Just Foreign Policy

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• Force House Vote on Saudi War in Yemen to Stop Cholera & Famine

  On June 15, the UN Security Council unanimously called for a cease-fire in the conflict between the Saudi-UAE coalition and the Houthi-Saleh forces in Yemen. "The U.N. Security Council urged the warring parties in Yemen on Thursday to immediately agree on a cease-fire and keep all ports open for humanitarian aid to confront the threat of famine and the rapid spread of cholera," AP reported. [1] On June 13, the U.S. Senate narrowly failed to block an arms deal with Saudi Arabia. Senators opposed to the deal stressed the need to end the humanitarian crisis in Yemen rather than escalate it. [2] "The Saudi-led war in Yemen has created a humanitarian disaster," Senator Bernie Sanders said. "Millions are at the risk of starvation...chaos in Yemen has also been strategically disastrous for the United States, providing fertile ground for the extremist groups like Al Qaeda and ISIS...it is long past time that we begin to take a very hard look at our relationship with Saudi Arabia...it is important that we begin to discuss...the decades long effort by Saudi Arabia to export an ultra-reactionary form of Islam throughout the world." [3] "The human rights and humanitarian concerns have been well documented and are important,” Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said. “Of equal concern to me is that the Saudi government continues to aid and abet terrorism via its relationship with Wahhabism and the funding of schools that spread extremist propaganda throughout the world." [4] But the Trump Administration plans to escalate U.S. participation in the Saudi bombing of Yemen, with U.S. military advisers in the Saudi air operations control center in Riyadh. [5] U.S. participation in the Saudi war in Yemen has never been authorized by Congress. [6] House Members can challenge U.S. participation in the war with amendments on the National Defense Authorization Act and the Department of Defense Appropriation. In addition, a single House Member can invoke Congressional war powers force to a debate and vote on withdrawing U.S. participation from the Saudi war in Yemen - which the UN Security Council has unanimously said should stop immediately to save Yemen from cholera and famine. The last time the House voted on any aspect of U.S. participation in the Saudi war was June 2016, when the House narrowly failed to prohibit the transfer of cluster bombs to Saudi Arabia. [7] Urge your Representative to force a House vote to withdraw U.S. backing from the Saudi war and blockade in Yemen by signing our petition. References: 1. https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/un-urges-yemen-cease-fire-and-open-ports-to-confront-cholera/2017/06/15/ec92b4b8-5219-11e7-b74e-0d2785d3083d_story.html 2. https://petitions.moveon.org/sign/saudi-yemen-war-famine?r_by=1135580 3. Senator Bernie Sanders, "We Must Reevaluate Our Relationship With Saudi Arabia," https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqbebpDHCnE 4. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/chuck-schumer-trump-saudi-arabia_us_593ec911e4b02402687bae98 5. https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/14/world/middleeast/saudi-arabia-arms-training-yemen.html 6. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2017/05/02/alarm-grows-in-washington-as-saudi-coalition-attack-on-yemen-port-appears-imminent/; https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/global-opinions/wp/2017/05/19/trump-may-be-helping-to-create-a-famine-in-yemen-congress-could-stop-him/ 7. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-naiman/obama-heeding-close-house_b_10516480.html

  163,569 of 200,000 Signatures

  Created by Robert Naiman
• Senate: Pass the House Prohibitions of the Saudi War in Yemen

  On July 14, 2017, the U.S. House of Representatives voted overwhelmingly to prohibit U.S. participation in the Saudi-UAE war in Yemen, when it passed the Davidson and Nolan amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act [NDAA]. [1] The Davidson [R-OH] amendment prohibits U.S. military action in Yemen not authorized by the 2001 AUMF [2]. U.S. participation in the Saudi-UAE war in Yemen is not targeting Al Qaeda or ISIS and is not authorized by the 2001 AUMF. Davidson's amendment would block the U.S. refueling of Saudi and UAE warplanes bombing Yemen. The Nolan [D-MN] amendment prohibits the deployment of U.S. troops to participation in Yemen's civil war. [3] Nolan's amendment would block the U.S. refueling of Saudi and UAE warplanes bombing Yemen. Tell your representatives that you support the House actions and that U.S. participation in the Saudi war in Yemen should end immediately by signing our petition. References: 1. http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/node/1766 2. http://amendments-rules.house.gov/amendments/DAVIOH_020_xml%20(7)712171724502450.pdf 3. http://amendments-rules.house.gov/amendments/NOLAN_046_xml712171116271627.pdf

