(Washington,
D.C.)
–
The
centrist
Republican
Main
Street
Partnership
is
urging
the
majority
in
the
House
of
Representatives
not
to
play
politics
with
funding
for
American
service
members
in
Iraq.
The
nation’s
leading
center-right
organization
applauded
the
effort
to
reach
across
the
aisle
to
find
a
way
to
work
together
on
productive
solutions
led
by
Congressmen
Mike
Castle
(R-DE),
Mark
Kirk
(R-IL),
Charlie
Dent
(R-PA) ,
Jim
Gerlach
(R-PA),
Randy
Kuhl
(R-NY),
Thomas
Petri
(R-WI),
and
Todd
Platts
(R-PA).
“The Main Street Partnership is concerned that the Iraq War Supplemental bill being offered by Democrats in the House contain billions of dollars in special interest-driven pork barrel spending that places enactment of the needed emergency spending bill in jeopardy,” said current President and CEO of the Partnership and former U.S. Representative Charles F. Bass (R-NH). “We urge the majority to resist the urge to play politics with this critical funding for the troops and to resist forcing a cynical showdown with the White House.”
These leading House centrists are sending a letter to the Democratic Leadership to urge restraint in using the spending bill and the troops as a political gimmick and down-payment on promises made to their special interests. The letter states “Army officials have warned that disruptive changes in day-to-day operations will occur without immediate supplemental funding. Unfortunately, the bill approved by the House Appropriations Committee on March 15th includes billions of dollars and unrelated provisions not requested by the Administration or our military leaders, which have the potential to obstruct passage of this vital emergency funding.”
“Many Main Street members demonstrated their sincere commitment to a change in policy in Iraq by joining the majority in the House in opposing the President’s troop surge,” continued Bass. “Democrats should live up to their promise to work in a bipartisan manner – certainly with those members who have demonstrated good faith and a willingness to work toward a political solution that results in outcome we can all support. Democratic leadership in the House should be focused on getting our troops home as soon as possible, having Iraq and their neighbors take responsibility for their own security and civil order, and working to reduce ethnic and religious pressure and volatility in the entire region. Our brave men and women in harms way, and indeed the country at large, would be well served if Democrats resisted the temptation to extract special interest goodies through such a cynical political calculation.”
# #
#
The
Republican
Main
Street
Partnership
(RMSP)
is
dedicated
to
promoting
and
building
a
pragmatic,
thoughtful,
fiscally
conservative,
and
inclusive
“Governing
Majority,”
where
political
debate
is
encouraged
to
promote
solutions
to
improve
the
lives
of
all
Americans.
Embracing
the
full
spectrum
of
center-right
ideologies
and
values
in
order
to
build
coalitions,
RMSP
is
the
largest
organization
of
elected
leaders
who
are
in
the
mold
of
Abraham
Lincoln,
Teddy
Roosevelt,
and
Ronald
Reagan.
For
more
information
on
RMSP,
visit
our
website
at
www.republicanmainstreet.org.
