To: The United States House of Representatives and The United States Senate

Jon @Ossoff, @KarenHandel: We Oppose U.S. Ground Troops in Syria & We Vote

Publicly oppose the deployment of U.S. ground troops to Syria.

Why is this important?

The Trump Administration is considering deploying U.S. ground troops to Syria, [1] something that the Obama Administration opposed, along with most Democrats and war-skeptic Republicans. Kentucky Senator Rand Paul said, "It would be a really rotten, no good, bad idea to have ground troops in Syria." [2] Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy said, "Sending combat troops into Syria would make the unforced errors of the first four weeks look like child's play." California Representative Ted Lieu said, "As Member of House Foreign Affairs Committee, I want to say that sending ground troops to Syria is a VERY BAD IDEA." [3]

On April 18, there will be a special election in Georgia's sixth Congressional district. According to a recent poll, [4] the top two candidates in the "jungle primary" are Democrat Jon Ossoff, a former staffer for John Lewis and Hank Johnson, and Republican Karen Handel, former Georgia Secretary of State. Jon Ossoff's website says, "Jon will back efforts to destroy ISIS without deploying regular US ground forces." [5] Karen Handel's website has no issues section. [6] But as a Senate candidate in September 2013, she opposed U.S. military action against the Syrian government, [7] suggesting a willingness to challenge proposed U.S. military action.

If both candidates come out against deploying ground troops to Syria in this closely-watched election, it will contribute to the belief that what Senator Paul called a "rotten, no good, bad idea" is politically radioactive and discourage the Trump Administration from doing it.

Urge Jon Ossoff, Karen Handel and Members of Congress to publicly oppose proposals to deploy U.S. ground forces in Syria by signing our petition.

References:
1. http://www.cnn.com/2017/02/15/politics/pentagon-considering-recommending-combat-troops-in-syria/index.html
2. http://rare.us/rare-politics/issues/foreign-policy/rand-paul-it-would-be-a-really-rotten-no-good-bad-idea-to-have-ground-troops-in-syria/
3. http://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/opinion/the-conversation/sd-troops-to-syria-20170215-htmlstory.html
4. http://cloutpolitical.com/poll-democrat-ossoff-republican-handel-lead-in-ga-cd6-special-election/
5. https://electjon.com/priorities/
6. https://karenhandel.com/
7. http://www.rollcall.com/news/politics/syria-radio-ad-aired-by-gop-senate-candidate