Vets Engage Sen. Norm Coleman over War

01/29/2007

St. Paul – Iraq War veterans against escalation, as part of the national advocacy group VoteVets.org.org, launched a seven state, eight stop “fly around” tour in St. Paul, MN this morning with a press conference unveiling a new television ad urging Senator Norm Coleman to join the troops by voting ‘No’ on escalation.

The Bush-McCain escalation plan to send upward of 20,000 additional troops to Iraq has been met with harsh criticism from senior military leaders, the Iraq Study Group, our troops and the American public. The bipartisan Hagel-Biden resolution against escalation passed out of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Wednesday and is expected to go to the full Senate for consideration. But several committee Senators, including Senator Norm Coleman, failed to support the anti-escalation resolution.

Jon Soltz, National Chairman of VoteVets.org and a small delegation of Iraq war veterans implored Senator Norm Coleman to stop the escalation that would uselessly place more troops in the crosshairs of a civil war. After the St. Paul event, the VoteVets.org delegation departed to fly to seven other cities across the country to urge other key Senators to stop escalation and show the new ad.

VoteVets.org Action Fund advocates for military preparedness and resources and support for America’s troops and veterans. VoteVets.org is a founding partner of Americans Against Escalation in Iraq, a national campaign comprised of a variety of groups from across the political spectrum committed to stopping the Bush-McCain plan to send more than 20,000 additional troops into a civil war in Iraq. Though the group opposes sending more troops into civil war in Iraq, Votevets.org is a pro-military organization made up of Republicans, Democrats and Independents that support the destruction of terrorist networks. Instead of escalation, Americans Against Escalation in Iraq urges responsible redeployment of American forces out of Iraq.


***See below for link to ad, participants, ad script and prepared remarks***

The low resolution version of the ad can be viewed at:

http://pistolerapost2.com/votevets/stopescalationweb.mov

A high resolution, broadcast quality version of the ad and/or a beta or dvd of the ad can be obtained upon request.

Participants: VoteVets.org – Iraq War Veterans Against Escalation including:

-Jon Soltz, National Chairman, VoteVets.org

-Jonathan Powers, a veteran of the Army's 1st Armored Division spent 14 months serving in Iraq as a Captain throughout 2003 and 2004.

-Peter Granato, a reservist who served on active duty with a military police unit in Iraq and Kuwait From December 2002- March 2004.

-Brian VanRiper served in the Marine Corps from July of 2000 to May of 2004. During that time he was enlisted as an infantry machinegunner and served in Iraq with 1st Battalion, 4th Marines.

Script
National Ad
VoteVets.org
TV :30
Stop the Escalation


VIDEO

WE SEE A MAN ON CAMERA. HE’S SHOT AGAINST A WHITE BACKGROUND. HE SPEAKS EARNESTLY. HIS NAME AND THE WORDS “IRAQ VETERAN” ARE SUPERED ON SCREEN.



AUDIO
EX-SOLDIER #1: When it comes to Iraq, America is divided.


EX-SOLDIER #2: On the one hand, you’ve got two-thirds of the American people,


EX-SOLDIER #3 A bipartisan majority in Congress.


EX-SOLDIER #4: The Iraq Study Group.



EX-SOLDIER #5: And veterans like us, all opposed to the escalation.



VIDEO

CUT TO WIDE SHOT TO REVEAL HE HAS LOST AN ARM.



AUDIO

EX-SOLDIER #6: On the other hand, there’s George Bush, who supports escalation.

. If you support escalation, you don't support the troops.

VIDEO

HE WALKS OFF CAMERA. ON THE SCREEN WE SEE SUPERED: “JOIN THE TROOPS. STOP THE ESCALATION.” AT SCREEN BOTTOM, SUPER VOTEVETS.ORG LOGO AND PAID FOR LANGUAGE.

Prepared Remarks

Jon Soltz National Chairman, VoteVets.org

We are in Minnesota today to take our message, as veterans of the war in Iraq against escalation, right to the constituents of Senator Norm Coleman and Senator Coleman himself.

Senator Coleman – as a member of the Senate Foreign Relations committee – and as someone who cut his political teeth as an opponent of the war in Vietnam - has an important voice and a vital vote on the future of the war in Iraq and the President’s plan to escalate U.S. troop involvement in the civil war there.

In early January, January 5th to be exact, Senator Coleman and about a dozen other Senators met with the President prior to Bush announcing his plan to escalate the war – a tried and failed strategy we tried as recently as last summer. After the meeting with Bush – Senator Coleman expressed serious doubts about the President’s plan to escalate the war – and said that of the meeting with Bush – and I quote – “I don't think there was a sense that case had been made."

Later – Senator Coleman went farther – stating “I refuse to put more American lives on the line in Baghdad without being assured that the Iraqis themselves are willing to do what they need to do to end the violence of Iraqi against Iraqi."

Yet last week – given the one opportunity too officially express his opposition to escalation – Senator Coleman sided with the President and voted against a bipartisan resolution of disapproval in the Foreign Relations Committee – a disappointing vote to say the least – one that we were frankly surprised by after meeting with his staff in Washington just last week.

It appears that Senator Coleman is trying – as the Associated Press noted this weekend –to walk a tightrope on Iraq. Maybe a better way to look at it is to say he is trying to have his cake and eat it too – say the right things in the press, but ducking for cover and side with the President when it really counts. Someone might want to remind Senator Coleman of where the people of Minnesota stand on the war – a stance that was made unambiguous in the election just a few short months ago.

Senator Coleman – lives are on the line – the time for walking political tightropes is past – the time for a have your cake and eat it too strategy of personal political survival is just plain wrong. Senator Coleman – we’ve been there – we know the strategy of escalating this war is wrong – it is a tried and failed recipe for disaster. Joins us – join the troops – because the only real position in this debate that is on the side of the troops is to be against the escalation.