Connecticut DUers - Please contact Rep. Joe Courtney

[NewJeffCT]

I am posting this here because the CT forum is pretty dead.

But, in listening to Colin McEnroe on the radio last night on WTIC, they had a person on about protesting the war. Either she or McEnroe said that NOBODY had written to Joe Courtney about stopping the escalation in Iraq - they had only gotten letters, calls and emails in support of escalation.

(I was going to call to say I had written to Courtney on stopping the escalation a month earlier... but, the show was almost over at the time and I was driving)

Here is the contact info for email:
http://courtney.house.gov/IMA/issue_subscribe.htm

[bigscott]

1. Done

thanks for posting

[NewJeffCT]

2. and thanks for writing

I hope it makes a difference.

[NewJeffCT]

8. lunchtime kick

hope you folks notice it.

[NewJeffCT]

9. afternoon kick

thanks

[NewJeffCT]

10. Saturday kick

hoping to get one or two more people to write...

[Larkspur]

3. Done

[Larkspur]

4. Here's what I sent Courtney today

Dear Rep. Courtney,

Please do everything in your power to oppose President Bush's plans to escalate the war in Iraq. It will only get more Americans killed and not resolve the ongoing sectarian conflict.

I also ask you to do everything in your power to prevent the Bush Administration from launching a pre-emptive air and/or naval assault on Iran. That would bring disaster to everyone.

Let me remind you what James Madison, our 4th President, said about war...

"...war is "the true nurse of executive aggrandizement...

Of all the enemies of true liberty, war is, perhaps, the most to be dreaded, because it comprises and develops the germ of every other. War is the parent of armies; from these proceed debts and taxes; and armies, and debts, and taxes are the known instruments for bringing the many under the domination of the few. In war, too, the discretionary power of the Executive is extended; its influence in dealing out offices, honors and emoluments is multiplied; and all the means of seducing the minds, are added to those of subduing the force, of the people. The same malignant aspect in republicanism may be traced in the inequality of fortunes, and the opportunities of fraud, growing out of a state of war, and in the degeneracy of manner and of morals, engendered in both. No nation can preserve its freedom in the midst of continual warfare."


Continual warfare is the goal of the Neo-conservatives who infest the Bush Administration. The Bush Administration is insane. They are drunk with power and instead of taking the November 2006 elections as a rejection of their warmongering policies, they are planning on using the limited amount of time left to make things worse for everyone but those profiting on this war.

It’s your Constitutional duty, Mr. Courtney, to hold the Bush Administration in check and accountable for their actions.

Remember the words of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. from his speech title “Beyond Vietnam”,
“…wars are poor chisels for carving out peaceful tomorrows” and “The greatest purveyor of violence in the world today is my own government.”

Unfortunately, the last sentence above is still true today. Rev. King Jr. also said in that same speech, "A nation that continues year after year to spend more money on military defense than on programs of social uplift is approaching spiritual death.”

The Bush Administration has pushed the United States to the brink of becoming a totalitarian state and they want to send us over the edge. They’ve pushed to increase military spending by sacrificing fiscal responsibility and social programs for the poor. This militaristic direction will create economic instability here and lead this nation to embrace fascism. Remember, the synonym for fascism is corporatism. Here’s a link -- http://www.rense.com/general37/fascism.htm -- to Dr. Lawrence Britt’s 14 characteristic of fascism. These characteristics were derived from common traits shared by the regimes of Hitler (Germany), Mussolini (Italy), Franco (Spain), Suharto (Indonesia) and several Latin American regimes. Read them and see how close our Republic is to falling into the darkness of fascism. I also suggest you read Chris Hedges new book, “American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War On America” http://www.amazon.com/American-Fascists-Christian-Right-America/dp/0743284437/sr=8-1/qid=1171036811/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-6779265-8483936?ie=UTF8&s=books and Watergate whistle-blower John Dean’s interviews about the Bush Admin’s imperial presidency. John Dean has publicly warned that we are in a proto-fascist state –“John Dean on the Daily Show”, July 11, 2006 http://lincmad.blogspot.com/2006/07/john-dean-on-daily-show.html .

Please Mr. Courtney, do everything in your power to oppose President Bush’s insane plans to send more troops into Iraq and to pre-emptively strike Iran. These are the times that call for Profiles in Courage. We have a President gone berserk. We worked to get Democrats the majority so that you could put brakes on the Bush Administration. Use that majority to its fullest potential.


