The collective power of the peace movement helped the Democrats take control of Congress and turn Nancy Pelosi from Minority leader into Madam Speaker. But in May the new Congress turned its back on the peace movement, granting Bush another $95 billion for war with no timetable for withdrawal. While the Speaker of the House herself voted against the war funding, she failed to put pressure on the conservative Democrats to form a united front against another blank check for war. She also failed to effectively use her power to decide what bills would come up for a vote. In the case of both the unrestricted war funding and the expanded FISA wiretapping, Pelosi had the ability to keep the bills off the floor but refused to do so.
This Fall, Congress will be faced with a new Bush Administration request for a mind-boggling $200 billion more for war. The American people have had enough of Congressional capitulation. Pelosi's approval rating plummeted from a high of 48 percent in March to 39 percent by August, putting her on a par with Dick Cheney, and Congress' approval is at an all-time low of 18%.
So CODEPINK women and men are descending upon Washington this month to whip Congress into shape. We'll ride our representatives until they start to represent us! Everyday, from the opening of Congress on September 4 until the vote on more war funding, CODEPINK will be in Congressional offices, hearings, press conferences, fundraisers and favorite DC "watering holes" to poke, prod and pester our elected officials.
CODEPINK has been a near constant presence in DC since we rented a house a few blocks from the Capitol in March. This Fall we will move at an even faster clip. Each day that Congress does not move to bring our troops home, CODEPINK activists will be on Capitol Hill holding our elected officials accountable for not representing the will of the majority of Americans.
We hate to say it, but the Democratic leadership could take a clue from Karl Rove (he might be a nasty guy, but he's no dummy). In a press interview as he left office, he gave the Democrats some free advice. He described his politics as building on the energy of the base of the Republican Party and expanding it outward. He mentioned that the Democrats could build on the energy of their base, like the "Pink Ladies", he said, referring to the Code Pink women who dogged him until the day he left office. Instead, the Democrats have been turning potential allies in the peace movement into adversaries—refusing to meet with us, strategize with us or represent us. This August recess, when CODEPINK activists went on a 2-week hunger strike and camped outside Speaker Pelosi home just trying to get a meeting, she not only refused to meet but screamed at the fasters, calling them "nuts."
Our advice? Do what the country asked you to do when you were voted into office on November 2006: Stand up to Bush. Lead us out of Iraq. Don't give this administration another blank check for war. Push the Republicans in Congress to break rank with Bush, but also force the conservative Dems to follow your lead. Only vote for, or put on the floor, legislation that sets a fixed timeline for withdrawal or stipulates that funds be used solely for the safe and speedy withdrawal of our troops.
Build on the energy and passion of the anti-war movement. Make us your allies, not your adversaries If you can dialogue with Syrian strongman Bashar al-Asad, you can surely meet with and work with the peace-loving Pink Ladies, the Quakers, Veterans for Peace and others who have been the heart and soul of our nation's efforts to end this shameful war.
If Pelosi, Reid and the others in leadership won't whip this Congress into shape, you can bet we will.
Take the pledge today to whip Congress into shape at www.codepinkalert.org
"Whip Congress Into Shape" animation was produced by CODEPINK and created by Mark Farinas and Bad Monkey Studios (www.badmonkeystudios.com)
Author: Medea Benjamin
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It's amazing, but Rove is
It's amazing, but Rove is finally right about something. The Dems have been eager to demonize their base, going back decades. The GOP has never done that, that I know of.
__________________________We see it today. Even socalled progressive Dems would rather hunt down "extremists" in the party, than take on the warmongers, faux Dems and Blue Dogs who sell the party out to the GOP again and again and make close elections that we just barely lose or just barely win a self-fulfilling prophecy, in a country where the vast majority agrees with Dem positions.
Great point eppie!
Great point eppie!
That's the way it is here in
That's the way it is here in Montana. We spend more time fighting the DLC business moderates in our party than the Republicans. The more liberal you are the more you get grief. They even went so far as to infiltrate progressive county committees and fill them instead with yes men.
For me the way out of this mire is to reclaim the Democratic party from the Eisenhower Republicans who have taken it over. And for my money, that means electing John Edwards who will turn Washington upside down. He was here in Montana last night and drew almost 1000 people with no publicity. His speech was electrifying filled with passion and urgency for us "to get off our couches" and do something.
Power to the people. See you in Washington
Edwards, Kucinich, Gore -
Edwards, Kucinich, Gore - those are the candidates I take seriously. Edwards seems incredibly comfortable and eloquent when dealing with audiences one on one, but extremely uncomfortable during debates.
The pro-business Dems (as if other Dems are antibusiness, but it's how they see things, or seems to be) seem to have a stranglehold on the party even locally and seem to fear people power.
__________________________Edwards is more comfortable
Edwards is more comfortable talking to his peers, a jury of his peers. He enjoys give and take and a chance to make a passionate plea. I understand that. Those forums on the other hand are not real debates between two people. Just a lot of gotcha questions with too little time to answer with thought.
Bascially, CEO types like businessman Brian Schweitzer like to run things like a CEO. They like unitary power. They want to call all the shots. It might be more efficient, but it's not democracy and it flirts with fascism. The Nazis were very efficient. We had our fling with a CEO president and vice president and it was a disaster. Time to return to the rule of law and by people who know what that means and also that it should apply equally to every class of citizen.
The abandonment of the rule
The abandonment of the rule of law is the fault of the American people just like it was the fault of the German people during the Nazi rule. The American people have either sat by indifferently or worse completely co-opted the "unitary executive". There should be a firestorm demanding the impeachment of these criminals. Instead there is idle passivity. Even the most progressive democrats can't come together on impeachment. Impeachment is the only defense to the rule of law currently available.
__________________________Work and struggle and never accept an evil that you can change -- Andre Gide
On one hand, it's
On one hand, it's understandable that the Germans, and we, were and are, seduced and paralysed by propaganda.
On the other hand, propaganda couldn't work
__________________________if we didn't let it.
Join us at the Pink House in
Join us at the Pink House in Washington! www.codepinkalert.org/pledge