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From:

Liberty Tree

What's happening:

The debate over the Iraq War changed last week in a simple, but profound way.  A bill introduced  on Tuesday in the Vermont State Legislature declares that the 2002 federal authorization to call up the State National Guard has expired, and would set in motion steps to recall members of the Vermont Guard.  Rep. Michael Fisher, lead sponsor of the Vermont bill says that:

It is clear that the mission that Congress authorized no longer exists. The President has no current or permanent legal authority to keep Guard members in Iraq. The Governor as Commander-in-Chief of the Vermont National Guard should take necessary steps to bring them home.

In addition to the Vermont legislation, sponsored by Rep. Michael Fisher and Senate President Pro-Tempore Peter Shumlin, legislators in Minnesota, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island plan to sponsor similar National Guard legislation in the current legislative session. Legislators in six other states, notably Maryland, Maine, and Wisconsin are working on the issue and considering following suit.

In recent years, twelve state legislatures and over 300 communities have passed resolutions protesting the Iraq War and calling withdrawal of U.S. troops from Iraq.  This new legislation is something very different.  This legislation actually ends the deployment of the Guard from Iraq. 

News media from public radio, to CBS News, to Pacifica and AlterNet have already picked up the story.  This new campaign to inject some democracy into our system of national defense is building.

• Intrigued? 

Please take a moment to read more.  We've provided you with a copy of the Vermont legislation itself, an FAQ, media reports, and several articles by Liberty Tree's Ben Manski and IPS' Karen Dolan.  Just go to our resources page at: http://www.LibertyTreeFDR.org/guard.php

• Compelled?

Once you are done reading, it's time for action.  Please see below for what you should do.

What you can do:

• If you live in VT, WI, RI, PA, NH, MN, ME or MD:

Contact the lead legislators and let them know that you support efforts to recall the Guard from Iraq.   Offer to help them mobilize public support.  And ask to be kept informed of the legislation's progress.  The lead legislators are listed below:

Vermont:    Rep. Michael Fisher, 802-989-9806
Wisconsin:    Rep. Spencer Black, 608-266-7521
Rhode Island:    Rep. David Segal, 401-432-7049
Pennsylvania:    Rep. Tony Payton, Jr., 215-744-7901
New Hampshire:    Rep. Charles Weed, 603-352-8309
Minnesota:   Rep. Frank Hornstein, 651-296-9281
Maryland:   Sen. Jamie Raskin, 301-858-3634
Maine:   Rep. Ted Koffman, 207- 288-5015

Please contact us to let us know of your involvement.  We'll keep you in the loop!

• If you live anywhere else in the U.S.A.:

Guard recall legislation should be introduced in every single state in the country.  You can help make that happen.

Contact your favorite state legislators.  Ask them to follow Vermont's lead.  Provide them with a copy of the legislation and our other supporting materials, all available on our website at http://www.LibertyTreeFDR.org/guard.php

Once you've done that, please contact us to let us know.  We'll keep you in the loop, and we'll follow up with any interested legislators to keep them in the loop too!

For more information:

Once again, there are plenty of useful materials at http://www.LibertyTreeFDR.org/guard.php

But if you'd rather click through from here, you'll find . . .

•   Our media release at http://www.libertytreefdr.org/guardrelease1.php
•   The Vermont legislation at this link
•  A legal FAQ at http://www.libertytreefdr.org/guardfaq.php  
•  AlterNet article by Ben Manski & Karen Dolan at http://www.libertytreefdr.org/democracyNews.php#news67
•   And the latest Liberty Tree Journal, filled with articles about the National Guard, Iraq Veterans Against the War, and debate and discussion into how to democratize defense at http://www.libertytreefdr.org/journal.php?journal_id=11

Areas of Focus:

History of the Guard (Bring The Guard Home), Democratizing Defense, Defense Reform (Bring The Guard Home), Iraq (Bring The Guard Home), Afghanistan (Bring The Guard Home)

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