SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
A State Democratic Party Tells Congress: Reject More War Spending
Working with Progressive
Democrats of America, anti-war delegates to the state convention of
the Wisconsin Democratic Party passed a floor resolution urging Congress
to block Obama's "emergency" proposal to spend an addition $33 billion
to maintain the pay for the U.S. military presence in Iraq and
Afghanistan.
Jun 15, 2010
Working with Progressive
Democrats of America, anti-war delegates to the state convention of
the Wisconsin Democratic Party passed a floor resolution urging Congress
to block Obama's "emergency" proposal to spend an addition $33 billion
to maintain the pay for the U.S. military presence in Iraq and
Afghanistan.
So it is that, in one a state where grassroots Democrats in a state
that provided earlier and enthusiastic support for Barack Obama's
presidential run, members of the president's own party are saying "no"
to Obama's plan to surge more troops and tax dollars into Afghanistan.
"This is a major shift in thinking on the part of a lot of the Dem
party base, who only a year ago were refusing to oppose the war in
Afghanistan, arguing that we needed to support President Obama and his
plans for escalation of the war," says Steve Carlson, a veteran peace
activist and PDA organizer.
PDA and other groups are working this year within state Democratic
parties around the country to generate resolutions and activism against
expanding the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Carlson and other activist are now contacting Democrats in Wisconsin's
congressional delegation -- including some, such as Senator Russ
Feingold and House members Tammy Baldwin, Gwen Moore and Steve Kagen,
and Dave Obey, who have anti-war records or have made anti-war
statements, and others, such as Senator Herb Kohl and Congressman
Ron Kind, who have been war backers -- to "tell them the news" that
their state party opposes steering more money toward the wars in
Afghanistan and Iraq.
In addition to opposing the supplemental, the Wisconsin party
resolution urged members of the state's congressional delegation to
co-sponsor Florida Congressman Alan Grayson's "The
War Is Making You Poor Act," which would have the Pentagon
prosecute the wars with the $549 billion dollar base budget requested by
President Obama and use the money the "emergency spending" the
administration is seeking to cut taxes for working Americans.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
John Nichols
John Nichols is Washington correspondent for The Nation and associate editor of The Capital Times in Madison, Wisconsin. His books co-authored with Robert W. McChesney are: "Dollarocracy: How the Money and Media Election Complex is Destroying America" (2014), "The Death and Life of American Journalism: The Media Revolution that Will Begin the World Again" (2011), and "Tragedy & Farce: How the American Media Sell Wars, Spin Elections, and Destroy Democracy" (2006). Nichols' other books include: "The "S" Word: A Short History of an American Tradition...Socialism" (2015), "Dick: The Man Who is President (2004) and "The Genius of Impeachment: The Founders' Cure for Royalism" (2006).
Working with Progressive
Democrats of America, anti-war delegates to the state convention of
the Wisconsin Democratic Party passed a floor resolution urging Congress
to block Obama's "emergency" proposal to spend an addition $33 billion
to maintain the pay for the U.S. military presence in Iraq and
Afghanistan.
So it is that, in one a state where grassroots Democrats in a state
that provided earlier and enthusiastic support for Barack Obama's
presidential run, members of the president's own party are saying "no"
to Obama's plan to surge more troops and tax dollars into Afghanistan.
"This is a major shift in thinking on the part of a lot of the Dem
party base, who only a year ago were refusing to oppose the war in
Afghanistan, arguing that we needed to support President Obama and his
plans for escalation of the war," says Steve Carlson, a veteran peace
activist and PDA organizer.
PDA and other groups are working this year within state Democratic
parties around the country to generate resolutions and activism against
expanding the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Carlson and other activist are now contacting Democrats in Wisconsin's
congressional delegation -- including some, such as Senator Russ
Feingold and House members Tammy Baldwin, Gwen Moore and Steve Kagen,
and Dave Obey, who have anti-war records or have made anti-war
statements, and others, such as Senator Herb Kohl and Congressman
Ron Kind, who have been war backers -- to "tell them the news" that
their state party opposes steering more money toward the wars in
Afghanistan and Iraq.
In addition to opposing the supplemental, the Wisconsin party
resolution urged members of the state's congressional delegation to
co-sponsor Florida Congressman Alan Grayson's "The
War Is Making You Poor Act," which would have the Pentagon
prosecute the wars with the $549 billion dollar base budget requested by
President Obama and use the money the "emergency spending" the
administration is seeking to cut taxes for working Americans.
John Nichols
John Nichols is Washington correspondent for The Nation and associate editor of The Capital Times in Madison, Wisconsin. His books co-authored with Robert W. McChesney are: "Dollarocracy: How the Money and Media Election Complex is Destroying America" (2014), "The Death and Life of American Journalism: The Media Revolution that Will Begin the World Again" (2011), and "Tragedy & Farce: How the American Media Sell Wars, Spin Elections, and Destroy Democracy" (2006). Nichols' other books include: "The "S" Word: A Short History of an American Tradition...Socialism" (2015), "Dick: The Man Who is President (2004) and "The Genius of Impeachment: The Founders' Cure for Royalism" (2006).
Working with Progressive
Democrats of America, anti-war delegates to the state convention of
the Wisconsin Democratic Party passed a floor resolution urging Congress
to block Obama's "emergency" proposal to spend an addition $33 billion
to maintain the pay for the U.S. military presence in Iraq and
Afghanistan.
So it is that, in one a state where grassroots Democrats in a state
that provided earlier and enthusiastic support for Barack Obama's
presidential run, members of the president's own party are saying "no"
to Obama's plan to surge more troops and tax dollars into Afghanistan.
"This is a major shift in thinking on the part of a lot of the Dem
party base, who only a year ago were refusing to oppose the war in
Afghanistan, arguing that we needed to support President Obama and his
plans for escalation of the war," says Steve Carlson, a veteran peace
activist and PDA organizer.
PDA and other groups are working this year within state Democratic
parties around the country to generate resolutions and activism against
expanding the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Carlson and other activist are now contacting Democrats in Wisconsin's
congressional delegation -- including some, such as Senator Russ
Feingold and House members Tammy Baldwin, Gwen Moore and Steve Kagen,
and Dave Obey, who have anti-war records or have made anti-war
statements, and others, such as Senator Herb Kohl and Congressman
Ron Kind, who have been war backers -- to "tell them the news" that
their state party opposes steering more money toward the wars in
Afghanistan and Iraq.
In addition to opposing the supplemental, the Wisconsin party
resolution urged members of the state's congressional delegation to
co-sponsor Florida Congressman Alan Grayson's "The
War Is Making You Poor Act," which would have the Pentagon
prosecute the wars with the $549 billion dollar base budget requested by
President Obama and use the money the "emergency spending" the
administration is seeking to cut taxes for working Americans.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.
To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good.
News & Opinion
Trending
Common Dreams, Inc. Founded 1997. Registered 501(c3) Non-Profit
Privacy Policy