>Clicking here will sign your name:
>"Congress must push the Obama administration to outline firm benchmarks
>and a binding timeline to bring all of our troops home from Afghanistan as
>soon as possible."
>
>Sign the petition
>Dear MoveOn member,
>
>Last night, President Obama announced that he will send 30,000 more troops
>to Afghanistanon top of the 68,000 who are already there.
>
>MoveOn is its members, so after the speech, we asked thousands of members
>what they think of the president's plan. While some support his decision
>to send more troops, a significant majority think escalating the war is
>wrong. Where all of us agree is that we need to begin bringing our troops
>home as quickly and safely as possible. (You can see more detailed results
>below.)
>
>As Sandy M. in Oregon put it, "Millions of lives will be tragically
>altered. Innocent people, by the thousands, will lose their lives. We have
>plenty of nation building to do, and it's in our country, not others."
>
>While the president acknowledged that our commitment in Afghanistan cannot
>be open-ended, we have to act now to make sure our representatives and
>senators hold him to that. President Obama said he'll begin withdrawing
>troops in July, 2011, but news reports are already suggesting that
>withdrawal could be very limited, so pressure from Congress will be key.1
>
>Congress could take up legislation related to the war this month, so we
>need to get the message to them quickly. Can you sign our emergency
>petition calling on Congress to end the war as quickly as possible?
>Clicking below will add your name:
>
> pol. moveon.org/afghan_timeline/?id=18131-10894833-rlZ0mux&t=3
>
>The petition says, "Congress must push the Obama administration to outline
>firm benchmarks and a binding timeline to bring all of our troops home
>from Afghanistan as soon as possible."
>
>When we asked MoveOn members what they think about the situation in
>Afghanistan, they acknowledged the mess that George W. Bush left for
>President Obama. Still, nearly all MoveOn members agree that we must have
>a clear military exit strategy with a firm timeline so we can end the war
>quickly.
>But right-wing hawks like Sen. John McCain are already pushing the
>President to continue the war indefinitely.2 In the face of this pressure,
>the majority of Americans, who oppose the war, must speak up.
>
>The costs of this war are enormousfor the men and women of our armed
>forces who face injury or death, for Afghans who will suffer increased
>violence and civilian casualties, and for American citizens who are
>spending billions of dollars without being any safer. The administration
>and Congress have to hear from those of us who want to see the war come to
>an end.
>
>Can you sign our emergency petition now telling Congress to work to bring
>our troops home? Clicking below will add your name:
>
> pol. moveon.org/afghan_timeline/?id=18131-10894833-rlZ0mux&t=4
>
>Thanks for all you do.
>
>–Daniel, Peter, Lenore, Kat, and the rest of the team
>
>P.S. We've been hearing from MoveOn members about Afghanistan for months
>now, so we wanted to get a sense of what people were thinking in the wake
>of President Obama's speech. So, since last night's speech, we've asked
>more than 50,000 randomly selected MoveOn members to let us know what they
>think about the President's plan.
>
>There's no question the situation in Afghanistan is difficult, and MoveOn
>members, like all Americans, are wrestling with the lack of good options.
>But right now, a significant majority of us oppose escalating the war.
>We've posted the results of the surveys we ran at:
>
>http://pol.moveon.org/afghanistan/post_speech_surveys.html?id=18131-10894833-rlZ0mux&t=5
>
>And here's what some MoveOn members had to say:
>
>"War is not the answer. We don't have the money. We need to get our own
>house in order."Theresa T., Fort Bragg, CA
>
>"A terrible waste of American and Afghan lives with slim chance of
>positive outcomes. If Americans are asked to fund anything with a new tax
>it should be universal healthcare not warfare."Carol B., Port Hadlock, WA
>
>"I respect President Obama. I respect his opinions and the information he
>has, that I don't. At the same time, I want us out of the war zone. I am
>very concerned."Patricia D., Reno, NV
>
>"I don't feel that it's possible to accomplish whatever it is we're trying
>to accomplish there, and I want the waste of lives and money to stop
>immediately."Barbara E., Rock Stream, NY
>
>"We need to keep our kids here, not send them to fight battles
>elsewhere."Beth W., Gold Beach, OR
>
>"We have too many problems here at home. Our national debt is huge. We do
>not need to be adding more to it."Marietta H., Carson, CA
>
>"I think this a very tough thing. We cannot run out on the Afghan people,
>but if they cannot rise to the occasion by 2011, then we should come home
>and be done!"Peter M., Newbury Park, CA