Says U.S. should stop spending $7 billion a month on war in Afghanistan

Congresswoman Chellie Pingree voted today against a $37 billion supplemental war-funding bill in the House today.  Pingree, a member of the House Armed Services Committee, says the loss of American lives is unacceptable, and the money being spent on the wars would be better used reducing the deficit and helping our economy recover.
 
“We spend $7 billion a month on the war in Afghanistan and every day it becomes more and more clear that we are pursuing a failed strategy that doesn’t make America any safer,” Pingree said.  “It’s time to bring our troops and that money home.”

Yesterday Pingree told MSNBC’s Chris Matthews that the recent release of secret documents is further evidence that the strategy in Afghanistan isn’t working.
 
“The fact is, a lot of things we are reading about today many of us knew about before, but this only reinforces how badly things are going,” she said.
 
Pingree has been a vocal critic of continued spending for the war in Afghanistan, saying continued U.S. involvement there does nothing to make America any safer.
 
“After the events of 9/11, the United States went into Afghanistan to capture or kill Osama bin Laden and dismantle Al Qaeda, not to occupy the country or build the Afghan government, a government that has proven time and time again to be one of the most corrupt in the world,” Pingree said.
 
Earlier this month Pingree opposed a similar war spending measure when it passed the House.  The Senate then passed a different version of that spending bill, which required another House vote today.  The bill passed the House today 308-to-114 and it now goes to President Obama for his signature.