Jack Murtha To Discuss Strategies Of “Undermining” U.S. Foreign Policy
Victory Caucus made the catch before the wording was sanitized (hat tip to Mickey Kaus):
Join us tomorrow at 11:00 AM EST when Congressman Jack Murtha will outline new details of a strategy to use his Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense to oppose the Bush war in Iraq. Congressman Jim Moran, another Committee member, predicts the Committee action will be the “bite” that follows this week’s Congressional “bark” – the three-day debate on a non-binding Congressional resolution.The Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense has begun consideration of the president’s $93 billion supplemental appropriations request for Iraq. Action on the request will be the first opportunity for the new Congress to exercise its “power-of-the-purse” over the Iraq war.Chairman Murtha will describe his strategy for not only limiting the deployment of troops to Iraq but undermining other aspects of the president’s foreign and national security policy. Chairman Murtha discusses these steps in a videotaped conversation with former Congressman Tom Andrews (D-ME), the National Director of the Win Without War coalition, sponsor of MoveCongress.org.
Join us here tomorrow for this exclusive interview.
More on the road map for defeat here, from Jonathan Weisman and Shailagh Murray of the Washington Post:
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) yesterday linked her support for President Bush’s war-funding request to strict standards of resting, training and equipping combat forces, a move that could curtail troop deployments and alter the course of U.S. involvement in Iraq.
The pledge came as Congress appears ready to assert its authority in matters of war and diplomacy, down to decisions that the White House believes to be the domain solely of the president as commander in chief: the deployment and training of military forces.
The House is to vote today on a nonbinding resolution disapproving of Bush’s decision to deploy more than 21,000 additional troops to Iraq. Also, Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid (D-Nev.) announced a rare Saturday vote to begin debate on the House resolution.
Congressional Democrats signaled a willingness to directly challenge and curtail Bush’s warmaking powers, a move that will almost certainly spark a legal or constitutional confrontation. Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.), a Pelosi ally, is rewriting the president’s spending request to limit Bush’s options in prosecuting the war, and Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.), chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee, said he will seek to repeal the 2002 congressional authorization for Bush to wage war in Iraq and substitute legislation that would narrow the mission of troops there and begin to bring some home.
War policy by 535 political hacks…yeah, that’ll work…
Yeah…one hack is enough…
They want to undermine America’s foreign policy…but don’t say they aren’t patriotic!
I would hope, were I only to consider the political ramifications, that Jack Murtha succeed in undermining U.S. Foreign policy. But I won’t because if he succeeds he will be the architect of a dramatic increase in the exposure to harm of our service men and women in Iraq. I am unwilling to sacrifice our soldiers in Iraq for a political victory here at home.
You know, it is starting to look like Vietnam all over again.
Gunga – When The Decider wages a war without a declaration from Congress, Congress has few options. I applaud Murtha for his plan.
JP, you know that applies to every other war since Korea at least as much as to Bush, right?