Subject: [big campaign] MoveOn Standing up to Hawks' Reckless Escalation in Afghanistan
From: Daniel Mintz <[email-masked]>
To: [email-masked]
Date: Fri, 25 Sep 2009 12:03:30 -0400
List-Id: <bigcampaign.googlegroups.com>

We just emailed our members about the hawks' call for a big escalation 
in Afghanistan.  We encouraged them to write to the White House asking 
for a clear exit strategy and opposing a rush to escalate. 

We thought that it was important to push back as quickly as possible to 
give the voices in the administration pushing for a strategy shift room 
to make their case. Greg Sargent just posted about it at 
http://theplumline.whorunsgov.com/afghanistan/moveon-to-call-on-obama-to-pull-out-of-afghanistan/ 
and the email is below.

-d

-------- Original Message --------
Subject: 	[Bounce] Afghanistan
Date: 	Fri, 25 Sep 2009 08:43:51 -0700
From: 	Daniel Mintz, MoveOn.org Political Action 
<[email-masked]>
To: 	Johnny Neumann <[email-masked]>

Dear MoveOn member,

U.S. policy in Afghanistan has reached a pivotal moment. President Obama 
is poised to make a critical decision about the Afghanistan war in the 
next few weeks. And there's a big debate happening right now about what 
to do.^1

Pro-war advocates both inside and outside the administration---including 
John McCain and Joe Lieberman---are calling for a big escalation.^2 The 
general in charge of Afghanistan is expected to request tens of 
thousands more troops, and that may just be the beginning.^3 They're 
cranking up the pressure for an immediate surge.

But other powerful voices are urging caution: Vice President Biden and 
White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel have raised real concerns about 
the idea of sending more troops to Afghanistan without a clear 
strategy^4 , as have Democrats in Congress.^5  And a majority of 
Americans oppose increasing troop levels.^6  

Can you write to the White House and tell them we need a clear exit 
strategy---not tens of thousands more US troops stuck in a 
quagmire? *You can send the President a message by clicking below:*

http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51843&id=&t=1 
<http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51843&id=&t=1>

Some administration officials are arguing for a smaller, nimbler 
approach with a narrow focus on the threat from al-Qaeda. But 
cheerleaders for the war refuse to acknowledge that there could be any 
viable strategy other than more and more troops. So they're trotting out 
the same tired old lines and questioning the motives of those who 
disagree with them.^7  

They figure they can cut off any debate about our ultimate goals in 
Afghanistan and the region. But President Obama has consistently shown a 
willingness to stand up for his more thoughtful approach to foreign 
policy, and that's what he needs to do here, too.

The hawks are making their position heard. Now, the majority of 
Americans---those of us who are for as quick and as responsible an end 
to the war as possible---need to make our voices heard, too.

Can you write to the President now?

http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51843&id=&t=2 
<http://www.moveon.org/r?r=51843&id=&t=2>

--Daniel, Lenore, Kat, Marika, and the rest of the team

Sources:

1. "Obama is reevaluating Afghanistan war strategy," /Los Angeles 
Times/, September 22, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84770&id=&t=3 
<http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84770&id=&t=3>

2. "Senate GOP Anxious Over War Moves," /Roll Call/, September 23, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84771&id=&t=4 
<http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84771&id=&t=4>

3. "U.S. scrambling to come up with new Afghanistan plan?," /CNN/, 
September 23, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84779&id=&t=5 
<http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84779&id=&t=5>

4. "Obama is reevaluating Afghanistan war strategy," /Los Angeles 
Times/, September 22, 2009 
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84770&id=&t=6 
<http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84770&id=&t=6>

5. "Senate GOP Anxious Over War Moves," /Roll Call/, September 23, 2009 
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84771&id=&t=7 
<http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84771&id=&t=7>

6. "Poll Finds Majority Opposes Troop Increase in Afghanistan. Obama To 
Defy Public Opinion?,"/The Plum Line/, September 23, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84772&id=&t=8 
<http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84772&id=&t=8>

7. "Senate GOP Anxious Over War Moves," /Roll Call/, September 23, 2009
http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84771&id=&t=10 
<http://www.moveon.org/r?r=84771&id=&t=10>

Want to support our work? We're entirely funded by our 5 million 
members---no corporate contributions, no big checks from CEOs. And our 
tiny staff ensures that small contributions go a long way. Chip in here 
<http://political.moveon.org/donate/email.html?id=&t=11>.

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