Action Spotlight
Cut Social Security & Veterans' Benefits? Cut the Pentagon Instead!
President Obama has endorsed cutting Social Security and veterans' benefits by using the "chained CPI" to lower the cost-of-living adjustment. The Congressional Budget Office says cutting Social Security and veterans' benefits in this way would save the government $163 billion over ten years. But there are much better ways for the government to save $163 billiion. Email President Obama and Congress >
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JFP 4/9: 3 ways to cut $163 billion without touching Social Security; drone hearing 4/16
Just Foreign Policy News, April 9, 2013
3 ways to cut $163 billion without touching Social Security; drone hearing 4/16
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I) Actions and Featured Articles
Cut Social Security & Veterans' Benefits? Cut the Pentagon Instead
According to the CBO, Obama's proposal to cut Social Security and veterans' benefits using the chained CPI will save the government $163 billion over ten years. Three better ways to save $163 billion: end the war in Afghanistan; cut the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter by 10% (267 planes); cut Pentagon contracting and bring the work in-house.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-naiman/cut-social-security-veter_b_3040226.html
April 16: Historic Durbin hearing on drone strikes
JFP 4/1: Will Congress stop funding death squads in Honduras?
Just Foreign Policy News, April 1, 2013
Will Congress stop funding death squads in Honduras?
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I) Actions and Featured Articles
**Action: Tell Kerry: No Aid to Honduran Death Squads
Tell Secretary of State John Kerry to end all U.S. aid to all units of the Honduran National Police, whose leader has been linked to death squads, as required by U.S. law.
http://signon.org/sign/kerry-no-aid-to-honduran?source=c.url&r_by=1135580
Video: Sheikh Jarrah, My Neighbourhood
Just Vision's story of a Palestinian boy growing up inside the struggle of Palestinians to save their homes in East Jerusalem just won a Peabody Award. You can watch it for free online.
http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/witness/2012/04/201243114530739738.html
Yemen Policy Initiative: increased reliance on drones undermines US interests
This letter is signed by the former US Ambassador to Yemen, among others.
JFP 3/27: Religious leaders on drone strikes; sanctions accelerating Iran nukes
Just Foreign Policy News, March 27, 2013
Religious leaders on drone strikes; sanctions accelerating Iran nukes
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I) Actions and Featured Articles
Brave New Films Video: What Religious Leaders Want to Tell Obama on Easter
Religious leaders challenge the Obama Administration's "white paper" on drone strikes and its perversion of "just war" theory to try to justify the drone war.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FkddrkzDg3I
TBIJ on "Out of Sight, Out of Mind"
TBIJ writes on the new graphic visualization of the CIA's drone war in Pakistan.
JFP 3/25: AP busts State Department for lying to Leahy about Honduras
Just Foreign Policy News, March 25, 2013
AP busts State Department for lying to Leahy about Honduras
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I) Actions and Featured Articles
Flotilla 3.0: Redeeming Obama's Palestine Speech With Gaza's Ark
Whether you see Obama's Palestine speech as a great motivational speech or a white flag of surrender, the practical consequences for the public are largely the same: the initiative for justice is going to have to come from somewhere else.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-naiman/flotilla-30-redeeming-oba_b_2944367.html
Video: Embroidery makers of Gaza
One minute video highlights the impact of Israel's blockade of Gaza. Palestinian industries in Gaza, like the clothing industry or the crafts industry, which once thrived, are today prevented from exporting freely to markets outside Gaza, including to the Palestinian West Bank.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZDE8OJmAQ-M
JFP 3/22: No plan for Palestinian state; effect of moving drone strikes to DoD disputed
Just Foreign Policy News, March 22, 2013
No plan for Palestinian state; effect of moving drone strikes to DoD disputed
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I) Actions and Featured Articles
HuffPostLive: What Weight Does Obama's Speech Really Hold?
Just Foreign Policy talks to HuffPostLive about Obama's speech in Jerusalem, "two state fakers," and what Americans can do about it.
http://huff.lv/1058sw9
HuffPostLive: Iranians celebrate their New Year under sanctions
Just Foreign Policy joins NIAC in talking to HuffPostLive about how US sanctions on Iran, by not effectively exempting medicine, violate international law.
