Today’s Downsizer Dispatch . . .
Please share with concerned friends . . .
Subject: War with Iran, war in Iraq, habeas corpus, military tribunals
We’ve had a breathless morning. There are emergencies developing in all directions. Urgent action is needed on a number of campaigns all at once.
PLEASE TAKE ALL OF THE FOLLOWING ACTIONS IMMEDIATELY.
First, the Senate is debating legislation that would reduce the U.S. presence in Iraq. Their approach is far from ideal, but it’s a step in the right direction. We must reduce, and eventually eliminate our provocative stance in the Middle East if we are to ever achieve true national security.
We have a campaign calling for Congress to deauthorize the occupation of Iraq. If you send Congress a message today requesting this it is more likely that the less direct approach currently being debated will pass.
You can send your message here.
Second, there are disturbing signs that we may be at war with Iran in a matter of weeks. The Guardian newspaper has reported that the debate in the White House has settled in favor of an attack before Bush leaves office. That attack could occur in August when Congress is out of town.
There are a number of lines of evidence pointing to this conclusion. We don’t have time to cover all of them in this message because we all need to get busy sending messages to Congress. So we will just mention one item — a new Navy task force has been sent to the Persian Gulf. Never before has so much of the U.S. Navy been stationed in the Persian Gulf.
Why have we stationed so much fire power in the Gulf at this precise time? We think there is a very real possibility that President Bush is about to attack Iran. This would be a disaster. Please ask Congress to take immediate action to prevent this before they recess.
You can send your message here.
Finally, there is the issue of the amendments to restore habeas corpus and dismantle the military tribunals. A vote was supposed to be held on these amendments today. We have called the office of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid to confirm this, but no one there knows, one way or the other!
We hate the way Congress does business. It is almost always impossible to determine what they are going to do when. They don’t even know! So we must assume that the vote will still be held today. We need to pass . . .
* S. 576 to dismantle the military tribunals
* S. 185 to restore habeas corpus
You can send your message here.
If at all possible, please also make phone calls to your Senators mentioning all of the above issues. Their office phone numbers are listed on the previously linked campaign pages — you’ll see them once you log-in to send your messages to Congress.
This is a crucial time, just before Congress leaves for the month of August. Many good things and bad things could happen in the next few hours and days. We need to do everything we can to promote the good and fight the bad.
Thank you for being a DC Downsizer.
Jim Babka
President
DownsizeDC.org