Current Articles
|
Categories
|
Search
|
Syndication
| Monday, September 10, 2007 |
|
The Washington Post on Congress and Iraq
|
By JONATHAN WEISMAN AND ELIZABETH WILLIAMSON
Sunday, September 9, 2007; A04
June 27, 2007
"If we could pass it, I would stop this war today. . . . But there aren't the votes to do that."
July 17, 2007
Speaking to war protesters gathered by candlelight in the park outside the Capitol, on the night of the Senate's all-night debate on the war, Schakowsky was seized by hope for a decisive vote. Flanked by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and dozens of Democrats, she stepped to the lectern. "All we're asking now is for an up or down vote in the Senate. That's all we want," she said as the crowd applauded.
"Do you know that 18-year-olds who are being recruited today, some of them were 13 years old when this war began? We're not going to have any more teenagers growing up to go to war in Iraq. We can end it. We need your help. Let's do it tomorrow."
Sept. 6, 2007
Reviewing the Government Accountability Office and independent commission reports, Schakowsky said: "Their numbers are cherry-picked, and so what you have is a picture of one small place for one month. But the reality is this is the bloodiest summer of the war, that sectarian violence has doubled.
"The plural of 'anecdote' is not 'data.' "
Awaiting the general:
"They're on a PR offensive that to me is reminiscent of the lead-up to the war originally . . . first it was Colin Powell, and now it's David Petraeus.
"The good news is that now we control the agenda and now we control the timing here, which gives us a lot more options."
|
|
Posted by Jan Schakowsky :: 0 Comments :: Click to Read |
|
|
|
|
| Saturday, September 01, 2007 |
|
Text of Jan's Democratic Radio Response
|
“Good morning. This is Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky of Illinois.
“The President’s surge has failed and there is no end in sight for the war in Iraq. This is what I learned on my summer visit to that ravaged country.
“After arriving in Iraq in August, it didn’t take long to see that the surge failed to achieve its main goal – reducing the violence so that progress could be made on key political benchmarks. At a meeting with Iraq’s Deputy Prime Minister, Dr. Barham Saleh, our six-member Congressional delegation was informed that the night before, former Prime Minister Ayad Allawi had left the government. The week before, the Sunnis had pulled out their Cabinet members. What was left of the Parliament was on vacation, and Dr. Barham said that a political settlement ‘won’t be done this September and it won’t be done next September.’ But he never did say how many Septembers it would take.
“Later, while dining on lobster tortellini in the air-conditioned elegance of Ambassador Ryan Crocker’s home in the Green Zone, General David Petraeus, commander of our forces in Iraq, made the case with charts and pointer that the security situation had improved somewhat during the surge. And yet while we were choosing between coffee, tea, or espresso to go with our dessert, outside in the 120 degree heat on that very day, August 6, four U.S. soldiers were killed by an IED blast in Diyala, one British soldier was shot in Basra, six street cleaners were blown up, 33 Iraqis were killed in a residential neighborhood in Tal Afar, and 17 bodies killed by death squads were discovered.
“Outside in the scorching air, our young men and woman in uniform were sweating under their body armor during, what is in fact, the bloodiest summer of the war, driving on roads that our delegation flew over in Blackhawk helicopters because the driving was too dangerous for us. There they were, doing their valiant best to carry out a misguided mission, risking and too often losing their lives, while we looked at a chart telling us that in one place, in one month, after four and a half years, there had been a slight drop in violence. There was no chart showing that overall sectarian attacks around the country had nearly doubled from last year. And there was no chart that measured the more than 3,700 of our troops that have been killed and the more than 27,660 wounded, many profoundly and for life.
“Neither was there a chart showing the enormous cost of the war, now up to $3 billion a week, $12 million every hour – enough to fix all the broken bridges in our country, expand health care coverage for our children, help our students afford college, develop renewable sources of energy, and make our streets safer.
“And as we finished our strawberry cake, our troops were out in the real world and not there to hear General Petraeus tell us that the United States would be in Iraq for another nine to 10 years. That means children who are now 8 years old, who were 4 years old when the war started, could yet serve in Iraq, according to General Petraeus.
