Senator Murray responds

Over a month after the despicable attack upon general Petraeus by the Democrats favorite mouth piece MoveOn.org... I got a letter from my democrat Senator, Patty Murray;

Dear George:
Thank you for contacting me regarding the war in Iraq. I appreciate hearing from you.
As you know, I voted against authorizing the Iraq war in 2002 because I thought there were too many unanswered questions about the Bush Administration's approach and planning for war and its implications for the larger war against terrorists. Since that time, I have consistently opposed President Bush's flawed strategy while continuing to support our men and women in uniform. More than 3,800 service members have paid the ultimate price for our country, and I am humbled by their sacrifice.
After four and a half years of war in Iraq, it is time for a new direction. Many Americans are frustrated that our troops are policing a civil war, and I share their frustration with the President's strategy. Since gaining a majority in Congress, Democrats have utilized all available legislative tools to bring about a change of course and hold the Bush Administration accountable. Under new leadership the Senate has held oversight committee hearings and called for votes on critical issues to address the direction in Iraq, care for our veterans, and protection and support for our service members. I worked hard to pass an emergency spending bill on May 1, 2007, that established time lines for redeploying our troops from Iraq. Unfortunately, President Bush vetoed this forward-thinking bill. Since that veto, Democrats have held several votes on redeployment and on troop readiness standards. However, due to the persistent opposition by the President and his Republican allies in the Senate, these amendments were defeated.
As you know, even though I opposed the President's Iraq war plan, I made a promise to always support our service members. As a member of the Senate committees which oversee defense spending and veterans affairs, I have consistently fought to provide our troops with the equipment and training they need to complete their mission and have been a strong voice for ensuring proper health care treatment for those who return from Iraq. To that end I worked on and helped pass the Dignified Treatment of Wounded Warriors Act, a bill which would improve care for wounded troops and veterans when they return home from battle. This bill has cleared the Senate as a stand-alone bill and as a portion of the Fiscal Year (FY) 2008 National Defense Authorization Act. Both now await conference with the House versions of the same bill. I also helped pass the FY2007 Emergency Supplemental Appropriations bill (H.R. 2206) that included badly needed additional funding for new Mine Resistant Ambush Protected (MRAP) vehicles and for veterans medical care.
As part of providing funding for FY 2007, the supplemental appropriations bill also required detailed reports on progress made by the Iraqi national government, including progress on disarming militias, building up the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF), reducing sectarian violence, ensuring minority political rights, and enacting legislation on de-Baathification and oil revenue sharing. Several of these reports were recently delivered to the President and Congress, and unfortunately all independent reports found mixed progress or no sustainable security improvements, that violence remains high, that the ISF remain unable to operate independently, and that national political progress remains unsatisfactory with no progress foreseen in the near future. These reports demonstrated an unacceptable level of progress, and I will continue to work hard to redeploy our troops and to rebuild our military through the legislative process in the United States Senate.
Again, thank you for writing me with your concerns. Know that I will continue to push for a change of direction in Iraq. I will keep your comments in mind as Congress works to steer a new course in Iraq and the war on terror. Please do not hesitate to contact me again should you have any further questions or comments.
I hope all is well in Everett.

All this in response to my request that the Senator renounce the MoveOn attact in September!

Dear Senator

I do not know if you will be involved in today’s committee meeting with General Petraeus. However this issue is so outrageous that I feel a strong statement of condemnation should be issued by all of our senators in response to this moveon.org add in the New York Times. http://pol.moveon.org/petraeus.html. I would be very please and my heart will be greatly lifted to see our senate united in telling moveon that this has gone too far and calling our leaders in Iraq and by extension the men and woman whom they lead traitors is beyond civil discourse.

Funny how the Democrats were so quick to jump on Rush, they had a letter (With Senator Murray's signture on it) out within hours.