How many lives will it take before we end this war?

Today, General David Petraeus testified before Congress about the war in Iraq.

Unfortunately, General Petraeus is a good man being forced to justify a disastrous war.

How many more American and Iraqi lives, and how many billions of dollars will it take before President Bush admits it?

The troop surge in Iraq isn't working to bring peace and stability to that country. No amount of wishful thinking or extended deployments will change that fact.

Despite all evidence to the contrary, President Bush and his top advisers continue to insist the escalation of the Iraq war is a prescription for success. It is mind boggling just how disconnected from reality this administration really is.

And despite his efforts to remake his record, Gordon Smith voted for this escalation and is just as responsible as George Bush for the ongoing debacle in Iraq.

Unfortunately, there are no good options in Iraq.

Lasting peace will only be achieved when the Iraqi government makes the political decisions needed to bring the Iraqi civil war to an end; and when the Bush Administration engages in diplomacy with Iraq's neighbors in the region, including Syria and Iran.

Congress has never granted the president the authority to use our troops to police a civil war in Iraq. And they shouldn't. It is time to bring our troops home, and we should start today. If the president won't exercise his duty as commander-in-chief to bring an end to this war, Congress should do it for him.

But I need your help to make that happen.

We are building the largest grassroots campaign in the history of Oregon. Please join our campaign for new progressive leadership in the U.S Senate. Make a donation, volunteer your time, tell your friends, and join the conversation at JeffMerkley.com.

For Oregon,
Jeff Merkley

Posted September 10, 2007
By Jeff Merkley, Spotlight

Jeff Merkley was born in the small town of Myrtle Creek, Oregon, the son of a sawmill worker. He's fought hard for working families in Oregon and he's ready to help lead America.

As Oregon's Speaker of the House, Jeff Merkley led one of the most effective, efficient and progressive legislative sessions in Oregon's history - with big achievements for schools, ethics, health care, jobs, alternative energy, and protections for working families.

Discover why Jeff Merkley is ready to lead.

From the Oregonian:

Merkley raced [quarter-midget cars] as a child, and once owned -- and crashed -- a Harley. He roomed with an impoverished family in Ghana as a teen, hitchhiked across Israel as a young man and went on, as he puts it, to help shut down one of Portland's worst crack alleys.

"I've lived," he says, "a pretty unconventional life."

Read the Oregonian profile of Jeff Merkley's life before politics.

Paid for by Jeff Merkley for Oregon