Sununu’s Vote Supports Keeping Troops In Iraq, Continue Policing Civil War

CONCORD - For the fourth time in two months, John Sununu voted today to keep our troops in Iraq indefinitely to police a growing civil war. Sununu continues to stand behind President Bush, even as the president promises to veto the Iraq funding bill, denying U.S. troops in the field the resources they need and rejecting a real plan to end the war.

“Again and again, John E. Sununu has ignored the overwhelming majority of New Hampshire families who have long since concluded that it is time to change course in Iraq,” said New Hampshire Democratic Party Chair Ray Buckley. “He continues to blindly support the Bush Administration’s failing Iraq agenda, when will Sununu actually represent his constituents?”

The $124 billion package adopted this afternoon would begin bringing U.S. troops home from Iraq by October 1, with a goal of having most troops home by March 31, 2008. In addition to the withdrawal, the Democrats’ bill would provide billions of dollars for military equipment and health care for active duty military and returning veterans. [Washington Post, 4/26/07; CQ Today, 4/24/07]

Last month, Sununu voted three times against similar legislation to change the course in Iraq by setting a timetable for redeployment of U.S. forces, with a goal of having most troops home by the spring of 2008. [Vote 75, 3/15/07; Vote 116, 3/27/07; Vote 126, 3/29/07]

A new nationwide poll shows that, by a 19-point margin, Americans strongly support the Democrats’ proposal to set a deadline for troop withdrawal from Iraq, while two-thirds of Americans disapprove of the job President Bush is doing on Iraq. In addition, 49% believe that the situation in Iraq has gotten worse over the past three months since Bush announced his escalation plan, while only 12% think the situation has improved. [NBC News/Wall Street Journal, 4/25/07]

Previously, a Research 2000 poll conducted for the Concord Monitor in New Hampshire in December 2006, 60 percent of likely voters polled support a draw down of troops in Iraq and 69 percent of those polled gave the President’s performance on the handling of post-war occupation Iraq an “only fair” or “poor” rating. (The Research 2000 New Hampshire Poll was conducted by Research 2000 of Rockville, Maryland from December 18 through December 20, 2006 with a 4 percent +/- margin of error. A total of 600 likely voters who vote regularly in state elections were interviewed statewide by telephone.)