Washington, Oct 2, 2007 -  

U.S. Congressman John Carter (TX-31), House Conference Secretary, issued the following statement today after senior House Democrat David Obey (D-WI) announced that he would “bottle up” critical funds for the troops in the field unless the President agrees to end combat operations in Iraq by January 2009.

“Once again, Democrats have proven that they are more concerned with political games in Washington rather than the safety of our soldiers on the ground in Iraq. Every scheme House Democrats have come up with to strangle funding from our men and women in uniform has failed-so what do they do-they turn to blackmail in order to fulfill the demands of their anti-war, liberal special interest groups such as MoveOn.org. What they couldn’t accomplish by a vote on the House floor, they are accomplishing through the heavy-handed tactics of their committee chairman.

“And that’s not all. In an attempt to again raise taxes, Democrats John Murtha, Jim McGovern and David Obey have proposed an additional ‘war tax’ on the income of all American taxpayers, which would increase every American’s taxes by up to 15 percent. The catch is that Americans already pay for the war every time they get their paycheck. Democrats are simply holding those funds hostage unless the President promises to side with Democrats and tell our soldiers and their families that their sacrifices mean nothing.

“As Congressmen, our job is to support the troops who are fighting to protect this country. If the Democrats really wanted to support our troops they would give them the resources they need to be safe and successful instead of playing chicken with the White House and using our military and this war as a manipulative tool to dig a little deeper into the pockets of hard-working Americans.”

NOTE: According to an article published in Roll Call, “House Appropriations Chairman David Obey (D-WI) warned President Bush on Tuesday that he would bottle up a critical $190 billion war spending bill in his committee unless Bush agrees to a goal of ending combat operations in Iraq by January 2009 and other conditions…Obey also announced his backing for a war surtax on income, ranging from 2 percent to 15 percent of every American’s tax bill, to raise about $150 billion a year to pay for the war.”