What's Next for the Anti-War Movement?

Here's MoveOn's plan: After consulting with MoveOn members, we're about to launch an aggressive new campaign to bring our troops home as soon as possible.

More Americans than ever oppose the war. Yet all the major contenders for the Republican nomination support it, and Congress is unable or unwilling (or both) to take President Bush to task.

So, we're moving forward with a three-pronged strategy.

First, our spring and summer campaign focused on giving Republicans who supported the war a choice between ending it and feeling the wrath of their constituents. They've now cast their lot with President Bush, and it's our job to make sure that they get booted by voters next November. And we need to make clear that it's bigger than that: their willingness to give the president the votes he needs to continue the war puts their party into a political death spiral that will doom it for a generation. A growing number of congressional Republicans have already gotten the message and have chosen to retire.

Second, we will have to build an anti-Iraq war Democratic caucus on the Hill that finally stands up to Bush by blocking his funding requests unless they include a binding and timely plan to exit Iraq. We will even launch primary challenges to some Congressional Democrats who continue to be out of step with their constituents on this issue. We consider it our job to help produce more than a merely Democratic majority. We want an anti-war majority in 2008.

Third, we will have to make sure that the next president leads us out of Iraq as expeditiously as possible. Republican presidential aspirants have been unwilling to break with the President on Iraq, and some continue to be his most ardent cheerleaders. We will work to ensure that none of them has any chance to win election without reversing his stance. Democratic presidential hopefuls have pledged to end the war if elected but they must be unequivocal in their commitments to remove all U.S. troops within eighteen months of taking office.

Politicians who believe false media reports that claim the anti-war movement is shifting gears, or lost momentum, do so at their own peril. We are energized, organized, committed and ready for this historic election year.

Comments

[AnthonyMason2k6]

Why arent anti war folks like me supporting John Edwards? Let me quote you Russ Feingold on this: "The one that is the most problematic is (John) Edwards, who voted for the Patriot Act, campaigns against it. Voted for No Child Left Behind, campaigns against it. Voted for the China trade deal, campaigns against it. Voted for the Iraq war … He uses my voting record exactly as his platform, even though he had the opposite voting record."

[fvscvte]

Why don't people who are ant-war such as I support John Edwards? He is the ONLY candidate who says he will remove ALL troops out of Iraq. Come on people don't be led to slaughter by the Main Stream Media who have picked their favorites already. The anti-war, anti-corporate Edwards is not their pick. See a pattern here?

[jodru]

What if 5 years is as soon as possible to bring the troops home?

[hopeless277]

Sorry, Eli, but you don't have near enough money to bribe the Democrats in congress into doing their jobs. You, like me, will come to realize that the Democrats in congress are just there for window dressing. They have all been bought and paid for by the same people who purchased the Republican party decades ago. They don't care about their country, their state, their city or their constituents. They care about the $1,000,000.00 a year lobbying job they'll get if they let the Republicans continue to rape the working class. So go ahead, Eli, spend your money and spin your wheels, nothing will change. Ever.

[Crowhaul]

It's amusing how the MSM continues to attempt to tell us that Iraq is no longer 'the' issue. They want us to somehow think that it's the economy. It's not.

Our distressed economy is, however, directly related and influenced by the occupation for which we have gone into debt.

End the absurdity of our illegal invasion/occupation, and it'll help our economy much more than a $600.00 check made payable to the oh-so-loyal US consumer.

[Marlyn]

"After consulting with MoveOn members, we're about to launch an aggressive new campaign to bring our troops home as soon as possible."

THANK YOU, Eli.