Jim Webb Steps Up Against Excessive Troop Deployments
By Nicole Belle Sunday Jul 08, 2007 9:20pmLet's see how many Republicans saying they support the troops will actually stand behind this bill.Bob Geiger:
The Defense Department authorization bill (H.R. 1585) will occupy the Senate over the next couple of weeks and, with the exception of the measures that would end American involvement in the Iraq quagmire, no amendment will be more important than the legislation (.pdf) by Senator Jim Webb (D-VA) on which debate will begin today. Webb will go to the Senate floor today and introduce a bill requiring that active-duty troops have at least the same amount of time at home as the length of their previous tour of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan.
It is intended to halt the Bush administration's overextending of U.S. troops, the breaking of the country's armed forces and the extraordinary hardships being inflicted on military families.
"Now in the fifth year of ground operations in Iraq, this deck of cards has come crashing down, and it's landing heavily on the backs of soldiers and Marines who have been deployed again and again while the rest of the country sits back and debates Iraq as an intellectual or emotional exercise," Webb said on Monday. "We've reached the point where we can no longer allow the ever-changing nature of this Administration's operational policies to drive the way our troops are being deployed. In fact, the reverse is true. The availability of our troops should be the main determinant of how ground operations should be conducted."
Bob has more from the press conference today with Webb and Harry Reid:
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I'm fine with Webb, but I worry about Reid.
Recruitment quotas have been missed 2 months in a row now.
How is it possible that 59 million voters that thought it was a great idea to put war criminals back in the white house can't come up with 1400 soldiers to stand by their convictions?
Mr GOP LITE? REID? ughhhh.....
TIKI AL @ 2:
Because, for the most part, those that voted for the war criminals never take responsibility, they just shove it onto someone else's back.
Jim Webb, now there's a real man, unlike those two chicken hawks 'running' this country. I'm proud to have him represent Virginia in the Senate, and I'm glad to have voted for him. Speak the truth, sir, always.
OT - Louisiana Senator's name appears on DC Mddam's list
Madam's
Two disappointments.
Reid I can understand.
Webb ran all piss and vinegar to end the war. Gave quite a few populist speeches on income inequality. That's the last we heard of him. I really wonder why.
Sigh...
You would think with the GOP being the party of "Family Values" that they would pay attention to how these long tours of duty are affecting the American family. I don't have numbers for the last 3 years, but I suspect the numbers are higher considering Bush has remained "steadfast" in his policies.
The divorce rate among Army officers has increased significantly according to data reported by the American Forces Press Service.
Army officers Divorce rate for past 3 years:
2004 - 3325
2003 - 1866
2002 - 1060
Then they reported the Overall Army divorce rate for past 2 years as:
2004 - 10,477
2003 - 7,453
2002 - just over 7,000
2001 - about 5,600
Full article: http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=16446
Just a reminder that in 2000 and 2004, the voters did not put those two chickenhawks in office. Please don't forget: the elections were rigged by the court and by the state of Ohio.
I heard today that a soldier is suing the military. Now why would he do that?
Because he signed up at the height of the 9/11 patriotic movement, and the chickenhawks have sent him on FIVE TOURS ever since.
If given the opportunity, I could not spit hard enough in the faces of Bush, Cheney, and Rove.
oops...at the time the article was written
ie "Then they reported the Overall Army divorce rate for past 2 years as"
I use firefox that I recently updated.
Now I cannot hit back and return to the site I accessed it from.
What gives? Anyone else have this problem?
Webb is someone to keep an eye on and pay attention to. He speaks with impeccable authority on the matter. this is also a brilliant move 'cause it really puts the Cheneys in a bind. They know that if this provision were enacted it would end the current policy and would force a phased withdrawal. But it's devised as a measure that is nearly impossible for the Cheneys to be publicly against. Wow, nice move by Webb.
This is definitely a bill to put pressure on your Rep's to back. The sickening exploitation of the honor and courage of the people who serve, taking so much from such a small fraction of the country while NOTHING is asked of the rest of us (and in fact it's just given away to the super rich) is, as it has been put, criminal. It's also disgusting, depraved, despicable, deplorable, and whatever other "d" ya wanna throw in.
For God's sake, enough already!!
moonsha @ 9:
This is a manifestly unconstitutional usurpation of the Executive's Article II powers by the legislative. Even if enacted, the President would be duty bound to nullify it.
