In an act of defiance perhaps not seen since President Truman fired Gen.
Douglas MacArthur, today the anti-war veterans group VoteVets.org, which
has been influential with Capitol Hill Democrats, is launching a
half-million-dollar TV ad campaign featuring Maj Gen John Batiste
(Ret.), former commanding general of the first infantry division in Iraq.
The ad begins with a clip President George W. Bush saying "I have always
said that I will listen to the requests of our commanders on the ground."
Batiste then appears, saying, "Mr. President, you did not listen. You
continue to pursue a failed strategy that is breaking our great Army and
Marine Corps. I left the Army in protest in order to speak out. Mr.
President, you have placed our nation in peril. Our only hope is that
Congress will act now to protect our fighting men and women."
The ads are targeted at Republican members of Congress seen to be
wavering in their support for the war. Those targeted include GOP
Senators Susan Collins (Maine), John Sununu (NH), John Warner
(Virginia), and Norm Coleman (Minnesota), and GOP Representatives Mary
Bono (Calif.), Phil English (Penn.), Randy Kuhl (NY), Jim Walsh (NY), Jo
Ann Emerson (Missouri), Tim Johnson (Illinois), Mike Rogers (Michigan),
Fred Upton (Michigan), and Mike Castle (Del.)
The ads conclude with Batiste saying, depending on the congressperson
targeted, "Senator Collins, protect America, not George Bush."
Major General Paul Eaton (Ret.) and Gen. Wesley Clark (Ret.) will also
appear in ads.
Meanwhile, at the VFW headquarters in DC later today, according to the
ARMY TIMES, an "Appeal for Courage" petition signed by 2,700 current
and
former service members supporting continued U.S. combat operations in
Iraq will be given to House Minority Leader John Boehner, R-Ohio, and
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-SC.
"The petition was organized by two U.S. service members serving in Iraq,
Navy Lt. Jason Nichols, serving in Baghdad, and Minnesota National Guard
Staff Sgt. David Thul, who is conducting convoy operations in Iraq with
the 34th Infantry Division," the newspaper reports.
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