Democratic presidential wannabe Bill Richardson is the latest candidate to offer his "Vote for Me" message to members of Democracy for America. DFA is conducting a Presidential Preference Poll through Nov. 5, 2007, and have invited all candidates to submit a message that they email to members.
Richardson has just inched past Hillary Clinton to take fifth place in the unscientific poll. Non-candidate Al Gore leads the poll, followed in descending order by Dennis Kucinich, Barak Obama and John Edwards.
Dear Friends,
I know you've already received a couple of emails from other candidates, asking for your vote in the Presidential Pulse Poll. They have given you what you usually get from candidates: long lists of strong policy statements and broad political philosophies.
You've seen my DFA videos on energy and Iraq, and you can visit my website for my plans on health care, education, and other important issues. But today I want to talk to you about the issue that matters most in this race:
Ending the war in Iraq.
You know where I stand: end this war now and get all our troops out as quickly as possible. If you're with me and want this war over now and all the troops out, please cast your vote for me, Bill Richardson, in the DFA Presidential Pulse Poll:
http://DemocracyforAmerica.com/VoteRichardson
Ending the war was the defining issue in 2003, when Governor Dean called for an end to the war - before President Bush spent four more years wasting billions of dollars, and hundreds more brave American troops died.
Iraq was the issue that really mattered in 2006, when we elected a Democratic majority to Congress to end the war (though they have yet to get that done). Iraq will be the issue this spring when we select a nominee, and it will be the issue that can win us back the White House in 2008.
Ending the war is the issue that distinguishes me from the other candidates in this race.
It seems simple - yet I am the only leading candidate who is unequivocally calling for the removal of all troops now. No half-measures. No rhetorical games about "combat troops" versus "non-combat troops." No residual troops. No one left behind.
From the other leading candidates we're hearing poll-tested pieties about ending the war. But when you ask them what they'll actually do, none of them will commit to getting all of our troops out of Iraq now. They won't even commit to getting all the troops out by 2013. I've committed to ending the war my first day in office, and getting all the troops out in 2009. You can hold me to it.
If we don't elect a candidate who will get all of our troops out now, the war in Iraq may still be the defining issue in the 2012 campaign.
Your vote in the Pulse Poll does more than just determine an endorsement; it sends a message about what you demand from your candidates.
Today, I'd like you to send a message about ending this war when you cast your vote.
Ending the war means a full and complete withdrawal. That's what America needs... and it's what I'll do.
Before I was Governor of New Mexico, I was a member of Congress, Secretary of Energy, and Ambassador to the United Nations. I've successfully negotiated with the worst "bad guys" from around the world -- including Saddam Hussein. I know the region, and I know real diplomacy isn't possible until we get all of our troops out. As long as our troops are in Iraq, the Iraqis will not make the tough political compromises and the insurgents will continue to use our presence for recruitment. As long as our troops are in Iraq, they will continue to die in someone else's civil war.
I'm talking about Iraq and ending this war everywhere I visit - with DFA support and volunteers behind me, think of how far we can go. Vote now.
We need to end this war now. That means getting all of our troops out. I'm the candidate committed to getting it done, and the only candidate with the experience to do it right.
Thank you for your vote in the Presidential Pulse Poll, and your continued hard work helping to elect Democrats.
Sincerely,
Governor Bill Richardson
http://DemocracyforAmerica.com/VoteRichardson