Posted by lauraflanders at 2:40 pm
July 28, 2010

More Congresspeople Opposed to Afghan War

Coming on the eve of another war funding vote, many wondered if the the memos leaked by Wikileaks on the details of the Afghanistan deployment might make a difference. At the first test, the answer appears to have been no.

The House approved $33 billion for a 30,000-troop escalation in Afghanistan this week and in doing so took money away from other places it was desperately needed: public schools, green energy and job creation, the lot. 60 percent of Democrats and 93 percent of Republicans think increasing the deficit is just fine when it comes to war.

But David Swanson found some good news in the clear vote on the war funding measure. At least anti-war folks know who’s on what side: who’s with and who’s against.

Swanson pointed out that a good chunk of the Democratic caucus is opposed to more money for war even when their own leadership is asking for it. Republicans are clearly willing to keep fighting, and funding, regardless, despite their howls about waste and big government. There’s one more fact too: the number of anti-war Congresspeople has risen — significantly — approaching the number of members willing to vote for a mild non-binding timetable for withdrawal.

Wrote Swanson on his blog: “Willingness to express mild interest in ending the war has reached a plateau. Willingness to take serious action to end the war is rapidly catching up. Of course, both have to top 218 before we win.”

With the WikiLeaks documents, and the media’s attention on the topic, it’s time to redouble efforts to push more members of Congress against the war, says Swanson. And barring that, there’s an election’s coming up.

Do you know how your Congressperson voted? There’s a link here if you want to check.

The F Word is a regular commentary by Laura Flanders, the host of GRITtv which broadcasts weekdays on satellite TV (Dish Network Ch. 9415 Free Speech TV) on cable, and online at GRITtv.org and TheNation.com. Support us by signing up for our podcast, and follow GRITtv or GRITlaura on Twitter.com.

Laura is a long-time journalist, author and media activist. She wrote the New York Times bestseller Bushwomen: Tales of a Cynical Species and Blue Grit: Making Impossible, Improbable, and Inspirational Political Change in America. Before founding GRITtv, she started up and hosted “Your Call” on public radio KALW in San Francisco and RadioNation on Air America Radio. She is also a regular contributor to The Nation magazine and the Huffington Post. Flanders was founding director of the Women’s Desk at the media watch group Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting (FAIR) and for more than 10 years she produced and hosted CounterSpin, FAIR’s nationally-syndicated radio program. Laura is a regular commentator on MSNBC’s The Ed Show where she has become the go-to source for reliable, progressive analysis of the day’s top stories. The Institute for Alternative Journalism named her one of ten “Media Heroes” of 1994 and she was recently awarded a NY Moves “Power Woman of the Year.”