Help elect progressive leader Mark DeSaulnier
Progressive leaders you helped elect in 2008 have voted against funding for the war in Afghanistan, called for a quicker withdrawal from Iraq, and helped defeat wasteful F-22 fighter jets. We are having an impact. Now we must turn our attention to one the most critical districts in the country in our work to oppose new nuclear weapons.
On September 1st, candidates will compete in a rare competitive special election to replace Rep. Ellen Tauscher, who has joined the State Department to work on nuclear nonproliferation. After an intensive process of questionnaires and meeting with candidates, Peace Action West has decided to throw our support behind progressive leader Sen. Mark DeSaulnier. Click here to send him to Washington, DC.
To volunteer in this last critical week, call Stephanie from the DeSaulnier campaign at 925-210-0240.
The tenth congressional district is home to the Lawrence Livermore Nuclear Weapons Laboratory, one of the few places in the country where nuclear weapons work takes place. As battles rage within the Obama administration about whether we need to bring back the dangerous Reliable Replacement Warhead, a new nuclear weapon, we need to know we have a champion of our vision of a nuclear weapons free world representing Livermore and the rest of the tenth district. Click here to contribute to Mark DeSaulnier’s campaign.
Sen. DeSaulnier has represented the Bay Area in public office for more than twenty-five years. A proud progressive, he stands out amongst the crowd of candidates for his commitment to eliminating nuclear weapons and building a better foreign policy based on diplomacy, development and aid rather than the reckless use of military force and investment in Cold War weapons. In a special election like this one, it all comes down to being able to turn people out on election day. Your help in this last week is essential.
Our work to defeat new nuclear weapons like the Reliable Replacement Warhead and the nuclear bunker buster depended on the effective organizing we did in this district. We need to keep this momentum going as we have a window of opportunity to work toward a nuclear weapons free world.
Paid for by the Peace Action West Voter Fund.
State Senator DeSaulnier’s statement (quoted in Peace Action West’s press release announcing his endorsement) that he “will stand with President Obama to end the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan” indicates that he will concentrate more on currying favor with his party’s leadership than pushing within his party for it to adopt whatever more progressive positions he holds. The Obama administration has expanded the US war in Afghanistan and adopted a plan for withdrawal from Iraq that is actually continuing the occupation. Are those the positions on which Mark DeSaulnier is “stand[ing] with President Obama”?
Peace voters in the 10th Congressional District (and peace activists in the broader area) should instead support Mary McIlroy, the Peace and Freedom Party candidate, the Green candidate, or one of the Democratic candidates who both opposes the US occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan and realizes that the Obama administration isn’t ending them.
As I mentioned in the post, we made our decision to endorse Sen. DeSaulnier based on a process of soliciting questionnaires from candidates and requesting meetings to brief them on our priority issues. We chose Sen. DeSaulnier because he gave strong answers to our questionnaire and he stood out amongst the candidates in his desire to promote a progressive agenda in Congress that includes ending the war in Iraq, promoting diplomacy and development in Afghanistan, pursuing diplomacy with Iran and eliminating nuclear weapons.
Rebecca,
What Legislative Action did you get Senator DeSaulnier to commit to?
Candidates Anthony Woods and David Peterson both proposed solutions to the ongoing Wars & Occupation in the Mid-East require new ideas and new efforts outside the Military options the Obama Administration is emphasizing.
Does Senator DeSaulnier support their solutions?
For 14 years, our Congress member claimed to be an expert in nuclear non-proliferation, yet she took no Legislative Action to clear up the decaying Nuclear Arsenals of the former Soviet Union. As a result, we are all at greater risk today then we were 14 years ago.
So back to my first question, What Legislative Action did you get Senator DeSaulnier to commit to?
The value of your endorsement would carry far more weight if you shared the details with us.