's answer was disingenuous at best. He voted against his own amendment being voted on to make a point about other people's not being voted on? WTF? I thought you are supposed to represent your own state, not other people's. Is he taking representation lessons from Lieberman?
February 9, 2007 6:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
It is not so simple - some of those very Republican Senators do in fact what to debate the issue - This is what Scott Clemons of The Washington Note had to say:
"While American citizens saw a procedural motion to move to "debate" the Warner-Levin Iraq War Resolution lose a 49-47 vote, what they did not see was a snarling, nasty tug-of-war between Reid and Durbin on one side and McConnell and Lott on the other that ripped the guts out of any possible comity needed to get to that debate.
TWN has learned that Senators John Warner, Olympia Snowe, and Chuck Hagel -- and others -- were highly irritated, angry in fact, with both sides and elected to vote against the procedural motion until the party leaders on both sides of the aisle ceased their antics.
I was as confused as anyone by the votes cast by Warner, Snowe and Hagel who were real stakeholders in the resolution that was being fought over. But it is now clear that in the eyes of these Senators, the Republican Party leadership and the majority Democrats chose to slug each other silly in ways that preempted any ability to secure the votes needed to assure debate. In that circumstance, the Senators who have signed the letter below decided to vote against the resolution in that climate.
Essentially, these seven Senators have said to their own Republican leadership and the Democrats to "shape up" or a "pox on both your houses."
I think it's a brave move -- and explains a lot."
Here is what the letter says:
February 7, 2007
The Honorable Harry Reid, Majority Leader
The Honorable Mitch McConnell, Republican Leader
The Honorable Richard Durbin, Assistant Majority Leader
The Honorable Trent Lott, Assistant Republican Leader
United States Senate -- Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Leader Reid, Leader McConnell, Senator Durbin and Senator Lott:
The war in Iraq is the most pressing issue of our time. It urgently deserves the attention of the full Senate and a full debate on the Senate floor without delay.
We respectfully advise you, our leaders, that we intend to take S. Con. Res 7 and offer it, where possible under the Standing Rules of the Senate, to bills coming before the Senate.
On January 10,2007, the President stated, with respect to his Iraq strategy, "if Members have improvements that can be made, we will make them. If circumstances change we will adjust." In a conscientious, respectful way, we offered our resolution consistent with the President's statement.
We strongly believe the Senate should be allowed to work its will on our resolution as well as the concepts brought forward by other Senators. Monday's procedural vote should not be interpreted as any lessening of our resolve to go forward advocating the concepts of S. Con. Res. 7.
We will explore all of our options under the Senate procedures and practices to ensure a full and open debate on the Senate floor. The current stalemate is unacceptable to us and to the people of this country.
Sincerely,
Olympia Snowe
John Warner
Chuck Hagel
Susan Collins
Norm Coleman
Gordon Smith
George Voinovich
February 9, 2007 7:13 PM | Reply | Permalink
In fact Clemons posted that same item here, where frankly it made no more sense than on his personal site. He hasn't revealed what inside knowledge he claims to have, but it's hard to see what could counterbalance the simple facts: Reid (and Levin) had already agreed with Warner to language that was weaker than the original Hagel (as in Republican) Hagel-Biden Resolution. McConnell wanted to tack on a Potemkin amendment.
How this adds up to a "pox on both your houses" situation is beyond me. And forty eight hours after his original "samurai" post, Clemons has not offered any evidence.
February 9, 2007 7:34 PM | Reply | Permalink
I would be nice if MoveOn, Moved On.
Why should we get stuck debating esculation
when the real debate should be: "support
the troops, bring them home."
A recent Harvard study predicts $660 billion,
almost 1/12 US GDP, in expected health care
costs for the currently injured troops!
February 9, 2007 7:53 PM | Reply | Permalink
The fact is, this is the first step on a journey that will ultimately lead to the White House, and this current crop of republicans will say or do anything to slow it down. They can't stop the freight train though. Can you say President Pelosi anyone?
February 9, 2007 8:14 PM | Reply | Permalink
Do you have a link to that? Astounding! And we talk about Social Security being a balooning payment--apparently no one's given any real thought to the troops in Iraq, let alone the ones that the next Democratic president will have to send to actually get Osama.
February 9, 2007 8:15 PM | Reply | Permalink
Care for U.S. veterans could cost $662 bln: study
February 2, 2007
BOSTON (Reuters) - Medical costs for U.S. veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan could range from $350 billion to $662 billion over the next 40 years, as soldiers survive injuries that would have killed them in past conflicts, according to a Harvard University study.
Due to improvements in battlefield medicine and equipment, there are now about 16 "nonmortally wounded" soldiers for every death, far more than the 2.6 soldiers wounded per death in Vietnam, the study said, citing Department of Veterans' Affairs data.
The author of the study, Linda Bilmes, a lecturer at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government, presented her findings at an academic conference in January. They were released publicly by the university this week.
snip....
http://www.boston.com/news/world/middleeast/articles/2007/02/02/care_for_us_veterans_could_cost_662_bln_study/
February 9, 2007 9:20 PM | Reply | Permalink
Way to go!!, MoveOn.org. You ROCK!!!
You don't have to be a blind conservative not to see it, just an ignorant one to deny it.
February 9, 2007 9:38 PM | Reply | Permalink
Agreed, I see no bravery in their action. It's just more obfuscation and equivocation from scared Republican senators. For those up for re-election in 2008 their recorded votes on Iraq issues will be strong ammunition for their Democratic opponents.
February 9, 2007 10:01 PM | Reply | Permalink
I aluded to this above in a sarcastic manner. Clemons seems a little blinded by his infatuation with Chuck Hagel. His post made no sense and I couldn't even comprehend where he was coming from. Even when I don't agree, I can understand what he's saying, but this post seems less consistent with reality and less an attempt to salvage his praising of Hagel.
February 9, 2007 11:06 PM | Reply | Permalink
The real debate isn't about bringing the troops home, it's about preventing a war with Iran and who knows what else.
February 9, 2007 11:07 PM | Reply | Permalink
I joined MOve on. org when it started,
but I think they tend to spread themselves too thin.
They would be better to focus on 3 or 4 issues
and not the many .
February 10, 2007 3:56 PM | Reply | Permalink
I am extremely glad to see MoveOn getting the truth out to the American people.
And yes, the resolution is a weak lame act when so much more needs to be done. But it's a first step. The Republicans think that if they can stop even this tiny baby step, they can effectively stop more serious action. We need to take this first step successfully, build on it, and get to more serious action.
Jim Webb needs to say that he will call for Bush's impeachment if Bush attacks Iran.
February 10, 2007 6:20 PM | Reply | Permalink