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CMD's "Coffee with the Troops" at Yearly Kos Features Iraq Veterans Against the War

UPDATE: Read the post-event report at: https://www.prwatch.org/node/6321

The Center for Media and Democracy is sponsoring a "Coffee with the Troops" in Chicago on Sunday, August 5, 9:30 a.m. during the Yearly Kos extravaganza in the Hyatt Regency McCormick Place. The room is Regency Ball Room C/D on the 2nd level of the Hyatt.

Join Sheldon Rampton and me for coffee, pastries and a moderated discussion of how online activists can better support our troops in their own resistance to the war in Iraq. We'll be discussing the war with Garett Reppenhagen, Aaron Hughes and other soldiers who are the backbone of Iraq Veterans Against the War, IVAW.

Senate Dems Will Keep Pressing for Withdrawal; Some Pro-Withdrawal GOP Senators Not Voting That Way

When the dust settled after Tuesday night's filibuster, the Senate appeared to be basically where it was the day before; Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) tabled the controversial measure to set timelines for the withdrawal of most American troops from Iraq and the legislators went home to get some sleep before preparing to take up other business. Looking back just a year, however, it becomes clear an inexorable momentum has started to build in that chamber towards using its power of the purse (i.e.

Bush's Pro-War Front Group, 'Vets for Freedom', Rallies with Republican Senators

Vets for Freedom (VFF), the well-funded pro-war lobby group, is cranking-up its PR campaign on behalf of President Bush's war in Iraq with a news conference held July 17th in the US Capitol. A slate of pro-war Republican Senators including Mitch McConnell, Jon Kyl, Lindsey Graham, along with former Democratic (now independent) Senator Joe Lieberman, all participated with Pete Hegseth and other VFF lobbyists.

In June 2006, I reported that:

Citizen journalists on SourceWatch have been investigating and exposing the many Republican connections and the partisan pro-war political agenda behind Vets for Freedom,

Coming Up This Week in Congress: Iraq, Energy, and Labor

The House and Senate are in session this week, with both chambers expected to debate and consider several important bills and resolutions. Highlights include:

  1. An amendment, sponsored by Sens. Carl Levin (D-Mich.) and Jack Reed (D-R.I.), which would mandate that U.S. troops begin leaving Iraq within 120 days and have only a "limited presence" in the country by Apr. 1, 2008.
  2. An amendment, sponsored by Sens. Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) and John Warner (R-Va.), which would direct the Bush administration to file a report to Congress detailing an exit strategy from Iraq by Oct. 16, 2007.
  • The Senate is expected to consider a bill, sponsored by Sen. Ken Salazar (D-Colo.), which would call for the implementation of the Iraq Study Group's 79 recommendations.
  • The House will consider a $31.6 billion Energy and Water spending measure, which includes $1.1 billion in earmarks.
  • The House will consider a $153.7 billion Labor-HHS measure. The bill exceeds the Bush administration's spending request by about $10.6 billion, and faces a veto threat.

    • After the jump is a full listing of this week's House and Senate hearings, courtesy of GovTrack and Thomas:

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