[Peace-discuss] Monson: C-U voters want U.S.out of Iraq

[Robert Naiman]

this is a great hook for letters to the News-Gazette:

http://www.news-gazette.com/news/local/2006/11/08/c-u_voters_want_usout_of_iraq

C-U voters want U.S.out of Iraq
Mike Monson, News-Gazette, Wednesday November 8, 2006

URBANA – Champaign-Urbana voters by a wide margin want the United
States to withdraw its troops and military bases from Iraq.

Urbana voters also solidly favor impeachment of President Bush and
Vice President Cheney, and Champaign voters came close to passing a
similar impeachment proposal.

The advisory referendums were placed on the ballot last April, when
anti-war activists with AWARE, the anti-war anti-racism effort, jammed
the annual town meetings in Cunningham and City of Champaign townships
and voted to place the advisory referendums on the ballot, allowable
under a little-used state law. The two townships largely match the
boundaries of the two cities.

Cunningham Township voted 65.4 percent to 34.6 percent in favor of "an
orderly and rapid withdrawal" of military personnel and bases from
Iraq. A similarly worded advisory referendum passed by a 58.1 to 41.8
percent margin in City of Champaign Township.

A related advisory referendum in Cunningham Township to have the
governor of Illinois resist any mobilization of Illinois National
Guard units for service in Iraq also passed handily, by a 60.4 to 39.5
margin.

The results didn't surprise two AWARE members, Robert Naiman and Ricky
Baldwin, both of Urbana.

"Republican precincts are voting troops out of Iraq in Champaign,"
exulted Naiman. "Champaign's like the rest of the country, they want
the troops to come home."

"It means everybody's fed up with this war," Baldwin said.

Impeachment of Bush and Cheney was favored 58.8 percent to 41.1
percent in Cunningham Township, but failed by a 53.7 percent to 46.2
percent margin in City of Champaign Township.

The votes show impeachment was favored by voters overall in
Champaign-Urbana by a 13,048 to 12,754 margin.

"It shows people want to hold Bush and Cheney accountable," said
Naiman, who argued impeachment should become part of the national
debate.

Tony Fabri, the Democratic county chairman, said he wasn't surprised
so many favor impeachment. "I talked to a lot of people who are just
fed up with the Bush administration and its policies – and that's
Republicans and Democrats."

But GOP county chair Jason Barickman called the advisory referendums
"a lot of partisan politics."

Champaign Mayor Jerry Schweighart said he found the numbers
"unbelievable" in Champaign.

"I'm just a firm believer if we cut out of there, it'll not only be a
disaster for the Iraqi people fighting for their freedom, it'll be a
disaster for the United States," Schweighart said. "Who else will ever
join with us if we cut and run?"

-- 
Robert Naiman
Just Foreign Policy
www.justforeignpolicy.org