Critical Vote in Congress Tomorrow- NEED ACTION NOW

This is a critical vote coming up tomorrow. Bobby Scott and Jim Moran have both signed a pledge that they would not vote for any war supplemental that did not include troop withdraw.  Despite that, they both voted for the first supplemental this year.  FireDogLake is now reporting that Jim has said he will vote against this supplemental- no word on Bobby yet. 

Everyone- please take a minute to call your Congressman and ask them to vote NO tomorrow.  Let's focus especially on Scott and Moran- as well as our three vulnerable freshman Democratic Congressman (Nye, Perriello, Connolly).  Are you going to lift a finger for a Congressman who voted to continue the war without a timetable for withdraw next year?

Comments

[Sam]

This is ridiculous. The President's already set a timeline, rendering the need for a Congressional timeline moot. Between the two, it's better to have a timeline from the Prez, since that can be more flexible if emergencies arise. The whole point of a Congressional-imposed timeline was that we weren't getting one from the Prez.

[Not Jerry Singh]

what makes you think Connolly's vulnerable?

[Not Larry Sabato]

Democrats holding his seat by 1% in a special election, finishing further behind Obama in his district than either Nye or Perriello and no Obama coattails in PWC?

[Joel Rutstein]

If Connolly votes against the supplemental, his opponent would attract voters by claiming Connolly doesn't support our troops, probably a lot of the same ignorant non-Republicans who chose to vote for Herrity and Cook.

Connolly would lose a lot of potential support from good activists if he were to vote for the supplemental (I assume he, too, voted for the first supplemental this year), but, he trounced Leslie Byrne in last year's primary without all those activists, and I doubt he's too concerned about attracting them for next year's general.

If Connolly loses to a Republican next year, it will be part of a nationwide anti-Obama referendum, and there will be nothing the folks to Obama's left will be able to do about it.

If Connolly votes for the supplemental and follows that vote up with other votes offensive to the left, I'll hope for a good primary challenger from the left, and when he trounces her or him, I'll again hold my nose and vote for Connolly in November.

Right now, I think the odds are better that Connolly will lose a primary to a good challenger from the left than I'll feel good about whomever the GOP nominates.

[Not John S. Mosby]

I agree with Joel. It's political grandstanding from Congress and fairly stupid from a political standpoint. Every Republican in the country would stand up and shout "the Democrats want to starve and abandon our troops". Not accurate, but it doesn't need to be. You have a Democratic President calling the shots so approve the supplemental and move on to other equally important matters. We've been in Iraq 6 1/4 years now, and we're not just going to say "fuck it" and leave all at once. A Democratic congress should not put itself in a position where it may later have to go back on this vote - the later being if troops can't be withdrawn on Obama's timeline.

[GAida]

Connolly is anything but Vulnerable

[Ghost of RWR]

Jim Moran and Bobby Scott,

Please, vote "YES" for this thing. Make Ben sick to his stomach...show him that in the end D's care about one thing...power, not what they promise their feckless masses...not that it will bring hi to his senses but at east we will enjoy his fulminations…

[Doug]

I would and am asking all I know to vote yes to support our troops, because the timeline for withdrawl is already out there and because the Republicans would use it against purple state members. This is idiotic.

[Not John S. Mosby]

Unless all the Republicans vote against the bill because it includes $5 Billion for the IMF. If that's the case, then Dems come out looking great to the US public if they vote for it. It's the Republicans doing their usual - cutting off their noses to spite their faces.

[kelley in virginia]

not john s. mosby: good point. i just wish we could throw out the whole lot of them.

[truth]

jsm,
actually it is a 100 billion line of credit to the IMF the consequences of which are numerous.

[truth]

kelly,
agreed..
remember the good ole days when term limits were discussed...