| It's Personal |
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Dear Friend, This week's message is personal to me. I fought in the end of the last war that ended in stalemate: Vietnam. I remember how challenging it was to lead my Marines on patrols and ambushes in 1971, knowing that Nixon's "secret plan to end the war" was being implemented by a phased withdrawal of mainforce American troops, leaving certain "special units," including my own, behind. Our military leaders face the same dilemma today: how to accomplish the mission but bring our troops home safely. I will work for a phased withdrawal of our forces from Iraq, coordinated with our military leaders, but beginning as soon as strategically feasible. That's why I watched coverage of General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker testifying before Congress closely. Essentially, they both argued to "stay the course" in Iraq, including a freeze on troop withdrawals. President Bush confirmed that he will give the General "all the time he needs" to pursue what at best has been a stalemate. All of this was presented without a hint of a change in strategy to end this war. The vast majority of Americans want just that, and I am running for Senate in part to help achieve a strategic withdrawal that honors the sacrifices our military personnel already have made, while ending what has become an ethnic conflict that lacks the promise of "victory" in any real sense. The real war against terror needs to be fought in Afghanistan and Pakistan, where we presently have deployed too few resources because we are bogged down in Iraq. And as we work toward this end, we must honor our active duty and reserve personnel, and our veterans, by fully funding budgets for their health and welfare. We also must support my fellow Marine Senator Jim Webb's bill to increase funding for the GI Bill for this generation of warriors. The GI Bill has been one of the best investments in Americans our nation has ever made. The opposition to its full funding by the Bush administration and Washington Republicans is shameful as well as foolish. This is why I am running. This is why I need your support. Together, let's Take the Hill. Semper Fi, Bob Tuke |
