“Keep working with me.” —Congressman Keith Ellison

BY PHIL WILLKIE

Keith Ellison held a community meeting Sunday, April 15, at the Powderhorn Park Building in South Minneapolis to explain his vote on the Iraq War Supplemental Bill. Many in the peace community were angry about his vote to fund the war for another year.

When he was introduced, Ellison partisans gave him a standing ovation while many peace activists gently applauded. A sign at the front of the room read, “How will funding the war for another 515 days bring us peace?”

Ellison admitted that the vote was very hard for him personally. He said he voted for the bill because, for the first time, a congressional bill set an exit date from Iraq. “It is more different to govern than it is to be in the opposition. A majority of Democrats from ‘blue dogs’ (Democrats considered to be conservative) to the Out of Iraq caucus came together under the leadership of Speaker Nancy Pelosi to successfully challenge Bush’s war without end,” Ellison said. Pelosi had promised the Congressional Progressive Caucus an up-or-down vote later on invading Iran, and Ellison expressed confidence in her leadership.

Ellison encouraged the crowd to keep up the pressure against the war, but he added, “When we leave here we must come together.”

Most of the meeting was spent allowing citizens to vent their feelings about Ellison’s war vote.

First in line was peace activist Charlie Underwood—who had been active in Ellison’s election campaign. Underwood recited grim numbers of this war—over a million Iraqis dead; 3,300 American military dead; $500 billion spent. Underwood ventured that 5,000 Americans would be dead by the time the war funding bill calls to end American involvement in Iraq. He wanted to know how giving another $100 billion to this war would bring peace? Underwood concluded: “Calling this an antiwar vote makes no sense.”

Ellison replied that voting against the bill and with the President would be worse. Later in the discussion he was reminded that he vowed not to fund the war. Ellison countered that he had not imagined that a funding bill would be tied to an antiwar vote.

Socialist Ty Moore called the Democrats a war party and called on Ellison to break with them—and build an independent movement to bring the war to an end.

A Gold Star Mom read a letter from Becky Lourey—former Minnesota legislator and candidate for governor who lost a son in Iraq—supporting Keith’s vote.
Minneapolis School Board Member Pam Costain pleaded with the crowd not to eat their own and received thunderous applause. She said the left had eaten up Paul Wellstone.

Civil rights attorney Jordan Kushner said, “Keith’s vote showed that his loyalty to the Democratic Party exceeded his loyalty to the peace movement. The peace movement was at the base of his campaign. We thought he was one of us when he pledged not to fund the war.” Kushner believes Ellison could not have won the DFL endorsement and the DFL primary without the active involvement of the peace community.

Marv Davidov—founder of the Honeywell Project—afterward said the vote made no sense. “You can’t fund a war and oppose it at the same time.” Davidov thinks that a straight up-or-down vote on the war—even if it had lost—would have done more to advance the peace movement.

Communist Irwin Marquit supported Ellison’s vote. He said we needed to take every opportunity to weaken Bush’s authority. “This is just one step in a strategy to bring the war to an end. But we need to keep the pressure on—outside the halls of Congress,” Marquit said. He recalled that in 1972 the Minnesota Legislature passed a resolution telling the state’s attorney general not to send any Minnesota National Guard members to Vietnam. The state Supreme Court later overruled that resolution. “The important thing is this kind of struggle keeps pressure on and empowers the antiwar movement,” Marquit said.

Peace activist Don Irish said our occupation of Iraq was just symbolic of America’s history of imperialism: “We have overthrown governments around the world. We spend over 50 percent of our discretionary spending on war-related endeavors and we have U.S. military in over 100 countries.” Irish does not question Ellison’s integrity. Unlike the “blue dog” Democrats—who got pork barrel spending to vote for the bill, Ellison had nothing to gain. This was his first crucible in Congress. He did not know that his first chance to register opposition to this war would be tied to a funding bill.

One woman who said her brother was a military medic in Iraq tearfully expressed her wish to see her brother come home, and applauded Ellison’s vote as a necessary first step.

Ellison stayed at the meeting over two hours, until everyone lined up had a chance to speak. He recalled his recent trip to the Middle East. He said Syrian President Bashar Assad wants to negotiate with Israel. Ellison met with both Israeli and Palestinian leadership during his visit. He expressed opposition to an American plan to divide Iraq into Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish areas. “We do not have the right to make petitions. We need to get all the neighbors involved in finding a peaceful solution to the crisis. All of these countries have a refugee crisis on their hands,” Ellison said.

Ellison pleaded with people to keep the antiwar pressure on and not lose faith in the electoral process. “It’s easy to throw the baby out with the bath water. Keep working with me,” he pleaded.

At the end of the meeting, one Powderhorn resident said the vote setting time tables for the Iraq war never would have happened without the pressure of the peace movement.