IT’S TIME WE BRING OUR TROOPS HOME - NOW

As the Bush Administration was too quick to put tens of thousands of brave Americans in harms way overseas without a clear exit strategy I believe we must not repeat the errors.

With a growing national deficit, the need to cut the budget and no end in sight to the conflicts in either Iraq or Afghanistan, I think it's time we begin bringing our troops home safely from Iraq and Afghanistan.

Please join me in signing our Bring the Troops Home petition.  The current discussion in Washington focuses on whether to send more troops to Afghanistan and if so how many troops. I believe that not only should we not expand our force level in Afghanistan but we should begin bringing our brave men and women home immediately.

It’s been reported that it costs a million dollars a year to support a single soldier in Afghanistan and Illinois taxpayers are spending tens of billions of dollars overall for the two wars.  We need that money for more teachers, policemen, infrastructure and to care for the troops when they get home.

Further, October was the deadliest month yet for U.S. military personnel in Afghanistan with 55 killed. No more families should suffer.

Let’s support and honor our troops by immediately beginning the process of bringing them home from Iraq and Afghanistan.