“Nine to ten years. That was not the timetable I nor most Americans had in mind, but General Petraeus acknowledged that as a military man, at the end of the day, he takes his direction from the civilian leadership. If the civilian leadership in this country determines that the war is to end and the troops come home, then that is what will happen.
“I took his statement as a challenge. The Congress of the United States is reconvening on Tuesday. Most Democrats and a growing number of Republicans have come to the same conclusion – the best way to protect our troops is to end this war in Iraq.
“With the President stubbornly continuing to stay the course in Iraq, I urge my Republican colleagues to join with Democrats and the vast majority of Americans who are demanding a new direction in Iraq and refocusing America’s efforts on fighting the real threats of terrorism around the world.
“This is Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky. Thank you for listening.”
|
|
Posted by Jan Schakowsky :: 1 Comments :: Click to Read |
|
|
|
|
| Monday, August 27, 2007 |
|
The Washington Post on Congress and Iraq
|
Sunday, August 26, 2007; Page A08
CHICAGO When Rep. Jan Schakowsky made her first trip to Iraq this month, the outspoken antiwar liberal resolved to keep her opinions to herself. "I would listen and learn," she decided.
At times that proved a challenge, as when Deputy Prime Minister Barham Salih told her congressional delegation, "There's not going to be political reconciliation by this September; there's not going to be political reconciliation by next September." Schakowsky gulped -- wasn't that the whole idea of President Bush's troop increase, to buy time for that political progress?
But the real test came over a lunch with Gen. David H. Petraeus, who used charts and a laser pointer to show how security conditions were gradually improving -- evidence, he argued, that the troop increase is doing some good.
( Click Here to Read the Article.) |
|
Posted by Jan Schakowsky :: 0 Comments :: Click to Read |
|
|
|
|
| Wednesday, August 22, 2007 |
|
Town Hall Meetings on Iraq
|
Congresswoman Schakowsky is going to be participating in two town hall meetings to discuss her recent visit to the Middle East and the ongoing war in Iraq. Hope you can join us!
PLEASE JOIN
CONGRESSWOMAN JAN SCHAKOWSKY
TOWN HALL MEETING
ON
JAN'S RECENT TRIP TO IRAQ AND AFGHANISTAN
DATE: SATURDAY, AUGUST 25
TIME: 1:30 – 3:00pm
PLACE: ST. ANDREW'S GREEK ORTHODOX CHURCH
5649 N. SHERIDAN RD.,CHICAGO, 60660
Near the Bryn Mawr Red Line el stop
Parking available
Contact Congresswoman Schakowsky's office with questions
(773) 506-7100
Americans Against the Escalation in Iraq
Town Hall Meeting
Tuesday, August 28th, 7pm
Renaissance Hotel, 933 Skokie Blvd, Northbrook
North Suburban Citizens Want a Safe and
Responsible End to the War in Iraq!
Join Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (IL-9) for a North Shore town hall meeting where she will report on her August 2007 trip to Iraq. The Congresswoman will give an update on the current status of our troops and the war.
Congressman Mark Kirk (IL-10) has been invited to attend this town hall to give a report on his meeting with President Bush and on his votes to support the President’s reckless strategy. He has not yet responded to the invitation.
The meeting will be moderated by Aaron Freeman, commentator on National Public Radio's flagship news program "All Things Considered” and long time Chicago-based political activist.
Please come out and join veterans, their families, community leaders and the public to this important town meeting where we will ask the members of Congress in the 9th and 10th Districts of Illinois to:
TAKE A STAND WITH THEIR CONSTITUENTS
NOT PRESIDENT BUSH!
Please RSVP by calling
(847) 562-5239
|
|
Posted by Jan Schakowsky :: 3 Comments :: Click to Read |
|
|
|
|
| Tuesday, July 31, 2007 |
|
Sun-Times LTE: This is Freedom of Choice?
|
Chicago Sun-Times
Tuesday, July 31st, 2007
On Monday the Bush administration took a giant step backward when it put the dream of citizenship further out of reach for tens of thousands of Illinois families. On Monday the U.S. Immigration and Citizenship Services increased its immigration application fees by almost 66 percent.
