MoveON.org has historically been the Trojan Horse of the antiwar movement, and, according to CODEPINK, it is playing this role yet again:

Dear Richard,

Today, Monday, March 19, marks four years of war in Iraq. We hope you attended one of the hundreds of actions this weekend against the continued bloodshed. Today you have another opportunity to attend rallies, call and visit your congressperson before they vote this week on the supplemental bill that would allocate another $100 billion for war. Tell them "No More Money for War."

You also have an opportunity to pressure one of the largest on-line activist groups, MoveOn.org. MoveOn has not taken a stand against this Supplemental. It asked its members to take a vote on whether or not to support the Supplemental, but failed to explain how disastrous this inside-the-beltway compromise really is:

• It will keep the war going well into 2008;

• It omits Cong. Barbara Lee's amendment, which would have fully funded withdrawal by the end of the 2007;

• It gives the President the right to waive requirements that troops sent to Iraq must be properly trained, equipped and rested;

• The funds can be used for attacking Iran, since the final version removed language saying the president had to get authorization from Congress before attacking Iran.

• And finally, MoveOn neglects to tell its members how absurd it is to give George Bush another $100 billion for war when there is no military solution to the violence in Iraq.

The Democrat leadership says this is the "best bill" they can get passed, but admits that President Bush is likely to veto it anyway. We need to tell Congress to stop the political machinations and use its Constitutional authority to end war by cutting the funds. We need to tell MoveOn to join the rest of the peace movement with the clear, principled call to Congress: Vote No on the Supplemental. Don't Buy Bush's War.

This week, your leadership is crucial. Call your member of Congress at 800-828-0498, and inspire your friends to do the same. Attend a MoveOn candlelight vigil tonight with the real message: No Money for War.

Standing strong,

Dana, Farida, Gael, Gayle, Jodie, Liz, Medea, Nancy, Patricia, Rae, Samantha, and Sonia

Someday, when this war and occupation is over, and the Iraqis have driven us from Iraq, someone will be impolite enough to point out the fact that people like Eli Pariser and Joan Blades were responsible for prolonging it thorugh their politically calculated, pseudo-antiwar efforts in support of the Democratic Party. They personify the party's strategy of triangulation, whereby the suffering of the Iraqis and the senseless deaths of Americans are exploited for electoral advantage.

Labels: Activism, Democrats, Liberals, MoveON.org, Occupation of Iraq, War with Iran