Every single anti-war Senator has voted for funding

[maximusveritas]

I see this argument come up that Obama is somehow not consistently anti-war because he voted for funding. So what I did was I went through the list of Obama's supposedly pro-war funding votes that I found in http://www.zmag.org/content/showarticle.cfm?ItemID=12687">this Paul Street article and looked to see what the roll call was for each vote. What I found was that every vote was unanimous among Democrats. So what Street and everyone attacking Obama along these lines is saying is that Feingold, Boxer, Kennedy, and every other anti-war Democrat is not really anti-war. Somehow I think it's hard to convince many people that all these Democrats who voted against the war are really pro-war.

All the vote descriptions come from Street, so take them with a grain of salt. I just added the vote counts at the end of each vote description:

“4/21/05: Obama voted for HR 1268, war appropriations in the amount of approximately $81 billion. Much of this funding went to Blackwater USA and Halliburton and disappeared. Roll call 109 (Passed 99-0)

“10/07/05: Obama voted for HR2863, which appropriated $50 billion in new money for war. Roll call 254 (Passed 97-0)

“11/15/05: Obama voted the Defense Authorization Act (S1042) which kept the war and war profiteering alive, restricted the right of habeas corpus and encouraged terrorism. Pursuant to his pattern, Obama voted for this. Roll call 326 (Passed 98-0)

“12/21/05: Obama confirmed his support for war by voting for the Conference Report on the Defense Appropriations Act (HR 2863), which provided more funding to Halliburton and Blackwater. Roll call 366 (Passed 93-0)

“5/4/06: Obama, again, voted to adopt HR4939: emergency funding to war profiteers. Roll call 112 (Passed 77-21, all Democrats voting for it)

“6/13/06: Obama voted to commend the armed services for a bombing that killed innocent people and children and reportedly resulted in the death of Abu Musab al-Zarqawi… Michael Berg, whose son was reportedly killed by al-Zarqawi, condemned the attack and expressed sorrow over the innocent people and children killed in the bombing that Obama commended. Roll call 168 (Passed 97-0)

“6/15/06: Obama voted for the conference report on HR4939, a bill that gave warmongers more money to continue the killing and massacre of innocent people in Iraq and allows profiteers to collect more money for scamming the people of New Orleans. Roll Call 171 (Passed 98-1, with all Democrats voting for it)

“6/22/06: Obama again voted for continued war by voting to pass the National Defense Authorization Act (S 2766) for continued war funding. Roll Call 186 (Passed 96-0)

“9/29/06: Obama voted vote for the conference report on more funding for war, HR 5631. Roll Call 261 (Passed 100-0)

“12/06/06: Obama voted to confirm pro-war Robert M. Gates to be Secretary of Defense. Gates is a supporter of Bush's policies of pre-emptive war and conquest of foreign countries. Roll Call 272 (Passed 95-2, with every Democrat voting for it)

“Obama's voting record in 2007 establishes that he continues to be pro-war. On March 28, 2007 and March 29th, 2007, he voted for cloture and passage of a bill designed to give Bush over $120 billion to continue the occupation for years to come (with a suspendable time table) and inclusive of funding that could be used to launch a war with Iran. Roll calls 117 (Passed 97-0) and 126 (Passed 51-47, with every Democrat voting for it)

The confusion comes about I think because some people fail to distinguish between the issue of whether we needed to go into Iraq and the issue of how and when to withdraw. Obama and the other anti-war Senators opposed us going into Iraq, but then decided to fund it in order to make sure we didn't leave Iraq in shambles right after we destroyed the place. This was also the same position Dean had in 2004. There were some who advocated an immediate withdrawal via defunding, but they were in the minority even among anti-war people.

[Greeby]

1. "Obama voted to confirm pro-war Robert M. Gates to be Secretary of Defense."

A pro-war Secretary of Defense? Isn't that a bit of a redundant statement

[maximusveritas]

8. Yeah, that was Street's description

I actually meant to remove that one since it wasn't a funding vote, but I'll leave it up since you mentioned it.

[BobRossi]

2. The punking of America.

But the minions keep voting for the traitors.

[mike_c]

3. that is exactly what it boils down to, IMO....

I don't care how much liberal cred a senator has. If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it sure looks like a war endorsement when an "anti-war" senator votes in support of INCREDIBLY generous funds and terms to continue the war. Their votes in support of continuing the wars against Iraq and Afghanistan have been blank check appropriations that give the neocons whatever they want. Most of the supposed "anti-war" senators have hidden behind their public remarks, critical of the war, but have done their best to keep it going from behind the curtain.

[maximusveritas]

4. I think you're in the minority there though

Most of these people attacking Obama for this would never attack a Feingold or Kennedy on it..

[AtomicKitten]

7. Bingo! Of course they wouldn't attack Feingold or Kennedy!

And they stand knee-deep in hypocrisy singling out Obama for their scorn.

[cali]

5. that's terribly naive.

Boxer, Feingold, Leahy and others have voted for funding with withdrawal dates- as has Obama. Many of them have not voted for blank checks, but I suspect that neither you nor most DUers has exercised due dligence and studied their votes. It is simply an ugly lie to say that people like Bernie and Ted Kennedy and Russ Feingold have done their best to keep the war going.

Too bad so many DUers drink koolade.

[mike_c]

6. an ugly lie...?

They have consistently voted to continue the war against Iraq, disdaining every opportunity given them to vote AGAINST continuing it.

The power to appropriate funds is the primary congressional check against executive office abuses of power. Senators that consistently vote in FAVOR of continuing those abuses are pretty hard to justify, IMO.

[LWolf]

9. Too many Dems in Congress, both houses, during the Bush regime

have regularly and repeatedly voted against the best interests of people and the nation on many issues, including the Iraq war.

None of them who voted for it, or supported it by voting to fund it, get a pass from me. All your post does is remind us of their complicity.