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Departments War in Iraq Why I voted "no" by Sen. Barbara Boxer May 27, 2007 Senator Boxer's Floor Speech In March and in April I voted for emergency spending legislation that would have fully funded our troops in Iraq, but also changed their mission to a sound one. That mission would have taken our troops out of the middle of a civil war, and put them into a support role, training Iraqi soldiers and police, fighting al Qaeda, and protecting our troops. The President will not agree to that. As a matter of fact, the President won't agree to any change in strategy in Iraq, and that is more than a shame for the American people; it is a tragedy. It doesn't seem to matter how many Americans die in Iraq, how many funerals we have here at home, or what the American people think. The President won't budge. This new bill on Iraq keeps the status quo. With a few frills around the outside, a few reports, a few words about benchmarks. While our troops die. I understand why this particular legislation is before us today. It's because this President wants to continue his one man show in Iraq. The President doesn't respect this Congress or the American people when it comes to Iraq. He wants to brush us all off like some annoying spot on his jacket. We have lost 3,427 American soldiers in Iraq. Of those, 731 (21%) have been from California or based in California. There are 25,549 American soldiers wounded. And today, after several days of worrying and praying, we received the tragic news of the death of Private Joseph J. Anzack JR., 20 years old, of Torrance, California, who was abducted during a deadly ambush south of Baghdad almost two weeks ago. One member of his platoon, Spc. Daniel Seitz, summed it up this way to the Associated Press: "It just angers me that it's just another friend I've got to lose and deal with, because I've already lost 13 friends since I've been here, and I don't know if I can take any more of this." And he shouldn't have to. But with this bill, he will. The first half of this year has already been deadlier than any six-month period since the war began more than four years ago. In this month alone, 83 U.S. Service members have already been killed in Iraq. Let me be clear, there are many things in this bill that I strongly support--many provisions that I actually fought for, for our troops, for our veterans, for our farmers, and for the victims of Hurricane Katrina--but I must take a stand against this Iraq war, and therefore I will vote no on this emergency spending bill. Email this article to a friend |
Don't forget to check out articles from 2007 and 2008
"Pentagon cover up: 15,000 or more US deaths in Iraq war?"
December 17, 2007
Mike Whitney
"Iraq's million"
December 6, 2007
Robert C. Koehler
"Talking with two who walk the walk"
November 29, 2007
David Swanson
"Baghdad in middle America"
November 15, 2007
Robert C. Koehler
"Understanding the next war money vote"
November 10, 2007
David Swanson
"Jonesborough justice"
October 31, 2007
David Swanson
"Ann Wright’s conscience: former colonel and diplomat against Iraq war"
October 29, 2007
Seth Sandronsky
"Open letter to the government from an AWOL soldier"
October 21, 2007
James Circello, Iraq Veterans Against The War
"Constitution, flag, and leaving Iraq"
October 7, 2007
David Swanson
"Whistleblowers on tape"
September 30, 2007
David Swanson
"Observing our government through Blackwater"
September 26, 2007
David Swanson
""Funding the war is killing the troops": interrupting the empire 30 seconds at a time"
September 26, 2007
Mike Ferner
"We have nothing but fear itself"
September 24, 2007
David Swanson
"Sanity in tiny nibbles"
September 21, 2007
Robert C. Koehler
"Can we talk? Day one of IVAW's "Truth in Recruiting" campaign"
September 20, 2007
Mike Ferner
"New day in the anti-war movement?"
