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| Americans Against Escalation in Iraq |
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Americans Against Escalation in Iraq is a national campaign comprised of a variety groups from across the political spectrum that are committed to opposing the Bush Administration's plan to escalate the war in Iraq and to work for the responsible redeployment of American forces. Americans Against Escalation in Iraq includes Veterans, students, some of the nation’s leading anti-war voices, and progressive organizations which traditionally confine their activity to domestic issues. Many of the organizations coming together to lead Americans Against Escalation in Iraq include those which successfully mounted a national campaign in 2005 to defeat President Bush’s effort to privatize Social Security. Using that same campaign model, these organizations are joining with more traditional anti-war forces to mount this campaign because the stakes are so high and because the future of a generation of Americans is on the line.
The war in Iraq is unpopular, immoral, and unaffordable – both in the immeasurable cost of human lives and in its effect on our ability to craft a budget that invests in America's future. After four years of combat, almost 4,000 U.S. casualties, and over $450 billion so far and rising by over $10 billion every month, we believe America and our troops have sacrificed enough. It is time to bring the war to a close. Rather than escalating the crisis in Iraq, we believe the way forward is to begin the responsible redeployment of our troops out of Iraq.
Michigan Citizen Action calls upon members of the 110th Congress to fund our troops and de-fund the war, including: |
- Provide a timetable for safe and orderly withdrawal of all our troops from Iraq;
- Stop funding the war in Iraq;
- Provide funds for the reconstruction of Iraq by Iraqis (as called for by the Iraq Study Group);
- Fully fund veterans health care; and
- Prohibit a military attack on Iran
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 Getting U.S.
Back on Track…
Congress needs to reverse the upside-down priorities - from Washington to Iraq - that are shortchanging Michigan families and communities..
MORE>>
PEACE FLYER>>
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 The upside-down priorities of the Bush administration and previous, Republican-led Congresses have taken America seriously off-track. Throughout four and a half years of endless war in Iraq, real needs here at home have been severely neglected while the tax burden to fund the war has shifted sharply onto middle-class and working-poor families.
The new Congress is working to get America back on track by funding critical human needs priorities like children's health care, job training and education, but President Bush is threatening to veto any legislation that increases funding beyond his budget proposal. Some Bush administration officials and Republican leaders are even suggesting they would shut down the government before passing modest funding increases for vital programs that amount to just a fraction of what America spends every day in Iraq.
Indeed, while America spends $10 billion every month on the endless war in Iraq, recent headlines have been full of glaring examples of the neglected priorities here at home: |
 Despite being labeled "structurally deficient," the I-35W Bridge in Minneapolis was not scheduled for repair until 2020 - 13 years after it collapse, which killed at least eight people and devastated an entire community.
The explosion of an aging underground steam pipe shut down Manhattan last month, killing one person and injuring dozens, further exposed America's decaying infrastructure.
As the second anniversary of Hurricane Katrina approaches, much of New Orleans still lies in ruin.
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 THE COST OF ENDLESS WAR TO Michigan
With the total cost of the Iraq war now approaching half a trillion dollars ($456 billion and counting), Michigan taxpayers' share of that cost is now more than $12.1 billion and rising.
GETTING U.S. BACK ON TRACK
The new Congress is finally working to get America back on track by reversing years of upside-down priorities in Washington. Congress is working to pass modest increases in funding for children's health care, job training, education and other priorities, but President Bush threatens to veto legislation with any increases beyond his budget proposal, which shortchanged these programs to pay for tax breaks for millionaires and the endless war in Iraq.
Amazingly, Bush administration officials and Republican leaders have even suggested they would shut down the government before passing modest increases in funding for these vital priorities. Take a look at the small boosts in funding - representing just a fraction of the $10 billion U.S. taxpayers are spending in Iraq every month - that are leading to Republican threats to shut down our government:
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Cost of restoring Michigan job training funds ($37.3 million) = about 2 hours 45 minutes of Iraq war spending
Cost of fully funding U.S. job training ($600 million) = about 44 hours of Iraq war spending
Cost of restoring Michigan child care funds ($14 million) = a little over one hour of Iraq war spending
Cost of restoring Michigan child support funding ($51.7 million) = about 2 hours 45 minutes of Iraq war spending
Cost of restoring Michigan K-12 education funding ($127.8 million) = less than 10 hours of Iraq war spending
Full Title I funding for U.S. schools ($14.4 billion) = 45.6 days of Iraq war spending
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Michigan Citizen Action and other USAction affiliates across the country are working to highlight the misplaced priorities that have had such a devastating impact in Michigan and communities across the country. We urge Michigan's members in Congress to start getting America back on track by supporting these modest increases as a down-payment toward fully funding children's health care, job training, education and other priorities over five years, and by voting to override a presidential veto that could needlessly shut down the government and lead to further devastation to our citizens and communities.
Michigan taxpayers alone have spent over $12.1 billion on the endless Iraq war; we need to address our neglected priorities here at home.
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