http://huff.lv/ZXlk67
"Gaza's Ark"
Gaza's Ark will try to break the Gaza blockade from the other side: the blockade on Gaza's exports. A boat will sail out from Gaza carrying Palestinian goods. The campaign will also attack the blockade more broadly. There are many ways to support the campaign, and they can be found here:
http://www.gazaark.org/
JFP 3/20: A16: Let Sarah Knuckey and James Cavallaro Testify About the Drone Strikes
Just Foreign Policy News, March 20, 2013
A16: Let Sarah Knuckey and James Cavallaro Testify About the Drone Strikes
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I) Actions and Featured Articles
A16: Let Sarah Knuckey and James Cavallaro Testify About the Drone Strikes
On April 16, Senator Durbin's Constitution subcommittee of Senate Judiciary is holding its first-ever hearing on the drone strike policy. This could be a historic opportunity for the public to find out what is really going on with the drone strike policy - if Durbin invites the right witnesses to testify. There are a number of good witnesses one could suggest, but two of them meet the following criteria: they're professors of law, they went to Pakistan and interviewed drone strike survivors, and they wrote a report about it.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-naiman/senate-drone-hearings_b_2910146.html
*Action: 10 Years later, Don't Iraq Iran!
JFP 3/19: 10 Years Later, Peace Groups Tell Congress: Don't Iraq Iran!
Just Foreign Policy News, March 19, 2013
10 Years Later, Peace Groups Tell Congress: Don't Iraq Iran!
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I) Actions and Featured Articles
*Action: 10 Years later, Don't Iraq Iran!
Together with Win Without War, Peace Action West, the National Iranian American Council, and the Friends Committee on National Legislation, we're calling Congress today, urging them not to repeat their disastrous Iraq war with Iran. Urge your Senators and Representative not to cosponsor AIPAC's bills for war with Iran, and to insist that these bills go through committee markup so that (at least!) their most egregious features can be removed - like trying to pre-approve US participation in an Israeli attack on Iran. FCNL has offered the use of its toll free number, 1-855-68-NO WAR. More information, and a place to report your call, here:
http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/act/sres65-call-in
Introducing "Gaza's Ark"
Call Your Senators This Week And Tell Them: Don't Iraq Iran!
This week marks the tenth anniversary of the US invasion of Iraq. Yet, it seems that a majority of the Senate hasn't learned its lesson: S. Res. 65, AIPAC/Lindsey Graham's "backdoor to war" with Iran bill, now has 65 co-sponsors. [1] Even Senators who opposed the Iraq war, such as Sens. Boxer and Durbin, have signed on to the bill.
But allies are popping up in unexpected places. The New York Times recently came out in support of negotiations—and slammed S. Res. 65. [2]
We've defeated AIPAC before—and with enough pressure, we can do it again. Over 20,000 Just Foreign Policy members have emailed their Senators on S. Res. 65. But AIPAC supporters have been working hard as well. That's why we need to scale up our opposition.
This week, Just Foreign Policy is joining with the Friends Committee on National Legislation, the National Iranian American Council, and Peace Action West for a national call-in to the Senate opposing Graham's "backdoor to war" with Iran bill. Could you follow up your email with a phone call to your Senator? Here's what you do:
- Check to see if your Senator has co-sponsored the bill here:
http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/act/sres65-call-in - Call the Capital Switchboard using this toll-free number provided by FCNL: 1-855-68-NO WAR (1-855-686-6927)
- Ask to be connected to your Senator's office.
- When you are connected to your Senator's office:
- If your Senator hasn't co-sponsored the bill, thank them for staying off, and urge them to resist pressure to sign the bill, noting that the bill
- tries to "pre-approve" US participation in an Israeli attack on Iran; and
- tries to move up the "red line" for war
- If your Senator hasn't co-sponsored the bill, thank them for staying off, and urge them to resist pressure to sign the bill, noting that the bill
JFP 3/14: Obama Disses Dem Sens on Drone Memos; "Aiding the Enemy" Charge Hit
Just Foreign Policy News, March 14, 2013
Obama Disses Dem Sens on Drone Memos; "Aiding the Enemy" Charge Hit
OCO Should Be Eliminated; War Spending Should Be Included in the Base Pentagon Budget
As the war in Afghanistan is being wound down, there is less and less justification for having an account for "Overseas and Contingency Operations" separate from the base Pentagon budget.
1. War spending is predictable - as predictable as other spending - and is becoming more so. The main cost in OCO currently is deployment of thousands of U.S. troops to Afghanistan. It's possible for the Administration and Congress to plan for how many U.S. troops - if any - will be deployed to Afghanistan until 2014 and beyond, and the cost of this should be transparently accounted for.
2. There is no clear line that distinguishes "war costs" from costs in the base Pentagon budget.
3. The fact that there is no clear line that distinguishes war costs from costs in the base Pentagon budget, the fact that OCO was not capped by the Budget Control Act, and the fact that the initial outyear numbers for OCO have been fake, together have been an invitation for abuse. As the fake initial OCO numbers have been replaced by real numbers in recent years, defense appropriators have used the fake savings to protect the base Pentagon budget from agreed cuts by moving expenditures from the base Pentagon budget into the OCO budget.