Our president knows nothing about "duty."
Shesh. More talk, more stalling and more troops than before we voted this Dem majority into office.
Wash. Post's Murray, and Weisman equate pro war with pro military so they'll probably bash Webb
"This is a manifestly unconstitutional usurpation of the Executive’s Article II powers by the legislative. Even if enacted, the President would be duty bound to nullify it."
Congress could repeal the Authorization to Use Force, or pass a bill that said its objectives were meet and it is no longer valid. The Executive can't declare war, so there would no war for it to "command". I suppose that would have to happen first for this bill to not have any Constitutional issues, but as I said above, that's almost meaningless. Let just see the Cheneys try to put down this bill, and moreover the spirit that drives it. Webb's doing a good job of painting them into a corner.
Webb is doing this alone. Reid just wants to put his face and name on it to claim credit.
what will Reid do when holeyjo LIEberman berates him on the sunday talkies? nothing!
"Just a reminder that in 2000 and 2004, the voters did not put those two chickenhawks in office. Please don’t forget: the elections were rigged by the court and by the state of Ohio."
...How's this, Scarecrow:
Supposedly 59 million voters somehow put war criminals back in office so why can't they come up with 1400 soldiers to meet the recruiting quota this month?
...Better?
Lieberman is a penis.
breakspear @ 5:
While Webb hasn't been perfect(but no one is), he's done pretty well so far.
If this bill passes it will signal the end of the Iraq war since we don't have enough soldiers to actively continual the war. Very smart idea!
webb voted to extend the war. he promised he would help to end it didn't he? I call BS
rahm_emanuel_is_a_tool @ 8:
Because they treated Webb like a JUNIOR senator and by protocol, Webb can't act without support of a Senior Senator like Reid. that's why they haven't gotten rid of LIeberman, since he's been around a while, holey joe must know where some of the bodies are buried.
my bet is that Webb was going to do this on his own because he was furious when that blank check was last given to the shrub. h-h-h-harry is just trying to ' be the leader' :lol:
OK, it just dawned on me why the recruitment quota fell 1400 short.
Tampered with electronic voting machines can't send their shadow glitch offspring to the recruiting office.
I've watched the freshman Senator from Virginia with great interest since his defeat of Senator Macaca in the last elections. He's a man of integrity in a sea of crooks and liars and I for one will be urging my Senators to support this bill.
Tim Ed Anshabby @ 13:
I'm tired of reading that nothing is being asked of the rest of us!
NOLa has no national guard to help rebuild. they had no equipment after the three hurricanes hit. kansasa lost a town and their equipment is in Iraq. your and my national debt has had five trillion dollars added. you can't fly without being treated like a terror suspect, you are under illegal surveillance, you can be stopped for any suspicion (and you don't have to be black for that to happen now).... [add you favorite formerly enforced constitutional amendment here], you are paying more for gas, food, utilities,
Just take a look around you. You ARE paying for it. We all are
...and on your way out the door,
make sure you clean up your fuckin' mess.
More Soldier mistreatment from Sprint
OUTRAGE: Sprint said to cancel nearly 200 military accounts for “excessive roaming”
Posted by Russell Shaw @ 8:39 pm Categories: SprintNextel Tags: Phone, Sprint Communications, Russell Shaw
Things are really heating up on the SprintUser.com Forum.
According to Shafted_Sprint, Sprint has been cancelling accounts due to “excessive roaming.”
Some 200 of these cancellations are military accounts.
Uh, last time I checked, “roaming” was in the job description of a soldier.
You don’t have to be a fan of the Iraq War to support these men and women who are putting their life on the line for us.
For Sprint, though, it would appear that “life on the line” is an inferior meme to “bottom line.”
Are you ready to get really, really pissed off?
Here’s what Shafted_Sprint writes:
This is good thing to do but I want know about the matter is whether it concerns the troops as individual soldiers or whether it is going to be a unit status. Soldiers move around to different units all the time and while the unit might meet the time frame while many of the individual soldiers may be getting the short end of the deal. the current situation reflects this dilema.
Pisses me off to hear folks rail on the Dems about not ending the war fast enough for their liking. Bush vetoes whatever dont serve his money masters and the GOP minority are committed to throwing a wrench into the works just to keep proving they are the complete assholes we know they already are. The Dems are gonna have to fight for every inch on this.