Footnotes:
Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. speeches http://www.stanford.edu/group/King/publications/speeches/contents.htm

14 Defining Charasteristics of Fascism by Dr. Lawrence Britt, first published in Free Inquiry, Spring 2003 edition http://www.rense.com/general37/fascism.htm

[NewJeffCT]

5. Fantastic

great job.

[Larkspur]

6. Thanks.

[NewJeffCT]

7. More support for Congress stopping the war

This is from a fantastic email put out by the Center for American Progress on January 9, 2007:

>>>>
Can Congress do anything about it? Some have claimed that anything other symbolic action is unconstitutional. That's false. A wide range of legal experts agree there are a range of legal options available to Congress to stop, or place conditions on, any escalation in the war in Iraq. For example, John Yoo, a former Bush administration lawyer and one of the staunchest defenders of executive power, noted that "the power of Congress over the budget was absolute, to such an extent that lawmakers could end the war altogether if they chose." On the other side of the political spectrum, Georgetown University Law Professor Marty Lederman agrees. A new report from the Center for American Progress illustrates that Congress has acted repeatedly over the last 35 years to ensure the conduct of military action would "strengthen American national security and reflect the concerns and will of the American people." Congress has passed bills, enacted into law, that capped the size of military deployments, prohibited funding for existing or prospective deployment, and placed limits and conditions on the timing and nature of deployments.

CAPPING TROOP LEVELS: Congress has historically exercised authority to cap U.S. troop levels in foreign conflicts. In 1974, the Foreign Assistance Act "established a personnel ceiling of 4000 Americans in Vietnam within 6 months of enactment and 3000 Americans within one year." In 1983, the Lebanon Emergency Assistance Act "required the president to return to seek statutory authorization if he sought to expand the size of the U.S. contingent of the Multinational Force in Lebanon." In 1984, the Defense Authorization Act "capped the end strength level of United States forces assigned to permanent duty in European NATO countries at 324,400." All of this legislation was enacted into law.

RESTRICTING FUNDING: Congress has also restricted funding for certain military operations for U.S. troops. In 1970, the Supplemental Foreign Assistance Law, "prohibited the use of any funds for the introduction of U.S. troops to Cambodia or provide military advisors to Cambodian forces." In 1982, the Defense Appropriation Act "prohibited covert military assistance for Nicaragua." In 1994, Congress restricted the use of funds "for United States military participation to continue Operations Restore Hope in or around Rwanda after October 7, 1994."All of these funding restrictions were enacted into law. Read the report for more examples.

CONDITIONING FUNDING: Alternatively, Congress has authorized military action subject to various conditions. In 1991, Congress authorized the use of force against Iraq but conditioned it on the President "certifying first that means other than war would not result in Iraqi compliance with UN Security Council resolutions." In 2001, President Bush sought authority to respond to the 9/11 attacks to "deter and pre-empt any future acts of terrorism or aggression against the United States." Instead, Congress limited the authority to "all necessary and appropriate force against those nations, organizations, or persons he determines planned authorized committed or aided" the 9/11 attacks.

[kohodog]

11. I called his office a couple of weeks ago...

And asked that he denounce the escalation and to consider a resolution that would demand congressional approval before taking any military action against Iran.

I don't know who that person could have been, I hope not a staffer, because there is plenty of anti-escalation sentiment in the 2nd CD.

[NewJeffCT]

12. I don't know

I'm cynical - I think his rep is saying that as a potential cop-out if he takes the Lieberman position.

[kohodog]

13. No way Joe Courtney will side with Lieberman

He has been against this war, and if I'm not mistaken he supported Ned.

[jonnyblitz]

14. done. I am in his district.

:hi:

[NewJeffCT]

15. Thanks

I'm in the district until the end of this month... then, moving to Chris Murphy's district.

[BlooInBloo]

16. Does CT have "How Not To Vote Like A Jackass" classes yet?

They'd be very short classes: "Vote for the Democrat" would suffice. Maybe have a Katrina survivor come in as a guest speaker.

[NewJeffCT]

17. I'm just reporting it 3rd-hand

The woman on WTIC had heard it from a representative in Courtney's camp.