The fee increase will have a devastating impact on millions of immigrants who are trying to become full, active and legal participants in our society. The increase means that new immigrants would be forced to pass a means test in order to become citizens.
According to the agency, the fee increase will cover the costs of processing hundreds of thousands of immigration applications and petitions every year. Although it faces a backlog of more than 700,000 applications, the agency has not asked Congress for money to deal with this influx. Instead, they decided to offset their operating expenses by putting the entire financial burden on the backs of hardworking immigrants who are playing by the rules.
It is clear that the Bush administration devised this plan to make the cost of becoming a citizen so prohibitive that people would decide not to immigrate to this country.
In March, Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.), Rep. Luis Gutierrez (D-Ill.) and I introduced the Citizenship Promotion Act, which would have authorized Congress to appropriate funds to the agency for the immigration application process so that immigrants are not forced to bear the entire cost of their application. The measure would have also expedited the application process by supporting efforts to educate immigrants about the legal citizenship process, making electronic filing voluntary, and requesting a Government Accountability Office investigation into delays into the background check process.
Although we were unable to stop these increases, I will continue to work with my colleagues in the Senate and the House to reduce the financial burden for tens of thousands of immigrants in Illinois who are legally trying to pursue the dream of becoming American citizens.
Rep. Jan Schakowsky (D-Ill.)
|
|
Posted by Jan Schakowsky :: 1 Comments :: Click to Read |
|
|
|
|
| Monday, July 30, 2007 |
|
Part Four of the Washington Post series on Congress and Iraq
|
|
Sunday, July 29, 2007; A06
Rep. Jan Schakowsky hurried through the side door of the Capitol on Thursday and upstairs to the House floor to look for answers.
The Illinois Democrat and her antiwar colleagues had heard that one of their own was crafting a weaker Iraq withdrawal plan. Early in the week, rumors were spreading that Rep. John P. Murtha (Pa.), one of the first pro-war Democrats to turn against the conflict, was apparently prepared to drop the spring deadline for troop pullouts that House and Senate Democrats had been demanding for months. Specifics of his plan were hard to come by, and even Democratic leaders were in the dark. They had been discussing three Iraq proposals for a vote this week, but none of them included Murtha's idea.
"I would certainly prefer to see an end date," Schakowsky said carefully, hesitant to criticize her friend. Democrats had already secured narrow majorities in both chambers for a spring withdrawal deadline. "Why should we have less than that? Also, I am not interested in giving any cover to mostly Republicans who have talked about getting out of Iraq."
As the week went on, Schakowsky grew more anxious. By Thursday, she had not heard from Murtha, so she went looking for him. "The one thing I do know is that Jack Murtha, more than most . . . definitely wants to get our troops out of there," she said. But this new idea had her puzzled: "I don't know what his thinking was.
"I'm going to get to the bottom of this right now," she vowed as she charged into the Capitol.
After her talk with Murtha, she sounded more upbeat. His proposal, she said, "is a work in progress. It's not the final word."
(Link to the Washington Post series with audio.)
|
|
Posted by Jan Schakowsky :: 0 Comments :: Click to Read |
|
|
|
|
| Wednesday, July 25, 2007 |
|
House Approves Measure to Prohibit Permanent Bases in Iraq
|
Washington, D.C.—U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) applauded the passage of H.R. 2929, which would limit the use of funds to establish any permanent military bases in Iraq. The bipartisan measure, which Congresswoman Schakowsky cosponsored, passed the House overwhelmingly by a vote of 399 to 24.
Congresswoman Schakowsky delivered the following remarks on the House floor today in support of H.R. 2929.
“Mr. Speaker, I rise to strongly support H.R. 2929, a bill to prohibit permanent bases in Iraq, and I thank Congresswoman Barbara Lee and Tom Allen for their persistent leadership on this important issue.
The House passed the responsible redeployment from Iraq this month to get our troops out of Iraq by April. The question now is not whether we will redeploy our troops, but when and how.
