Dear Speaker Pelosi:

Thank you for your work to make Congress see reason regarding the war in Iraq!

Unfortunately, President Bush, Vice President Cheney, Secretary Rice and company have staked their careers on not seeing reason. Almost all Republicans in Congress have blindly gone along with this outrage.

Because of this, it is even more imperative that the Democrats in Congress stand up to Bush, and vote against the upcoming appropriations bill. The President will clearly veto any measure that would force him to acknowledge the reality in Iraq. He will veto anything that would require him to admit his mistakes. He will veto anything that would withdraw our troops from Iraq's civil war. He will veto anything that would require responsibility or accountability. Bush will veto any bill that places the interests of our country before the interests of his presidency.

The Democrats must stand firm. There must be no more blank checks for Bush to risk our soldiers' lives on his failed policy.

The American people are sick of this war. There's an old joke that defines insanity as doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Well, that's what Bush's reckless and close-minded policies are like. This war no longer serves the interests of the United States, and leaving Iraq is the best way to preserve the security of our nation and the lives of our soldiers. Bush, however, is committed to saving face at all costs, and he will never change. The only thing left for Congress to do is cut off all war funding for anything other than an orderly and responsible withdrawal. When Bush vetoes that, Congress should open hearings into Bush's impeachment.

Granted, the Democrats do not have the two-thirds majority in the Senate necessary to remove Bush and Cheney from office. However, impeachment hearings must involve calling retired general after retired general to testify about Bush's conduct of the war. The generals will tell Congress the same story I just told you. Generals Eaton and Odom, Zinni and Newbold, Traibor and Gordon, Shinseki and Batiste, McPeak and Turner, Kennedy and Montano, Clarke and Crowe, Brahms and Cullen, Foote and Gard, Hoar and Shalikashvili, will all testify that Bush, contrary to his numerous claims otherwise, has never listened to his commanders in the field. They will testify that Bush's incompetence has lost Iraq and has backfired in the struggle against terrorists. The generals will testify to this -- because they've written exactly that.

Testimony from generals would demonstrate conclusively that Bush's plan to continue the occupation of Iraq indefinitely is impossible. When the Senate Republicans hear from decorated military professionals that Bush's goals are untenable and will result only in dead American soldiers, they will be forced to remove him from office. They will do so because of public outrage, if not their own consciences.

Speaker Pelosi, the American People have empowered you to stand up to Bush and to end the war. If it comes down to it, Congress must force Bush to choose between the war in Iraq and the survival of his presidency. That's the only option Bush's fanaticism has left us.

Yours sincerely,

C. Colvin

CC: Congressman John Conyers, Jr.