Barbara Lee Takes Afghanistan Issue to Democratic Party National Committee

I have family serving in Afghanistan. I want as many troops out as possoible. I think we need to support Rep. Barbar Lee as much as possible.--KAS



by Tom Hayden




Rep. Barbara Lee is proposing that the Democratic National Committee officially commit itself to a policy of "prioritizing job creation and a swift withdrawal of U.S. armed forces and military contractors in Afghanistan which must include a significant and sizable reduction no later than July 2011."



The DNC will take up the resolution at its Feb. 24-26 meeting in Washington, D.C.



Lee's office is calling on all peace and justice advocates at state levels to contact their DNC representatives and urge them to support the resolution.



The resolution is a challenge to the military-contractor-hawk alliance pushing President Obama to make only token troop withdrawals beginning this July. Others within Democratic policy circles have proposed reductions of approximately 60,000 between this July and July 2012. The Lee resolution declares that the reduction should be "significant and sizeable" and aimed at "a swift withdrawal of U.S. armed forces and military contractors."



President Obama has not made his decision known, making the DNC resolution debate timely. Lee, according to a recent statement, hopes to "change the President's political calculus" going into the 2012 election.