  6,682 of 7,000 Signatures

  Created by Robert R Naiman
• @SpeakerPelosi: End the Saudi-Yemen war on NDAA

  House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has a historic opportunity to end the famine-causing Saudi war in Yemen. The House has passed the Adam Smith - Ro Khanna Yemen War Powers amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would end all U.S. participation in the war. The House and Senate have both passed the Sanders-Lee-Murphy Yemen War Powers Resolution. The House and Senate have both voted to cut off U.S. arms shipments to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates for the war. All Speaker Pelosi has to do now to end the war is insist that the House-Senate conference on the National Defense Authorization Act include provisions to end the war that both the House and the Senate have voted for. Urge House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to end the famine-causing Saudi war in Yemen by signing our petition.

  6,597 of 7,000 Signatures

  Created by Robert Naiman
• Back International Talks to End Syrian Civil War

  The Syrian civil war has dragged on for four years, killing hundreds of thousands, creating millions of refugees, and displacing millions of people within the country. The refugee crisis has been an immense challenge to governments in the Middle East and is now affecting Europe and the United States. To resolve the Syrian refugee crisis, the U.S. should use all diplomatic tools to press for a negotiated end to the Syrian civil war. Rep. Jim Himes [D-CT] is circulating a letter to President Obama in support of international negotiations to end the conflict, stabilize the country, allow refugees to return home, transition to an accountable government and defeat ISIL. This is a rare opportunity to press Members of Congress to take a public stand to support serious diplomatic efforts to end the Syrian civil war. Urge your Representative to sign this important letter led by Rep. Himes by signing our petition.

  10,261 of 15,000 Signatures

  Created by Robert Naiman
• FCC: Investigate Alleged Cell Phone Jamming at Standing Rock #NoDAPL

  Protestors at the Standing Rock #NoDAPL protest have alleged that police have jammed their cell phone communications [1] and have spied on their communications. [2] Cell phone jamming by state or local authorities is illegal, and general surveillance of protesters without probable cause violates the Fourth Amendment. Proving or disproving allegations about jamming is very difficult for anyone except the Federal Communications Commission [FCC]. Only the FCC can work with wireless providers, protesters, and local law enforcement to find out definitively what’s going on. The FCC is the only expert agency with authority to require law enforcement to disclose their use of any wireless devices and the only agency with the expertise to assess what is actually happening. If the FCC investigates and finds that there is no illegal jamming happening, then it can settle this concern. If the FCC discovers that there is illegal jamming happening, it has an obligation to expose the jamming and use its power under federal law to order local law enforcement to stop interfering with First Amendment rights of freedom of speech and freedom of the press. [3] Congress and the President may request the FCC to take appropriate action to determine whether illegal jamming is taking place, and whether law enforcement have violated the terms of the FCC license to use IMSI Catchers ("Stingrays") by expressly requiring local law enforcement to use IMSI Catchers in accordance with due process. The Administration can order the Justice Department to investigate whether local law enforcement have violated the civil rights of the protesters through unlawful surveillance and illegal disruption of their freedom to communicate and freedom of the press under the First Amendment. Urge President Obama & Congress to act to protect the First and Fourth amendment rights of #NoDAPL protesters at Standing Rock by signing our petition. References: 1. https://www.wired.com/2016/10/standing-rock-protesters-face-police-world-watches-facebook/ 2. http://motherboard.vice.com/read/tech-behind-the-dakota-access-pipeline-protests 3. http://www.wetmachine.com/tales-of-the-sausage-factory/are-police-jamming-cell-phones-at-standing-rock-protest-the-fcc-should-investigate/

  7,644 of 8,000 Signatures

  Created by Robert Naiman
• No New U.S. War in Iraq!

  Senators Lindsey Graham and John McCain have called for direct U.S. military action in Iraq in the wake of the failure of the Iraqi Army to defend Mosul against Sunni insurgents. But Senate Armed Services Chair Carl Levin has correctly called for caution. Levin said: "It's unclear how air strikes on our part can succeed unless the Iraqi army is willing to fight, and that's uncertain given the fact that several Iraqi army divisions have melted away." As the New York Times has written, “The United States simply cannot be sucked into another round of war in Iraq.” The U.S. war in Iraq ended in 2011 with the withdrawal of our troops, and we don’t need a new U.S. war in Iraq. President Obama is right that the Iraqi government must be responsible for security in Iraq. To avoid another rush to war, Members of Congress must insist that an explicit Congressional authorization of force precede any direct U.S. military action in Iraq, including airstrikes.

