Peace Talk — Winter 2005-06

The Quarterly Newsletter of Peace Action Maine
Withdrawal
by Greg Field, PAM Executive Director

In recent months we have seen a dramatic shift in U.S. public opinion regarding the war in Iraq. In every poll, in letters to the editor, in informal conversations—we’ve all witnessed the shift. Growing majorities believe the war was a mistake; they believe we were misled (read: lied to) by the Bush administration.

That’s the good news. Now the bad: Congress is so far behind the curve on Iraq that it has almost completely vacated its responsibilities as the policy-making body most directly answerable to the American people. In part this is because of the foul river of big-time politics. Congress is full of people who drift along in the stagnant waters of corporate campaign support and status-quo politics. But even in Congress there are some hopeful signs of change.

How can we get Congress to break out, assume a real leadership role, and demand an end to this war? Both parties in Congress can point fingers at the other and avoid taking any real action to end the war because we have not successfully convinced enough people that our troops must leave Iraq. The growing majority that believes the war was a mistake is still stuck when it comes to calling for withdrawal, and that lets Congress off the hook. We have to engage everyone in that conversation. We have to sharpen our focus and move all those “stuck” Americans. These folks still need convincing that withdrawal (in months, not years) is our only and best option. What would you say to a friend or co-worker about this? Can you write a letter to the editor on this? This is a tough issue—it doesn’t lend itself to glib answers and sound-bite snippets. Lashing out at Bush and his cronies may be satisfying in the short-term but the people who are stuck agree that Bush led us down the wrong path. We have to tackle the more difficult task.

Here are some suggestions.

  • This war is a deadly stalemate that cannot end until U.S. troops leave. As long as they remain, resistance will continue. We must withdraw.
  • We cannot offer a sure-thing answer about what will happen when the troops leave. There are many smart people who believe that the armed conflict will largely end after our withdrawal, while others believe that the violence will continue. What we can predict is that the political process cannot work in the midst of the U.S. occupation.
  • A strong U.S. commitment to reconstruction and to international and regional talks is vital. As I write this, the representatives of various Iraqi blocs are meeting in Cairo. It is a fragile process and the U.S. can bolster this process by taking the first steps toward withdrawal—move back the most forward-deployed units.
  • Congress must break the policy deadlock. The administration is stuck in denial—Bush has “cut & run” from reality and from his moral obligation to our troops: he has led them into a moral and strategic quagmire. Congress must show the courage and vision it takes to get our troops home.
  • Every day more lives are lost, and every week our Treasury is bilked (now at more than $1.5 B per week) so that Halliburton can prosper while heating assistance funds run dry. To “stay the course” means more senseless death and a deeper fiscal nightmare. We urge everyone who thinks this war was waged on lies to stand up and demand that Congress get some backbone and end the war.

There’s no one best answer to this, but each of us needs to find our own voice and help move a few people who are now “stuck.” Are you ready to try?

 
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