Schakowsky Announces Support For the Iraq Accountability Act in a Letter to House Colleagues

SCHAKOWSKY ANNOUNCES SUPPORT FOR THE IRAQ ACCOUNTABILITY ACT IN A LETTER TO HOUSE COLLEAGUES

WASHINGTON, DC--U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL), founding member of the Out of Iraq Caucus, sent a letter to her colleagues expressing her support for the Iraq Accountability Act. The bill provides money to protect our troops on the battlefield, enforces the readiness standards and benchmarks already in place, and sets a timeline for a phased redeployment of U.S. troops by no later than August 2008.

Rep. Schakowsky's letter is attached below:

March 21, 2007

Dear Friend:

I am writing to tell you why I made the difficult decision to support the Democratic supplemental appropriations bill.

As you know, I am a founding and active member of the Out of Iraq Caucus, someone who identifies closely with the peace movement, and an original no vote on the war.

In October 2002, our Speaker Nancy Pelosi argued strongly against voting for war. As the Whip at the time, but more importantly as Ranking Member of the House Intelligence Committee, she told our caucus that the intelligence simply wasn't there to justify the war. In the end, 60% of House Democrats voted against going to war with Iraq. Today as Speaker, Nancy has described this war as the greatest moral issue facing our country and has declared "ending the war... as her goal.

This week, Speaker Pelosi, David Obey and Jack Murtha will bring to the floor a measure that, for the first time, sets a date for the war to end — a date when U.S. combat troops must be out of Iraq. It is not nearly the bill you or I would have written, but, in my view, moves us closer to our goal.

President Bush's reaction to the measure reinforces this view. He and all the administration and Congressional Republican leaders are back to charging us with "cutting and running,... aiding and abetting the enemy, etc.

In other words, this vote has the potential of drawing a clear line between those who want to stay indefinitely in an unwinnable war, and those of us who, along with the majority of Americans want to end it.

Like many of you, I have voted against past supplementals, defense appropriations, and any method of funding this war. We have withstood the Republican criticism of not being for the troops, because we know that the way to care for them is to get them out of the meat grinder that is Iraq.

But the question being posed this week is very different. After four horrifying years of war, Democrats have reframed the issue to be "when..., not "if... we will leave Iraq. The mainstream media have universally portrayed the decision as continuing vs. ending the war. The headlines read: "House Democrats Push Bill to End Iraq War... (The New York Times), "Democrats seek 2008 Iraq troop withdrawal... (The Washington Post), "Democrats Push Iraq Withdrawal Measures... (NPR).

When the Senate failed to pass a deadline bill, the Chicago Tribune headline was, "Senate rejects Iraq pullout plan.... I don't want to see that headline after the House vote.

As progressives we have a choice to describe this vote as a partial victory -- or as a defeat for our position. As an old-time organizer, I think we empower ourselves and our peace movement supporters more by crediting them with forcing the Congress to take significant steps toward ending the war, even as we gear up to take the next, bolder steps. In many ways, the easier path for me would be to vote no. But I simply cannot join the Republicans and vote with the war President — even though for different reasons — to defeat the first measure that moves us in the direction we want to go.

The vote this week could very well be viewed as the beginning of the end of this tragic chapter in our history. It will have my support, and I hope yours as well.

Regardless of your decision, I know it is based on your heartfelt belief on how best to stop the killing, and I look forward to working with you to stop the war in Iraq and to prevent war in Iran.

Sincerely,

Jan Schakowsky
Member of Congress