It seems like painting them into a corner is one of the few ways they can fight back. I think they should start impeachment proceedings just to get the ball rolling. Keep the NeoFucks scrambling and running for cover. Im sure all the Reps got an earfull from the constituents over various issues during the week off. Its time to put the hammer down on this corrupt ,sick,warmongering,corporate sucking administration and restore the US to some semblance of sanity. I think Bushes first big lie was the " I am a uniter,not a divider " spew. The "Decider" is indeed the biggest "divider" the US has ever seen. And to think they do it on purpose too with all the "wedge" issues the GOP are so fond of.Sad that some cant tell when they are being used as suckers.
Because the majority of the Republican leadership have never served in the military, they do not understand the feelings of the people who have or the people currently serving. What is worse is that they don't understand how this powerful toy works and how it should be used. History has many examples of how leaders have made bad military decisions but the cowards in the Republican leadership cannot be judged in the same way. What matters most is the intent of using military force. Bad decisions are not always the product of bad intentions. However, the intentions of our leadership are rooted in self-serving, evil purposes. Naturally, this war in Iraq has become more and more obvious that it is a bad decision militarily, economically and most importantly, morally. So it should not be surprising that the outcome for the U.S. is bad and will continue to get worse the longer we continue to lie about why we are there.
rahm_emanuel_is_a_tool @ 8:
Once in Congress, Webb said and did nothing against the occupation --- and he actually voted IN SUPPORT OF BUSH IRAQ SPENDING BILL. Now that his son is safely home and out of harm's way (from chensybushsluts), Webb can stand up and be heard again.
Obviously he got the bushslut message, the "how's your boy?" message -- remember that? In his place I would have caved too...the better to fight another day. Let's hope he fights hard and well for the troops now.
Well my Freshman Senator is Democrat Jon Tester and at the County Central Dinner he will be attending come July 21st i and other Progressive Democrats of America and Billings Peace Seekers will be holding up signs " a soldier will loose a limb while your eating" type signs because our freshman senator had to vote yes on the Surge/Funding like our other Democrat Senator Max 'market fundamentalist' Baucus. We are angry in Montana! Oh the fact that Senator Tester signed onto Webb's bill doesn't absolve his breach of trust. That 'support the troops' kaka and funding a war to end it are the typical drivel we hear from Dem politicians. And we're not buying.
i do wish Senator Webb success with his bill - and to think it was locked up in committee ??? Don't look for anything special from Testor or Baucus on this most pertinent issue.
Viet Nam drafted WIA Veteran
Co-State Coordinator PDA Montana
A28 host, Billings, MT
Why not just impeach the whole lot of them and fix this today!!!!!
I would almost say "why bother" with this bill, because if it actually passed--which it won't (thanks a lot, Repubs!) Bush would just add one of his infamous signing statements to nullify the whole damn thing. Be that as it may, I guess there's no harm in continuing to show the voting public how obstructionist Republicans want our soldiers and innocent Iraqis to continue to be killed in a 'war' we were lied into.
By the way, activists are planning to fly a pro-impeach banner at today's All-Star game in SF. It has to be done before the game starts, though, due to the new rules put in place after 9-11. Would sure like to see the fan reaction when that banner is being towed by the plane around the stadium. http://rawstory.com/news/2007/Group_raising_money_for_proimpeachment_ban...
In all honesty, I have to admit that I'm becoming more and more repulsed by all politicians as this war continues. It is clear that if we all dedicate our lives to ending the war, we will win the fight. However, it is even easier for these politicians to end the war if they were to dedicate themselves as we do. They are too worried about their own skins, and the weakest of them attempt to lead us when it is clear that others would stand much stronger.
Harry Reid should publically step down from his weak holding as Majority Leader. Anyone watching him can see that he is inarticulate, uninspiring, cautious, and most frustrating of all, just plain WEAK. Everytime I see this man speak he's on the defensive. Rather than demanding the White House submits to the rule of law, instead, he's speakin gto defend the democrats against US, or making excuses as to why such and such isn't a setback. It's criminal. In my mind he is even more guilty than George Bush, for whatever drives Bush and Cheney, they at least have some motivation that lies in part in ignorance; yet here we have a man who knows better and all he can do is plead with US about why we should accept such and such as progress, when it's clearly not.
