I'm the Democratic candidate for congress in the 6th district of Florida. When General David Petraeus and U. S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker meet with Congress this week, I want them asked: “Is the continued American involvement in the Iraq civil war making America safer?”
Set forth here is a press release and an open letter to the House and Senate Committees conducting the hearings, in which I demand “answers to the questions the vast majority of American’s are asking. I raise several more questions for the general and ambassador about the threats to the safety of American troops abroad and civilians at home caused by continued U. S. participation in the hostilities.
Enough is enough. The leaders of Iraq have had a chance to reconcile and build a better country for their people; but, they have refused to do so. We must begin a responsible withdrawal of our troops to let them know we are serious, that their time is running out, and that they will not be supported in continuing their civil war over the dead bodies of American soldiers.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
5 April 2008
TIM CUNHA FOR CONGRESS
6th District, Florida
P. O. Box 6546 Ocala, FL 34478-6546
To contact the candidate:
352.390.8207 / CELL: 702.443.0478
TimCunhaForCongress@GMail.com
Tim Cunha, candidate for Congress, calls for tough questions and straight answers on continued U.S. involvement in Iraq civil war
When General David Petraeus and U. S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker meet with Congress on Tuesday and Wednesday, Tim Cunha, Democratic 6th district congressional candidate, wants them asked: “Is the continued American involvement in the Iraq civil war making America safer?”
Calling for “answers to the questions the vast majority of American’s are asking,” Cunha released a letter faxed to the House and Senate Foreign Affairs and Armed Services Committees this Saturday.
Cunha set forth several more questions for the general and ambassador about the threats to the safety of American troops abroad and civilians at home caused by continued U. S. participation in the hostilities. He questioned the integrity, loyalty, and cooperation of the Iraqi government, the motives of religious and secular Iraqi leaders, and the strategy of concentrating most American military resources in Iraq, while Osama Bin Laden and the nerve center of al Qaeda are reported most likely to be between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
“Our National Guard is still diverted from its fundamental purpose of guarding our nation,” Cunha wrote, “and is not available here at home in the event of hurricanes and other disasters, and in the event of terrorist attacks to our homeland.”
Cunha asserted that the American government must say: “Enough is enough. The leaders of Iraq have had a chance to reconcile and build a better country for their people; but, they have refused to do so. We will begin a responsible withdrawal of our troops to let them know that we are serious, that their time is running out, and that they will not be supported in continuing their civil war over the dead bodies of American soldiers.”
“Since Mr. Bush won’t say it,” Cunha insisted, “the Congress must.”
The complete text of Cunha’s letter is posted at TimCunhaForCongress.com. [Complete text of the letter is set forth below.]
Cunha, 57, an Ocala resident, recently filed his intention with the federal Election Commission to seek the House of Representatives seat for the 6th district in the Democratic primary; he is the only declared candidate for that nomination.
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COMPLETE TEXT OF LETTER FOLLOWS
Timothy M. Cunha
P. O. Box 6546, Ocala, FL 34478-6546
5 April 2008
Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr., Chair Senator Carl Levin, Chair
Senator Richard G. Lugar, Ranking Member Senator John McCain, Ranking Member
Senate Committee on Foreign Relations Senate Committee on Armed Services
Rep. Ike Skelton, Chair Rep. Howard L. Berman, Chair
Rep. Duncan Hunter, Ranking Member Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Ranking Member
House Committee on Armed Services House Committee on Foreign Affairs
United States Capitol All via fax
Washington, DC
Re: Petraeus/Crocker hearings
Dear Honorable Members of Congress:
In conjunction with your consideration of the Iraq Supplemental Appropriations bill and other related legislation, your respective committees will be hearing the testimony of General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker, early this week. This is an opportunity to get answers to the questions the vast majority of American’s are asking. If I were in Congress, these are the questions I would be asking
Due to America’s continued involvement in Iraq, entangled in the midst of its religious and sectarian civil war:
• The administration has taken its eye off the ball in Afghanistan and Pakistan, allowing Al Qaeda to regenerate.
• Iran’s influence across the Middle East has expanded dramatically.
• Our ability to work with allies has been badly damaged.
• Our military has been stretched to its breaking point and our ability to meet other national security challenges has been limited.
• Our National Guard is still diverted from its fundamental purpose of guarding our nation and is not available here at home in the event of hurricanes and other disasters and in the event of terrorist attacks to our homeland.
Therefore, I request that you ask the General and the Ambassador:
“Is the continued American involvement in the Iraq civil war making America safer?”
Additional questions must be answered as well:
Our 16 national intelligence agencies agree that the most direct threat to the U.S. homeland is actually from the borderland between Afghanistan and Pakistan, where Osama bin Laden and his lieutenants are supposedly hiding.
Why are all our military resources in Iraq?
We were told that the purpose of the surge was to create an improved security situation that would enable Iraq’s political leaders to reconcile. But General Petraeus recently stated that: “No one… feels that there has been sufficient progress by any means in the area of national reconciliation.”
Have the factions in Iraq failed to use the surge to reconcile their differences?
Why are we still spilling American blood and American resources so that the religious and secular leaders of Iraq can prolong their interminable feuding?
General Petraeus told CBS News that the inability to find jobs and integration for the Sunni Militias that we are training and supporting is the thing above all else that keeps him up at night. But so far, this is not happening.
How do we ensure that they won’t just turn against us and that we aren’t training and arming both sides in a civil war?
What are the details of the “Security Framework” that the Administration is negotiating with the Iraqi government?
Will it tie the hands of the next President and keep us in Iraq for years, for decades?
CIA Director General Michael Hayden been quoted as saying that we did not know about the recent Basra operation before it began.
Why, with 150,000 troops and all our intelligence and advisors, did we not know?
Why didn’t the Iraqis tell us?
If the Iraqi government refuses to cooperate with us, why are we still there?
Americans of all political persuasions are appalled by and fed up with the human and financial cost of Mr. Bush’s war. Our military personnel are valiantly battling in an internal conflict that will not be resolved until the American government says:
“Enough is enough. The leaders of Iraq have had a chance to reconcile and build a better country for their people; but, they have refused to do so. We will begin a responsible withdrawal of our troops to let them know we are serious, that their time is running out, and that they will not be supported in continuing their civil war over the dead bodies of American soldiers.”
Since Mr. Bush won’t say it, the Congress must.
Sincerely,
Tim Cunha
Candidate for Congress
6th District of Florida