Arizona Socialist Party/Statements

US OUT OF IRAQ NOW (11/27/05)
by Eric Chester International Commission Chair

The Socialist Party USA opposed the invasion of Iraq from the start, and we continue to demand the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. forces from Iraq. The United States had no legitimate reason for invading and it has no legitimate reason to remain there.

The invasion of Iraq was not a mistake, or an error based on faulty intelligence. It was the logical consequence of a foreign policy designed to ensure that U.S. based corporations control vital resources and that the U.S. military dominates key regions throughout the world. The United States is in Iraq to control its vast petroleum deposits and to solidify its control over the Middle Eastern region.

After thirty months of occupation and chaotic violence, mainstream politicians are beginning to question the continued deployment of U.S. troops in Iraq. Nevertheless, a resolution calling for immediate withdrawal was overwhelmingly defeated by both Democrats and Republicans in a recent vote in the U.S. House of Representatives. While we welcome the first timid signs that the United States is preparing to step back from the Iraqi abyss, we remain committed to an immediate and total withdrawal.

Still, there are worrying signs for the future. After remaining silent for two years, former president Bill Clinton has begun to criticize the Bush administration's war policies. According to Clinton, the problems with the invasion stem from the administration's underestimate of the difficulties inherent in a successful occupation. The United States should have deployed even more troops from the start so that the occupation forces could have sealed off the borders of Iraq as Saddam Hussein's regime collapsed.

Clinton has always spoken for the corporate center. His critique of current policies can only lead to further military adventures requiring an even larger military. Unfortunately, the great majority of progressives continue to believe that the Democratic Party can be transformed. In fact, the Democrats have always stood for U.S. imperialism, as they do now. Indeed, Clinton's recent comments demonstrate just how dangerous this illusion can be.

As the United States begins a phased withdrawal from Iraq, it is critical that we maintain popular pressure to accelerate this process and to ensure that it is a total withdrawal of all military and intelligence units. Yet we also need to expand our horizon beyond Iraq. The Socialist Party stands for a drastic reduction in the military budget, beginning with an immediate reduction of 50%. The hundreds of billions of dollars currently wasted on weapons of destruction need to be reallocated for schools, hospitals, mass transit and low-cost housing. We also call for the return of all U.S. soldiers from overseas and the closing of military bases around the world. U.S. imperialism benefits the corporate elite and not working people either here or abroad. 

U.S. military force is the glue that holds together a world that is being torn apart by global capitalism. As the gap between the rich and the poor widens under the impact of an integrated world economy, divisions between social classes, regions, countries and ethnic groups are accentuated. Ultimately, the creation of a U.S. foreign policy that is not based on bolstering the empire will require a new society, a democratic socialist society based on decentralization, cooperation and equality. The tasks are enormous, but the need for change is imperative.

SOCIALIST PARTY STATEMENT ON CONGRESSIONAL TROOP WITHDRAWAL VOTE
by Susan Dorazion, SPUSA Co-Chair

In a highly uncharacteristic move, members of the United States Congress recently brought to the floor a resolution perfectly representing the position of the Socialist Party USA, namely "... that the deployment of
United States forces in Iraq be terminated immediately."

There was no surprise regarding its fate, however: only 3 Democrats and no Republicans voted for it.  As usual, the imperialist agenda of both capitalist parties ruled the day: just more proof that the game-plan for
both Republicans and Democrats is long-term political and economic control of the Middle East through the continuing use of U.S. military force.

This comes through clearly in the conditions of the Democrats' newly-minted anti-war position.  Part dove, part hawk, the Democratic "plan" couples a vague time-table for troop withdrawal with a call for the establishment of a "quick-reaction force" and a nearby presence of Marines.  More hypocrisy and opportunism in the service of global capitalism, and more need than ever for independent political action in general and Socialist Party candidacies in particular.

The Socialist Party USA stands firm in its call for the immediate withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Iraq and Afghanistan and for an immediate cut of at least 50% in the military budget.  We also demand that
revenue currently funding the military machine be redirected to education, health care, child care, housing, mass transit, and social services, and that additional revenue be generated by instituting a steeply graduated Federal income tax targeting the income and wealth of the very rich.

Bring the troops home now!  Cut the military budget!  Tax the rich!  People before profits!