The Honorable Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives:
I am writing as a citizen of the United States and a resident of your district, the 8th District of California, to beg you to no longer fund President Bush's adventure in Iraq.
I was pleased when the house passed H.R. 1591 calling for a finite deadline on the military occupation of Iraq. I am not pleased by the discussions following the President's veto of the same bill. It seems there are two schools of thought on the matter. The Congress can surrender to Bush's demands and provide him the blank check he desires, or the Congress can modify their bill with non-binding language. These two choices are actually the same. I implore you to choose the third way.
Congress has no obligation to continue funding Bush's occupation. He is the one asking you for the money, not the other way around. As a fully equal branch of the government you are entitled to apply whatever restriction and conditions you feel are appropriate. Your branch dictates national policy, and the executive branch carries out that policy. Please do not forget this major facet of our Constitution when you are debating, either with the other Members or in front of the press.
The President has no means of funding his war, other than requesting the money from Congress. I doubt that he'd be able to raise that amount on Wall Street. Remember, Bush's own cowardice separated Iraq expenditures from the normal budget in order to bolster his absurd claims of deficit reduction. Bush made this emergency, not Congress, and it's up to you to diligently ensure the money is not squandered on a pointless expedition. I feel you performed that duty well with H.R. 1591. You must continue this diligence as long as the Iraq occupation continues.
Now that Bush has rejected Congress's offer to fund the occupation, Congress has numerous options available to it. The best option would be to simply not fund the occupation any longer. You are not required by any law or moral code to pass another "emergency" spending measure. If you decline to fund the occupation then the occupation will end, and you will be heroes in the eyes of most Americans. If you are worried that Bush will bungle the withdrawal of our military, you can pass a spending measure granting the Air Mobility Command funds for the purpose of removing our people and material from Iraq. You could make this evacuation fund unlimited, granting a "blank check" but not in the style that Bush desires.
Whichever path you choose, I hope that you will realize that the pundits, television hosts, and party apparatchiks who are advising surrender on this matter do not represent the feelings of ordinary Americans. Americans of all kinds from every state want this occupation to end as soon as possible. If you give Bush his blank check you will betray the people who voted you into the majority last November. We continue to look to you to oppose Bush's disastrous policies, and to de-fund, de-authorize, and otherwise obstruct him with all the powers we gave you.
Sincerely,
Jeffrey Baker
San Francisco