Subject: Are We Lemmings? Larry when the commander in chief is leading this country over a cliff, Congress is the only legal institution that can divert us from this catastrophe. Refusing to provide the fuel to drive our nation over that cliff is precisely what this Congress is and should be doing. We must have the courage to do what is right. And the right thing is to get out of Iraq in the time specified by Congress. The president is incapable of getting this done. Through Congress, the American people finally have a voice. It is hypocritical for Bush to accuse Congress of trying to "restrict commanders on the ground" by establishing a timeline for troop withdrawal, when a central reason for the war's failure has always been the administration's initial restriction on the number of troops it allotted to the 2003 invasion. Furthermore, our moral obligation may have existed for a period of time after our ill-started invasion of Iraq, but surely it is disingenuous to persist in such a claim when it is Iraqis versus themselves and no longer us against them. JM

RESPONSE: With a volunteer Army and the Bush Disasters in Iraq and Afghanistan the U.S. Army desertion rate is the highest it has been since the draft days of Vietnam. Last year 3,301 deserted the Army...most after having served a term or two in Afghanistan or Iraq and being again redeployed because of Republican mismanagement of the wars. More lies and phony photos of ‘progress’ can no longer fool most of the American people. Democrats standing up to Der Fuhrer Bush and reminding us all that in a democracy there are checks and balances on power bodes well for our great country.

The Republican lies, as they attempt to wrap themselves in the flag the way Hitler did to discredit courageous Democrats in Congress was to be expected. It is encouragint to see many Democrats are simply refusing to back down after winning seats in Congress in previously Republican Districts. Tim Walz (MN-1) is a 20 year veteran of the National Guard and ran on changing direction in Iraq. His support for the Iraq Accountability Act was critical to its passing. His race this past November was one of the closest races of the election.2 Carol Shea-Porter (NH-1) is a true progressive who won a hard race in a Republican leaning district. She's fighting to bring our troops home quickly and rein in the president on Iraq.3 She's at the top of the Republicans' target list for next year.4 John Yarmuth (KY-3) is another true progressive whose race was one of the tightest and most closely watched in the country. He ended up winning by less than 6,000 votes.5 His vote was critical to passing a deadline to end the war and we'll need his support as we fight to bring our troops home quickly and safely. Clearly, voting Democratic is a vote to ‘SUPPORT THE TROOPS’ and bring them home alive.