My Dear Friends,

We are currently in a state of turmoil in our country that requires great resolve on the part of all Americans. The Economy is on the verge of recession, Americans are losing their homes to foreclosure, the planet is in peril, we’re using torture on our enemies, and we’re at war in two countries. In retrospect, fighting wars on two fronts is what brought Napoleon and Hitler to their demise. (Remember the saying “divide and conquer”) Well my friends, we are divided. Our country is divided; Our Army is divided; Our resourses are divided. The last seven years have been a disgrace to what America has always stood for, FREEDOM. Politics of rhetoric and fear have dominated us for far to long. My hope is that we can restore our country’s good name in the world and that the greatest generations are not behind us, but ahead of us. It’s with this in mind that I call on you to make a conscious effort to get out and vote this coming Tuesday in the Feb. 5th Primary. I personally will be voting for the only candidate who can deliver on these changes, Barack Obama. Every candidate has an issue or two that you may not agree with, but Obama has the judgement when it counts. In his 2002 speech leading up to the war, Barack chillingly predicted what would happen if the U.S. averted their attention from Afghanistan and attacked Iraq unconstitutionally. The bottom line is who has the judgement and vision to unite the country. Below are excerpts from Hillary Clinton’s 2002 speech on the floor of the Senate and Barack Obama’s speech leading up to the war in Iraq. I ask that you read them carefully and look forward to the future, not back to the past.

-Ryan “Gooch” Nelson

Hillary Clinton 2002, floor speech right before the war authorization she voted for:

In the four years since the inspectors left, intelligence reports show that Saddam Hussein has worked to rebuild his chemical and biological weapons stock, his missile delivery capability, and his nuclear program. He has also given aid, comfort, and sanctuary to terrorists, including Al Qaeda members, though there is apparently no evidence of his involvement in the terrible events of September 11, 2001. It is clear, however, that if left unchecked, Saddam Hussein will continue to increase his capacity to wage biological and chemical warfare, and will keep trying to develop nuclear weapons. Should he succeed in that endeavor, he could alter the political and security landscape of the Middle East, which as we know all too well affects American security.

So it is with conviction that I support this resolution as being in the best interests of our nation.

Obama 2002 Speech:

I also know that Saddam poses no imminent and direct threat to the United States, or to his neighbors, that the Iraqi economy is in shambles, that the Iraqi military’s a fraction of its former strength, and that in concert with the international community he can be contained until, in the way of all petty dictators, he falls away into the dustbin of history. I know that even a successful war against Iraq will require a U.S. occupation of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences. I know that an invasion of Iraq without a clear rationale and without strong international support will only fan the flames of the Middle East, and encourage the worst, rather than best, impulses of the Arab world, and strengthen the recruitment arm of al-Qaeda.