I don't want to see him anymore. If nothing else, if you must show us video of him so that we can see leadership, such as Webb's, please entitle the video post matter with something like a wanring about "a lame duck traitor that's only worried about his own skin Reid."
Thanks for listening. but I'm just so fed up with this.
- Eric Shook
It so amusing to see people believe that Dems who were not smart enough to NOT support this war from the start and voted for it for the simple politics of it all are worthy of you're support. They would NOT be talking like this if the war went well. When you vote in the primary try looking at a candidate who did not support the war from the start, then you know they are at least smart enough and careful enough to be president (Kucinich, Paul, Gravel and Barack but he would not change much other than the war). I knew this war was a scam from the beginning and I believe people are fools if you do not think that both parties are not corrupt or had a hand in this.
breakspear Says: Jim Webb, now there’s a real man, unlike those two chicken hawks ‘running’ this country. I’m proud to have him represent Virginia in the Senate, and I’m glad to have voted for him.
rahm_emanuel_is_a_tool Says: Webb ran all piss and vinegar to end the war. Gave quite a few populist speeches on income inequality. That’s the last we heard of him. I really wonder why.
Joe Klein’s conscience Says: While Webb hasn’t been perfect(but no one is), he’s done pretty well so far.
oldtree @ 25: webb voted to extend the war. he promised he would help to end it didn't he? I call BS.
.
.
One of these posters knows the truth about Webb and his voting with the republicans for the toothless, "weak tea" Iraq funding bill. Can you guess which one?
Webb is doing fine in red state Virginia, you should support the troop withdrawl bill instead of attacking it for not being anti-war enough. Remember = the oil companies choose bush to be the tool for their attempt to seize Iraq's oil fields, not the democrats.
Republican 'logic' vs Reality...
Pulling the troops out:
Republicans - Why do you hate the troops, they need to complete their mission
Reality - You're the idiots that want to support them staying their indefinitely, which mission would that be, which 'reason' out of the thousands you've stated justify your stupidity?
Fact....Iraq is in Civil War overdrive
Republicans keeping them there....are condemning them to death
Its just that simple...
Seele^ Says: Remember = the oil companies choose bush to be the tool for their attempt to seize Iraq’s oil fields, not the democrats.
But the Dems fell all over themselves to give Bush what he wanted. What would be the difference if the Dems had chosen Bush?? Cave-in either way. Meanwhile, good kids are continuing to die. This isn't a "policy wonk" detached discourse on the philosophies of one abstract concept over another; REAL PEOPLE are f@cking DYING while Webb and the other 'representatives' beat-off on CNN and thump their chests and shuffle papers with time-wasting 'proposals.' Think the troops are sitting in Iraq thinking, "Gee, our noble Senators are going to save us with bills?" More like, "Wish they'd get us some goddam armor instead!" Frankly, congress apologists suck!
BE SURE TO SEE THE PART ACTIVATING THE DRAFT.
Requiring troops to come home, requires reactivating the Selective Service Draft for all 18 year old men AND women.
Support the Draft, Vote YES to this amendment.
Screw the Democrats! They caved absolutely caved in 100% weenie style on the last funding bill. We are no longer represented in the government at all. It’s time to throw off the shackles again people.
So a yellow bellied Liebermann's (he has never served in the military either have his children) legislation passes (bringing us closer to a pre-emptive strike on Iran). And the Webb Amendment (who served in the Navy as well as his father and grandfather) fails.
The "cakewalk in Iraq" zealots are winning! The Israeli lobby rules!
Let's connect the dots....Delay the Aipac Rosen espionage trial for the 7th time, get rid of Deputy Attorney General Paul McNulty ( who was (I believe) one of the investigators and prosecutor for that trial) Successful undermining of that trial by Senator Schumer by getting rid of McNulty(who is liberal on many issues but a radical hawk on Israel) and then a big push by Lieberamann, Aipac and the other "cakewalk in Iraq" zealots pushing for the strike on Iran. based on unsubstantiated claims. Deja Vu folks!
The question is will the Israeli Lobby be successful at destroying the Aipac Rosen espionage trial this fall will it be dismissed or delayed again?
Jim Webb Steps Up Against Excessive Troop Deployments
[...]Let?s see how many Republicans saying they support the troops will actually stand behind this bill.[...]
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