THE GREEN PARTY OF THE UNITED STATES

MEDIA RELEASE
For immediate release:
Wednesday, August 7, 2002

Contacts:
Nancy Allen, Media Coordinator, 207-326-4576,
 nallen@acadia.net
Scott McLarty, Media Coordinator, 202-518-5624,
 scottmclarty@yahoo.com


GREEN PARTY CALLS SENATE HEARINGS ON IRAQ A
'SHAM'

Greens demand that critics of Bush's intended
invasion be included in hearings, especially UN
weapons inspectors


WASHINGTON, DC -- Warning that a U.S. invasion of
Iraq would violate international law, candidates
and other members of the Green Party of the
United States called on the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee to reopen hearings on
President Bush's planned war against Iraq.
Greens demanded that the hearings be open to
dissenting voices, including former U.N. weapons
inspectors who could provide an adequate analysis
of the security threat posed by Iraq.


"Sen. Joe Biden [D.-Del., chair of the hearing]
excluded anyone who opposes Bush's policy on
Iraq, or who might have offered a realistic
assessment of Iraq's military and chemical
weapons capability or the human costs of an
invasion," said Holly Hart, Green Party candidate
for Lieutenant Governor of Iowa. "Instead, we
heard Caspar Weinberger, a pardoned criminal,
repeat the Bush line. Americans deserve to hear
a real debate before we sacrifice lives on both
sides in a military venture that could cause a
shock to the U.S. and world economy, destabilize
the region, and flare up into a greater war
involving dozens of nations."


Jennifer Daniels, Green candidate for Lieutenant
Governor of New York, said that "[Bush's]
strategy places the U.S. in the position of
becoming the very threat it opposes. The present
U.S. strategy makes us all less safe."


Former U.N. weapons inspector Scott Ritter, who
spent seven years investigating Iraq's weapons
program before resigning in protest over U.S.-led
economic sanctions, has repeatedly stated that
Iraq neither possesses weapons of mass
destruction nor maintains ties to international
terrorism. NATO asked Ritter (who is Republican)
to testify shortly after Secretary of Defense
Donald Rumsfeld asserted that Iraq posed a
security threat. After Ritter's presentation, 16
of the 19 NATO nations wrote letters of complaint
to the U.S. government about Rumsfeld's comments
and about Bush's justification for war.


"We're not only concerned about massive U.S.
casualties in our armed forces, but about the
slaughter of Iraqi civilians," said Rahul
Mahajan, Green candidate for Governor of Texas.
"6,000 Iraqi children a month are already dying
from the economic sanctions, according to the
U.N. Children's Fund. Two years ago the Pentagon
estimated that about 10,000 Iraqi civilians could
be killed in such a war. Destruction of Iraq's
water supplies, medical care, electricity, and
other infrastructure could lead to hundreds of
thousands of additional deaths, especially among
children and the elderly."


"A unilateral invasion would violate
international law and the U.N. charter, as well
as the U.S.'s constitutional limit on the use of
armed forces for defense," said Steve Greenfield,
New York Green candidate for the 22nd
Congressional District. "It has no support among
our European allies. Secretary of State Colin
Powell, CIA chief George Tenet, and numerous
military officials and experts are skeptical.
There's no credible evidence of a threat to
American security. Such a war would further
destabilize the Middle East, could lead to the
overthrow of other governments in the area, and
is unlikely to promote democracy in Iraq or its
neighbors."


"This war is being launched for political
reasons, and without Congress's required
approval," added Margart Lewis, Green candidate
for Congress in the New York's 20th District.
"Only Congress has the constitutional power to
declare war, regardless of earlier 'blank
checks.' Bush is furthermore using the invasion
as an excuse to drill for oil in the Arctic
National Wildlife Refuge. Once a White
House-mandated invasion is justified, all sorts
of destructive policy can and will be enacted,
and with minimal public debate."


Greens note that, if the relatively short Persian
Gulf War cost $80 billion, then the invasion,
extended occupation, and rebuilding of Iraq would
likely cost the U.S. far more, further diverting
taxpayer money from needed domestic investment in
schools, health care, and the environment.


"Our Arab allies, already encountering strong
anti-American sentiment at home because of U.S.
support for Israel, not only fear domestic
rebellions, but will demand huge pay-offs from
the U.S.," explained Tim Harthans, Iowa Green
candidate for the U.S. Senate. "Jordan says that
it wants the U.S. to help make up for the loss it
would suffer if the discount-price oil it gets
from Iraq is cut off. The cost of the Gulf War
and the resulting rise in oil prices led to an
economic recession. An invasion of Iraq will
have even a worse effect on the troubled U.S.
economy."


"The Bush Administration is planning this
invasion with no exit strategy," said Dick
Kaiser, who is seeking a House seat in
Wisconsin's 8th District . "Saddam's successor
is likely to be military strong man with the same
kind of bloody past and disregard for law and
life. We didn't see democracy, human rights, or
equality for women in Kuwait after the Persian
Gulf War, either."


"Even Britain, America's staunchest ally, does
not support war for the sake of 'regime change,'"
said Dr. Jonathan Farley, a Tennessee Green
candidate for Congress currently visiting England
on a Fulbright scholarship. "This war is illegal
and immoral, and I'm against it."


"The Senate needs to protect the interests of the
American people and the world community, not
provide political cover to President Bush," added
Pennsylvania Green activist Carl Romanelli.
"It's not enough to call Saddam Hussein evil
incarnate."



MORE INFORMATION


The Green Party of the United States
 http://www.greenpartyus.org
National office: 1314 18th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20036
202-296-7755, 866-41GREEN


Index of Green Party candidates in 2002
 http://www.greens.org/elections


The 2002 Campaign Pledge: A Green Commitment to
America
Signed by Green Congressional candidates
 http://www.gpus.org/candidate_pledge.html



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