September 19, 2007
Mike Ferner
"Bush’s fake sheik whacked: the Surge and the Al Qaeda bunny"
September 18, 2007
Greg Palast
"Iraq: the people's report"
September 11, 2007
Sue Udry
"Questions for General Petraeus"
September 10, 2007
David Swanson
"My son, back from Iraq, lives on tower on National Mall"
September 1, 2007
Mary Hanna
"Creative destruction"
August 16, 2007
Robert C. Koehler
"300 towns, cities, states oppose Iraq occupation"
August 1, 2007
David Swanson
"Reparations"
July 30, 2007
David Swanson
"Democrats as Leviathan: another step toward war with Iran"
July 23, 2007
Joshua Frank
"We will sit in for impeachment"
July 5, 2007
David Swanson
"Gorilla suit"
July 3, 2007
Robert C. Koehler
"Peace movement comes to US Social Forum"
June 29, 2007
David Swanson
"The hearts of all sane men"
June 21, 2007
Robert C. Koehler
"Belief and doubt"
June 15, 2007
Robert C. Koehler
"Sen. Clinton wants troops in Iraq for at least 10 years"
June 13, 2007
David Swanson
"This is not a story about Cindy Sheehan"
June 5, 2007
Sunsara Taylor
"The holy occupation of Iraq"
May 29, 2007
David Swanson
"Why I voted "no""
May 27, 2007
Sen. Barbara Boxer
"For five years we've called it blood for oil"
May 16, 2007
David Swanson
"Collateral genocide"
May 12, 2007
Mike Ferner
"Please don’t throw me in that veto patch"
May 7, 2007
Mike Ferner
"Anti-U.S. uproar sweeps Italy"
May 5, 2007
David Swanson
"Knee-deep blood in the land of make-believe"
April 26, 2007
Carla Binion
"Tax day protests and refusing to pay for war"
April 16, 2007
Ruth Benn
"You can't hurt a troop by defunding a war"
April 12, 2007
David Swanson
"Iraq veterans speak in Columbus, OH 3-17-07"
April 11, 2007
Veterans
"Iraq @ 4: It's Not About the Troops - Either Way "
March 26, 2007
David Caploe
"Progressives stand strong against funding war"
March 23, 2007
David Swanson
"No mo money for war"
March 16, 2007
David Swanson
"Sacrificing our children on the altar of corporate greed"
March 15, 2007
David E. Washburn
"Only nonviolence will end the war"
March 14, 2007
David Swanson
"The war money can be stopped"
March 10, 2007
David Swanson
"How will you end this war?"
March 10, 2007
Tina Richards
"Congressman Obey says "Idiot Liberals" need to support war money"
March 9, 2007
David Swanson
"Former Pentagon staff speaks out on crimes of Doug Feith, Dick Cheney, and planning of Iran War"
March 6, 2007
David Swanson
"I'm more pro-troop than you are"
March 3, 2007
David Swanson
"Only nonviolence will end the war"
February 28, 2007
David Swanson
"Cindy Sheehan, George Will, and loving your enemies"
February 26, 2007
David Swanson
"No, seriously, why did we invade Iraq?"
February 22, 2007
David E. Washburn
"Lord knows we've suffered enough already: keep them out of Ohio!"
February 18, 2007
Mike Ferner
"Murtha only intends to undo the escalation"
February 17, 2007
David Swanson
"Shut up and stop the war"
February 14, 2007
David Swanson
"100 Senators quietly vote: majority oppose escalation"
February 10, 2007
David Swanson
"Dems change the gas and claim it's a new car"
February 9, 2007
David Swanson
"A world that works for everybody"
February 7, 2007
Robert C. Koehler
"D.C. demonstration"
January 30, 2007
John Conyers, Jr.
"How we can end the occupation of Iraq"
January 23, 2007
David Swanson
"Dear Mr. President: Send Even MORE Troops (and you go, too!) ...from Michael Moore"
January 22, 2007
Michael Moore
"The Kucinich Plan for Iraq"
January 17, 2007
Dennis J. Kucinich
"An Iraq jobs program?"
January 16, 2007
Seth Sandronsky
"Waist deep in the big muddy"
January 12, 2007
Greg Palast
"Out of Iraq and back to the American city"
January 11, 2007
Dennis J. Kucinich
"If not now, when?"
January 10, 2007
Mike Ferner
"Mr. President, surge this"
January 10, 2007
David Swanson
"3,000 lights delivered to Rep. Marcy Kaptur"
January 5, 2007
Northwest Ohio Peace Coalition
"3,000 lights for 3,000 killed in Iraq"
January 1, 2007
Peggy Daly-Masternak
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