Washington D.C. – November 29, 2012 – News Release – This afternoon, U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley’s amendment (No. 3096) to the Senate’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) was adopted by an overwhelming vote of 62 to 33.
The amendment calls for an expedited end to the war in Afghanistan, America’s longest at over eleven years that has cost more than $500 billion and thousands of American casualties.
“Senator Merkley’s amendment brings America one step closer to bringing our servicemen and women home from Afghanistan,� said John Isaacs, Executive Director of the Council for a Livable World. “More than $500 billion and too many American lives have been lost in Afghanistan; it is time to transition control of the State to the Afghan government.�
This is the first majority vote ever in either the Senate or the House calling for an end to the war in Afghanistan. “The amendment was supported by a significant number of Republicans crossing party lines in a bipartisan effort to end an expensive and costly decade-plus war,� said Isaacs.
The Council applauds Senator Merkley for introducing the amendment and Senators Baucus, Begich, Bingaman, Boxer, Brown (OH,) Cantwell, Cardin, Conrad, Durbin, Franken, Harkin, Leahy, Manchin, Paul, Sander and Whitehouse for their co-sponsorship. The Council also applauds those Senators that voted for exiting from Afghanistan.
“Unfortunately, the House of Representatives went in a different direction, supporting more than 68,000 American servicemen and women in Afghanistan beyond the time table established by the U.S. Commander-in-Chief,� said Isaacs.
The Council launched an advocacy campaign today in favor the amendment to its listserv or more than 110,000 people urging supporters to call their Senators in support of the amendment.
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Council for a Livable World is a non-partisan advocacy organization dedicated to increasing national security, particularly through reducing of the danger of nuclear weapons. The Council advocates for a strong and sensible national security policy and helps elect congressional candidates supporting those ideals.