This resolution makes it emphatically clear to the Iraqi people and to President Bush that we do not intend to keep troops in Iraq indefinitely.
The United States must not be seen as an occupier. Otherwise our presence there will be used to recruit insurgents; to keep Iraq entrenched in violence, and to create an even more dangerous environment for our troops.
This House, it’s true, has already expressed its opposition to permanent bases, but today we do it clearly with bipartisan support and send a very clear statement, and I urge all of my colleagues to listen to the will of the American people, of the Iraqi people, and support H.R. 2929.”
|
|
Posted by ariel glasser :: 0 Comments :: Click to Read |
|
|
|
|
| Wednesday, July 25, 2007 |
|
House Rejects BP's Plans to Dump Pollution into Great Lakes
|
WASHINGTON, D.C.—U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) applauded the passage of H. Con. Res. 187, which opposes British Petroleum’s (BP) dumping of industrial waste into the Great Lakes. The resolution passed the full House today by a vote of 387 to 26. The measure was introduced after BP received approval from the State of Indiana and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to dump 54 percent more ammonia and 35 percent more liquid waste into Lake Michigan.
Congresswoman Schakowsky released the following statement today after the U.S. House of Representatives passed H. Con. Res. 187.
“Today’s vote showed that Congress is united in its opposition to BP’s dumping of industrial waste into Lake Michigan. An overwhelming bipartisan majority demanded today that BP abandon plans to increase pollution into our Great Lakes.
After meeting with BP’s top executives yesterday, I believe that they finally ‘get it’ that it is completely unacceptable to pollute Lake Michigan and that it is in their best interest to find an environmentally acceptable solution to this problem.
I am cautiously optimistic that BP will return to Congress at the beginning of September with a new plan for disposing of these materials without putting the integrity of the Lake at risk.
However, if BP does not abandon their plans, then they had better prepare themselves for a fight, because Congress stands ready and willing to take any necessary action to stop BP from polluting Lake Michigan.”
|
|
Posted by ariel glasser :: 1 Comments :: Click to Read |
|
|
|
|
| Wednesday, July 25, 2007 |
|
House Approves $650,000 in FY08 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Related Agencies Appropriations
|
Washington, D.C.—Last night, the U.S. House of Representatives approved $650,000 for two projects in the 9th Congressional District of Illinois. Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky (D-IL) requested these funds as part of the FY 2008 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Related Agencies Appropriations. This bill now moves to the Senate for consideration before it can become law.
“We should be looking for ways to expand and improve transportation options for Chicagoland residents,” said U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky. “I am proud that I was able to help secure $500,000 in this bill to expand the Yellow Line in Skokie. This project would help reduce traffic congestion and improve our environment. I hope that the Senate will move quickly to pass this bill and maintain the current funding levels.”
“The Black Ensemble Theatre has been providing African-American artists with a place to showcase their talents for more than 30 years,” said U.S. Representative Jan Schakowsky. “This funding will help the Black Ensemble Theatre construct a new theatre so they can continue to foster the development of African-American artists in the Chicagoland area enriching our entire community.”
The following projects were included in the House-passed version of the FY 2008 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development and Related Agencies Appropriations.
$500,000 CTA Yellow Line Extension, Skokie, IL.
The funding would be used to extend of the CTA’s Yellow Line public transit train from Dempster Street to Old Orchard Road in Skokie, IL. The expansion was authorized in the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) bill. The project received $1 million from Section 5309 in FY 2006.
$150,000 Black Ensemble Theatre, Chicago, IL.
The funding would be used to construct a new 300 seat theater to further professional development, employment opportunities, and entertainment for a diverse field of communities. The Black Ensemble Theater is a nationally recognized organization, producing over 100 professional productions and providing employment for over 3,000 African American artists.
The FY08 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations must still pass the U.S. Senate and be signed into law by the President.
|
|
Posted by ariel glasser :: 0 Comments :: Click to Read |
|
|
|
|
|
Cost of the War in Iraq
(JavaScript Error)
Help Soldiers Injured in Iraq and Afghanistan:
http://www.beautyforthebrave.org/
Search the Site
|