Cantwell's blind support for war making it difficult to get volunteers

I just wrote this letter to the Seattle Times, in response to their most recent article on Senator Cantwell's campaign.

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Like Arthur Ruger, I'm a union leader (delegate to the Pierce County Central Labor Council for NALC Branch 130). And like many of the folks you reference in the article, I am opposed to the war in Iraq. I am also opposed to Senator Cantwell's position on so-called "free trade". In addition, I'm a delegate to the State Democratic Convention, where I will be strongly voicing my opposition to Senator Cantwell's position on these issues.

I thought you did a pretty good job of showing folks why the Senator's campaign hasn't picked up much traction. I'm going to tell you the same thing I told my friends in the Labor Council: Senator Cantwell is going to lose unless she reverses course on one of these critical issues.

Regarding the war, she doesn't have to claim that it's her fault our men and women are dying. All she has to do is say that the war is unwinnable, and it's time to bring our troops home. What possible reason could she have for not doing that?

And regarding free trade, workers all across this state are seeing their wages stagnating or even plummeting relative to inflation, and yet Senator Cantwell continues to support misguided policies like CAFTA, which only benefit multinational corporations, and which hurt workers in all member countries by depressing wages and pushing farmers off their land. The loss of land for farmers has been one of the major factors in the dramatic rise of undocumented workers coming to the US.

One candidate represents the true Democratic Party position on both of these issues. His name is Mark Wilson, and he's running against Cantwell in the Democratic primary. And for some reason, you failed to mention him at all in your story. I find it hard to believe that none of those protestors ever once mentioned his campaign.

I am supporting Mark Wilson because he has taken a clear moral stand on these issues, and he represents ordinary Americans way more than some dot-com billionaire ever could. Sure, Cantwell might win her seat again by cozying up to the elusive so-called "moderates" on issues like gas prices and ANWR, but the real action in the Democratic party right now is centered around ending the war and bringing back good jobs to this country. If she were to change her position on either one of these issues, Mark Wilson wouldn't have a dog's chance in hell. But, unfortunately for us, she has been too proud, or too corrupt, to do that until now.

Categories: War & Peace