  19,585 of 20,000 Signatures

  Created by Robert Naiman
• @SenJeffMerkley & @RonWyden: Oppose the Saudi arms deal!

  On August 8, the Obama administration notified Congress [1] of intent to sell $1.15 billion of weapons to Saudi Arabia, including tanks that would replace tanks destroyed in Saudi Arabia's war against Houthi rebels in Yemen. We urge Senator Jeff Merkley and Senator Ron Wyden to oppose this deal and to co-sponsor a Senate resolution against it. Past Congressional concerns about Saudi Arabia's war in Yemen have not been addressed. In October, Members of Congress wrote to the Administration [2] urging greater efforts to avoid civilian casualties in Yemen and achieve a diplomatic solution to the conflict. In June, 204 Members of the House, including 40 Republicans and all but 16 Democrats, voted to block the transfer of cluster bombs to Saudi Arabia after reports of their use in civilian areas in Yemen. [3] Yet, since the proposed arms deal was announced, a Saudi airstrike on a school in Yemen killed 10 children [4] – some as young as 6-years-old – and a Saudi airstrike on an MSF hospital in Yemen killed 11 people. [5] Urge Senator Merkley and Senator Wyden to co-sponsor a resolution to disapprove the Saudi arms deal by signing our petition. References: 1. http://www.dsca.mil/major-arms-sales/kingdom-saudi-arabia-m1a2s-saudi-abrams-main-battle-tanks-and-m88ala2-heavy 2. https://debbiedingell.house.gov/sites/debbiedingell.house.gov/files/documents/151014_Yemen%20Airstrike%20Letter.pdf 3. http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2016/roll327.xml 4. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/yemen-school-airstrike_us_57b1938fe4b007c36e4f2f67 5. http://www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-idUSKCN10Q1E0

  526 of 600 Signatures

  Created by Robert Naiman
• Robert Reich for Treasury Secretary

  Many Americans are looking for fundamental change in the relationship between Washington and Wall Street. They want Washington to regulate Wall Street, not the other way around. Bernie Sanders has said that no one from Goldman Sachs would ever work in his administration. [1] Meanwhile, Hillary Clinton has refused to rule out a Treasury Secretary from Wall Street. [2] Robert Reich, who was a cabinet secretary in the Bill Clinton Administration, has been one of the most prominent advocates of breaking up the too-big-to-fail banks [3] and for taxing Wall Street speculation. [4] Urge Senators to support the nomination of Robert Reich as Treasury Secretary in the next Administration by signing our petition. References: 1. http://money.cnn.com/2016/01/05/investing/bernie-sanders-wall-street-atm-fees/ 2. http://money.cnn.com/2016/02/08/investing/hillary-clinton-wall-street/ 3. http://robertreich.org/post/137109198285 4. https://twitter.com/rbreich/status/293736520953761792

  7,517 of 8,000 Signatures

  Created by Robert Naiman
• Nominate Paul Krugman for Treasury Secretary

  Press reports say President Obama will soon nominate a new Treasury Secretary . Press speculation has centered on candidates likely to support the Wall Street agenda of cuts to Social Security and Medicare benefits and other domestic spending rather than government policies to create jobs. We want President Obama to nominate Nobel prize-winning economist Paul Krugman, who opposes austerity and wants the government to focus on creating jobs.

  240,248 of 300,000 Signatures

  Created by Danny Glover
• Stand with Pope Francis: Abolish the federal death penalty

  Pope Francis raised many issues and concerns in his address to Congress. But he made one specific demand: global abolition of the death penalty. The fact that the U.S. maintains the death penalty is a huge obstacle to global abolition. China, Saudi Arabia, Iran, Egypt can hide behind the U.S.: why shouldn't we have the death penalty? The U.S. has it. The fact that the federal government maintains the death penalty is a big obstacle to state abolition. Why shouldn't we have it, Texas can say. The federal government has it. Conservative columnist George Will has said it's time for the U.S. to quit the death penalty. Many Republican Members of Congress agree. Let's force the issue now, while the Pope's speech to Congress is still fresh in public memory. Urge Congress and President Obama to stand with Pope Francis to abolish the death penalty, by signing our petition.

  805 of 1,000 Signatures

  Created by Robert Naiman