01/27/2004 Entry: ""
Posted by Maynard @ 03:04 PM MST
A Completely Unacceptable Situation, Revisited
Remember my consternation from last week concerning the lack of combat essential equipment in Iraq? Well, I wrote to my Congressional representatives, (Grijalva, Kyl, and McCain) and none of them responded.
Except Grijalva. My reply to him follows. It is interesting, to say the least.
His letter is quoted in full, interspersed with my comments.
Thank you for contacting me regarding reports that our troops serving in Iraq are lacking bare combat necessities. I appreciate hearing from you.
And I appreciate the reply.
Even though I voted against the supplemental, I do believe that we must support our troops who are currently in Iraq. With this in mind, I cosigned a letter to the Armed Services committee requesting a hearing to investigate the numerous news reports of American men and women fighting in Iraq without adequate lifesaving body armor.
Your actions speak louder than your words. If you support the troops you need to give them the monetary aid they need to purchase necessary equipment, since you are in Congress and have control over the purse strings. Voting against supplemental funding does nothing to support your claim that you support the troops, since the additional funds they asked for were desperately needed.
As the article I sent you shows.
I continue to be shocked and confused by the Administration’s mistreatment of our current service members as well as our veterans. It has become painfully obvious that the Administration had no clear plan for reconstruction nor were the personnel and casualty costs calculated into that “plan”. I am very concerned about how Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld is handling the occupation efforts and the incredible strain this misguided, ill-planned occupation is having on our military members deployed in the region. I recently cosigned a letter to the President demanding Mr. Rumsfeld’s resignation due to his botched reconstruction and occupation strategies regarding Iraq.
We are of two minds on this issue. While you apparently believe the Administration is not doing enough to support our troops in Iraq, I believe they are doing all they can with the limited resources the Congress allows them. The fundamental issue is summarized by asking "Is the Congress providing sufficient funds to the Military for the prosecution of the war?" The answer, clearly, is no. Regardless of your personal view on the matter, the Congress authorized the President's actions. To not financially support the troops deployed is two-faced at best, criminal at worst. Demanding Mr. Rumsfeld's resignation is a distractive attempt to ignore the question of funding.
Additionally, I strongly support an active international role in peacekeeping and rebuilding efforts and an expeditious turnover of governing authority to the Iraqi people. Although President Bush has touted his reconstruction plan as following in the footsteps of WWII’s Marshall Plan, it most certainly does not. For this reason, I have cosponsored Rep. Rosa DeLauro’s resolution expressing the true spirit of the Marshall Plan by increasing Iraq reconstruction transparency, by helping the Iraqi people achieve self-governance, and by expanding the role of our allies in supporting the reconstruction of Iraq.
To quote the President directly,
"Some critics have said our duties in Iraq must be internationalized. This particular criticism is hard to explain to our partners in Britain, Australia, Japan, South Korea, the Philippines, Thailand, Italy, Spain, Poland, Denmark, Hungary, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Romania, the Netherlands, Norway, El Salvador, and the 17 other countries that have committed troops to Iraq. As we debate at home, we must never ignore the vital contributions of our international partners, or dismiss their sacrifices."
Your response implies that you are ignoring the contributions of our allies. Given this attitude, it is refreshing to know that you do not serve on the foreign relations committee. Your response gives truth to the line from John Adams in the play 1776: "You see they piddle, twiddle, and resolve, not one damn thing do they solve."
Again, thank you for taking the time to communicate with me. I hope you continue to keep in touch with me on the issues of importance to you.
I ask that you answer this question directly: what are you willing to do to supply the troops in Iraq with the equipment they need to successfully prosecute the conclusion of the war and give birth to a Democratic Republic of Iraq?
Sincerely,
Matt Maynard
Tucson, Arizona
I await his response. As far as hearing from McCain and Kyl, I'm a bit disappointed in them. Oh well. They're politicians.
Replies: 
(2)
Very nice
Posted by ONLINE CASINOS @ 01/28/2004 06:11 AM MST
*Scowls at the Marketeer who didn't read Maynard's post*
Very Nice indeed.
Posted by Jeremy @ 01/28/2004 09:05 AM MST
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