Big Dogs Weblog

Congressman Gilchrest Lacks Backbone

by Big Dog on Mar 25, 2007 at 12:00 Political

I wrote a letter to Congressman Gilchrest (actually a contact from his web site) and I chided him for his vote against the troop surge in Iraq. I was very clear in my dissatisfaction and made it clear that neither I nor any of my family and friends who live in his district intend to support him in the next election. Fortunately for him, he will probably run unopposed. Congressman Gilchrest wrote me a letter to justify his position and it described his service in Vietnam and how he hoped leaders back home would find a way to end the war. Congressman, the way to end a war is to WIN it. Unfortunately, too many members of Congress only care about winning their next election. Perhaps if they put as much effort into winning the war as they do winning their seats, we could end this quickly and be done with it.

I was not satisfied with his letter which he claims provided support for the troops. Now Congressman Gilchrest voted, just this past week, to set time lines for the phased withdrawal of our troops. His web site explains his position and he places heavy emphasis on the fact that the vote provides funding for the troops. In essence, he is right. The bill does provide our troops with funding but it also adds a ton of things that have nothing to do with the war. Additionally, the bill ties the hands of our Commander in Chief by setting time lines. Gilchrest was one of only two Republicans who voted for this bill. Is he and the others who voted for it so dense that they do not understand that the enemy is a patient group of people who will wait us out and then reign more terror on the region? Does he think that tying the hands of the President will allow us to effectively fight and WIN?

Gilchrest can rationalize all he wants on his web site. The fact of the matter is that he and the rest of the House voted on a bill that is loaded with pork. The bill provides money for a lot of things that have nothing to do with the war. There are lots of presents for friends of Congress. This is immoral and unethical and does nothing to help the troops. The bill, because of the time lines and pork, will surely be vetoed by the President. That means the whole process will have to start over and these so called leaders will have to provide money for the troops or risk feeling the wrath of constituents. I want someone to explain this (from Gilchrest’s web site):

This funding was critical to the safety and security of our troops and I would find it unconscionable to vote against this funding.

Wayne, explain to me and my readers how it is unconscionable to vote against funding but it is perfectly OK (and therefore conscionable) to vote in favor of time lines and PORK! Have you no sense of right and wrong? It is wrong to load a bill for military funding with pork and time lines. That sir, is unconscionable and you should be ashamed.

The troops on the ground understand quite clearly what these unethical and immoral boneheads in Congress are doing. The members of the House are well aware that President Bush will veto this bill so why did they waste so much time on it when it had no chance of becoming law?

Perhaps it is because they wanted to shout from the mountain tops that Bush does not support the troops. When the bill is vetoed the members of the House will trumpet the fact that Bush vetoed funding and they will ignore the fact that he vetoed the bill because of the pork and the time lines. The line item veto never looked so good as it does right now. It is my hope that the President will make a big deal out of the veto and explain to America that he could not sign a bill that ties his and our troops’ hands and is laden with non-war related pork.

Wayne Gilchrest is obviously proud of his vote and his web site spells out his opinion. That opinion was held by him and one other Republican. Obviously, Gilchrest thinks he knows more than the others and he is willing to cut and run with the Democrats. I would think that he would have learned from the fiasco in Vietnam. That defeat was handed to this country by Congress and it cost millions of Vietnamese their lives.

Wayne, I want you to understand this and understand it clearly. We must win this war no matter what it takes. We must send a clear message to our enemies and our potential enemies that we will fight when needed and we will stay until the job is done. Don’t be fooled by the results of the last election because Americans did not change direction to end the war. They changed because Republicans failed to lead. Americans want our troops to come home, that is a given but they want to bring them home as a result of a win. By voting to cut and run you have demonstrated that you are not willing to give the troops what they need to win, despite your claims to the contrary.

You are a disgrace and I look forward to removing you from your job in the next election. Like I told you in my first letter, I am your employer and you would do well to remember that.

If you would like to write to Wayne, here is his contact form and this is a link to his snail mail addresses. If the site rejects your email based on address and zip code, use one of his local office addresses to get through.

Tags: Commentary, Political