Thank you, House Democrats.
That is, thank you to the 151 House Democrats (and, oh yeah, four Republicans) who voted Thursday against continuing to fund the occupation of Iraq. As opposed to the 80 who voted for it. In other words, thanks to the majority.
I know that a handful of you don't really deserve thanks. You voted "nay" with the full knowledge that this funding was going to pass anyway. If you had seen that the vote was going to be a little closer, had there actually been the possibility that the nays would have constituted the House majority, you would have voted "aye" for fear of being labeled, come November - or on the upcoming Fourth of July - as an unpatriotic terrorist-sympathizer who doesn't "support the troops." So maybe that thanks is really only due to 147 of you. Or 143. Who knows? No way to parse out all the ulterior motive possibilities.
Nearly six years ago, 126 House Democrats voted against the Iraq War Resolution, officially known as the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002. You weren't properly thanked for that. Eighty-one Democrats voted for the AUMF.
If you happen to be one of those who voted against the funding today and also voted against the AUMF in 2002, a double huzzah.
And if you're a visitor to this site whose Representative is one of the folks listed below, drop her or him a thank-you by e-mail or a phone call.
Neil Abercrombie, Gary Ackerman, Thomas H. Allen, Jason Andrews, Michael Arcuri, Joe Baca, Tammy Baldwin, Xavier Becerra, Sanford Bishop, Timothy Bishop, Earl Blumenauer, Leonard Boswell, Robert Brady, Bruce Braley, G.K. Butterfield, Lois Capps, Michael E. Capuano, Dennis A. Cardoza, Russ Carnahan, Christopher P. Carson, Andre Castor, Yvette E. Clarke, Wm. Lacy Clay, Emanuel Cleaver, Steve Cohen, John Conyers Jr., Jerry F. Costello, Joe Courtney, Joseph Crowley, Elijah E. Cummings.
Danny K. Davis, Peter A. DeFazio, Diana DeGette, William D. Delahunt, Rosa L. DeLauro, John D. Dingell, Lloyd Doggett, Michael F. Doyle, Donna F. Edwards, Keith Ellison, Eliot Engel, Anna G. Eshoo, Chaka Fattah, Bob Filner, Barney Frank, Al Green, Raul M. Grijalva, Luis V. Gutierrez, John J. Hall, Phil Hare, Jane Harman, Alcee L. Hastings, Brian Higgins, Maurice D. Hinchey, Mazie K. Hirono, Paul Hodes, Rush Holt, Michael M. Honda, Darlene Hooley
Jay Inslee, Steve Israel, Jesse L Jackson Jr., Sheila Jackson-Lee, William J. Jefferson, Henry C. Johnson, E.B. Johnson, Stephanie Tubbs Jones, Steve Kagen, Marcy Kaptur, Patrick J. Kennedy, Carolyn C. Kilpatrick, Ron Klein, Dennis Kucinich, James R. Langevin, John B. Larson, Barbara Lee, John Lewis, David Loebsack, Zoe Lofgren, Nita M. Lowey, Stephen Lynch
Carolyn Maloney, Edward J. Markey, Doris O. Matsui, Carolyn McCarthy, Betty McCollum, Jim McDermott, James P. McGovern, Jerry McNerney, Michael R. McNulty, Kendrick B. Meek, Gregory W. Meeks, Michael H. Michaud, Brad Miller, George Miller, Gwen Moore, James P. Moran, Christopher S. Murphy, Patrick Murphy, Jerrold Nadler, Grace F. Napolitano, Richard E. Neal, James L. Oberstar, David R. Obey, John W. Olver, Frank Pallone Jr., Bill Pascrell Jr., Ed Pastor, Donald M. Payne, Nancy Pelosi, David E. Price
Nick J. Rahall II, Charles B. Rangel, Laura Richardson, Steve R. Rothman, Lucille Roybal-Allard, Linda T. Sánchez, Loretta Sanchez, John P. Sarbanes, Janice D. Schakowsky, Adam B. Schiff, Robert C. Scott, Jose E. Serrano, Carol Shea-Porter, Brad Sherman, Albio Sires, Louise Slaughter, Adam Smith, Hilda Solis, Jackie Speier, Bart Stupak, Betty Sutton, Ellen Tauscher, Mike Thompson, Bennie G. Thompson, John F. Tierney, Edolphus Towns, Nicki Tsongas
Tom Udall, Chris Van Hollen, Nydia Velázquez, Debbie Wasserman Schultz, Maxine Waters, Diane Watson, Melvin L. Watt, Henry Waxman, Anthony D. Weiner, Peter Welch, Robert Wexler, Lynn Woolsey, David Wu, John A. Yarmuth.
Total fatalities of American military in Iraq since March 2003: 4101
Total fatalities of coalition military: 4414
Total Iraqi fatalities as a result of the invasion and occupation: Unknown, but as many as 1.4 million
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