For 2022, I have a New Year’s Resolution that I would like others to join me in adopting. End unconstitutional U.S. participation in the Saudi war-blockade-famine-genocide in Yemen with a War Powers vote in the House by March 25, which would be the seventh anniversary of the war.
This isn’t going to be a walk in the park. From where we stand now, we’re drawing to an inside straight, because our current majority in the House against the U.S.-Saudi war on Yemen is narrow, and because we can expect Dem POTUS to try to twist arms against us. We have to nail to the floor House Democrats who voted with us before, and win enough House Republicans to compensate for the House Democrats that we lose due to Dem POTUS arm-twisting. Our execution has to be flawless, like GOTV in a swing district. But this is a Winnable Vote. Here’s what we have to do, between now and the vote in March, in order to win the vote.
1. Mobilize the whole U.S. peace movement, all over the country, from the high school kids to the old fogies, everybody who ever did anything on this, and everybody who hasn’t done anything on this yet.
2. Mobilize the base progressive Democratic groups who work elections, not just to sign the letter to House Democrats as it goes by, but to help mobilize the Street Heat on House Democrats before the vote, including on all the Democrats who voted with us before.
3. Get statements of support ahead of the vote from the labor unions, religious groups, environmental groups, civil rights groups, and women’s rights groups that House Democrats care about, and make sure House Democrats see those statements before the vote.
4. Mobilize the Empire-skeptic Republicans and the Republicans who hate the Saudi regime. If they are both Empire-skeptic and hate the Saudi regime, we love them even more.
5. Get our Senate Democratic Champions to use their Big Megaphones to help us put pressure on House Democrats ahead of the vote. Especially Uncle Bernie and Aunt Elizabeth. We need them to use their Big Megaphones on our behalf.
6. Get the Washington Post and Politico to publish “whip lists” ahead of the vote - like they did when we defeated Obama’s efforts in 2013 to get an authorization for the use of military force in Syria - so that everyone can see that we’re winning, so that everyone can see that the momentum is with the insurgency, in order to defeat the DC insider gaslighting and other psychological warfare tactics of the adversary.
That’s a lot of stuff to do. So we’re going to need a lot of helping hands to help us do it. That’s why everybody has to pitch in, like an Amish barn raising. That’s why we have to start building the Mighty Snowball now, so that by March, the Mighty Snowball is big enough to roll over the adversary. We have less than three months to build the Mighty Snowball.
That’s why it’s a great New Year’s Resolution to adopt and share with all your friends and companions. The more people who vote for the Resolution, the more likely it is to come true.