Stop the Iran War Before It StartsHe goes on to urge Congress to pass legislation, analogous to the Boland Amendment, that would prevent any funds from being used for covert or overt military action against Iran without express approval by Congress. posted by : Joseph j7uy5 | link | | |
posted January 24, 2007 (web only)
Scott Ritter
...I would strongly urge Congress, both the House of Representatives and the Senate, to hold real hearings on Iran. Not the mealy-mouthed Joe Biden-led hearings we witnessed on Iraq in July-August 2002, where he and his colleagues rubber-stamped the President's case for war, but genuine hearings that draw on all the lessons of Congressional failures when it came to Iraq. Summon all the President's men (and women), and grill them on every phrase and word uttered about the Iranian "threat," especially as it has been linked to nuclear weapons. Demand facts to back up the rhetoric.
Summon the American-Israeli Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), or any other lobby promoting confrontation with Iran, to the forefront, so that the warnings they offer in whispers from a back room can be articulated before the American public. Hold these conjurers of doom accountable for their positions by demanding they back them up with hard fact. See if the US intelligence community concurs with the dire warnings put forward by these pro-war lobbyists, and if it doesn't, ask who, then, is driving US policy toward Iran? Those mandated by public law and subjected to the oversight of Congress? Or others, operating outside any framework representative of the will of the American people?
If a real case, based on facts as they pertain to the genuine national security interests of the United States, can be made for a confrontation with Iran that leads to military conflict, so be it. America should never shy away from defending that which legitimately needs defending. The sacrifice expected of our military forces, while tragic, will be defensible. But if the case for war with Iran is revealed to be as illusory as was the case for war with Iraq, then Congress must take action to stop this conflict from occurring. This is the Democrats' issue now, the one that will make or break them in 2008 and beyond...
Perhaps it is a mere coincidence, but I could not help but notice this. As soon as Democrats take control of the House and Senate, we see these headlines:
Return trip for electric vehicles: automakers unveil plans for electric cars; no need to put pressure on the auto industry!
Medicare Drug Program Costing Less Than Estimates, U.S. Says: no need to pressure the pharmaceutical industry!
Employers increase hiring, wages in Dec.: no need to worry about jobs and wages, or to put pressure on big business!
Falling crude oil prices should translate soon to lower prices at the pump: leave the oil companies alone!
Does anyone think these headlines reflect what is really going on in the world?