Senator Alexander – Thanks, but we want more!
A Project of Peaceable Assembly
Thank Alexander for speaking up in the Senate;
but let him know his legislation doesn’t satisfy us – we want withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Iraq. – (www.alexander.senate.gov )
Join us in one of our weekly small team visits to his office during the next two months. (see below - )
Alexander’s Recent Initiatives
Senator Lamar Alexander, Republican from Tennessee, is up for reelection in 2008. Over the last month he has spoken out several times to distinguish himself from the Iraq War policies of President Bush:
- On June 5 he introduced legislation, co-sponsored by seven other Senators, Democrats and Republicans, to make the Iraq Study Group recommendations (which Bush has largely ignored) the basis for U.S. strategic policy on Iraq.
- On June 26 he expressed public support for Senator Lugar, Republican from Indiana, in his call for a new strategy on Iraq.
- On July 6 he again spoke out publicly for a shift in strategy, without waiting for the report by General Petraeus expected in September.
- On July 10 he announced that six Republican and six Democratic Senators will co-sponsor the Iraq Study Group strategy legislation as an amendment to the Defense Authorization Bill presently being considered by the Senate.
To change Iraq policy over the next year it is crucial to get Republicans to break decisively from the Bush policies and vote with Democrats for initiatives to limit and end the Iraq occupation.
Our Response
Now is the time, 1) to thank Senator Alexander for his leadership among Republicans in demanding a new direction for Iraq policy, 2) tell him that we support the Iraq Study Group call for a comprehensive settlement based on contacts and negotiations among all interested parties in the region, 3) tell him that we demand withdrawal of all U.S. military forces and bases from Iraq, rather than the ISG formula for leaving as many as half of the U.S. forces in Iraq to train Iraqi forces and maintain U.S. control in Iraq.
- Working with our Peaceable Assembly list of 500 supporters, plus other supporters in Tennessee, we will begin to identify and organize affinity delegations of four or five friends each, which would successively request meetings with the staff at Senator Alexander’s office to talk about the Iraq War and related issues (such as domestic needs unmet because of funding shortages and priorities).
- We will aim for the goal of sending in one such delegation per week for the foreseeable future.
- The delegations would request a scheduled meeting at a time convenient for them. If they do not get an appointment within two weeks time, they would announce a time when they intend to visit the office, with or without an appointment, as we did with our schedule of nine visits to Congressional offices in March, April and May. Peaceable Assembly will communicate and coordinate in helping people to schedule these visits.
- As they leave Senator Alexander’s office, the delegations would drop by at Senator Corker’s office in the same building to express their concerns informally to his staff.
- Peaceable Assembly will assemble a file of the most persuasive up-to-date articles and news stories on the Iraq situation, to help in briefing the delegations before their visits, and for passing on to the Senators’ staffs. We invite you to forward to us the most convincing articles you encounter in your reading.
- Nashville Greenlands War Resisters League chapter is sponsoring and supporting a half-time intern organizer to work on the Peaceable Assembly campaign. For the summer, through August 20, that intern is Justin Willams. As of August 22, Ellen Walsh is coming to town to work on this project with us.
HOW YOU CAN PARTICIPATE
A) Contact Senator Alexander today at www.alexander.senate.gov to review his most recent statements, and to leave a contact message telling him that we want him to go further, and vote decisively to end the Iraq occupation.
B) If you’re willing to organize a small delegation by getting together several friends or co-workers for one of these visits, contact Justin Williams or Karl Meyer at or 615-322-9523.
C) If you’ve encountered articles or stories on the Iraq situation that are especially convincing, email them to us, or mail print copies to Karl Meyer, 2407 Heiman St. Nashville, TN 37208.
D) Send donations (payable to Greenlands) for the support of our interns and the campaign. Greenlands intentional community is presently providing free housing plus a $75 a week spending stipend for our interns, for a twenty hour a week work commitment. Additional funding would help us to compensate them modestly, at $10 an hour, for additional organizing work, helping them to pay off student loan obligations, medical care needs, and other personal needs that come with being a young person in this “greatest nation in the world”.
— Karl Meyer, Pam Beziat, Justin Williams for Peaceable Assembly
2407 Heiman St., Nashville , TN 37208 615-322-9523
