Democratic Sen. Steve Gallus is sponsoring a joint resolution that would have both chambers go on record opposing any escalation of U.S. involvement in Iraq and asking Bush to seek congressional approval for any troop surge.
On a national level, House Democrats have said they will vote this week on a nonbinding resolution opposing Bush's decision to send more troops to Iraq. A similar effort in the Senate is being stalled by the GOP. Meanwhile, the Pentagon has already started implementing Bush's order to raise troop levels by 21,500 as part of a plan to help quell sectarian violence in Baghdad.
"If 20 states send him a letter, he might listen," Gallus said.
Senate Minority Leader Corey Stapleton said Gallus' resolution is an insult both to U.S. troops and to Montana's history of patriotism.
"They are betraying the heritage of this state," said Stapleton, who served in the U.S. Navy for 11 years. "You can't support the troops and not the mission."
Sen. Jim Shockley, R-Victor, a former Marine, agreed the resolution would be bad for troop morale. He said he thought the federal government had done a poor job handling the war, but it wasn't the Montana Legislature's place to say anything.
Stapleton charged Democrats with using the resolution to score "political points" by attacking the president.
"A lot of Democrats who never served in uniform see this as a way to embarrass those who do," Stapleton said.
Democrats called Stapleton's comments ridiculous.
"It sounds like Senator Stapleton is hell-bent on making this a partisan issue," Gallus said.
"I think it is utterly patriotic to say the president is wrong when he is," said Sen. Larry Jent, D-Bozeman, a West Point graduate and former infantry and special forces officer.
Rep. Kevin Furey, D-Missoula, an Army reservist who has spent eight months in Iraq and said he will likely have to return there, laughed at the idea that criticizing the Iraq war was akin to criticizing U.S. troops. He said everyone has the right to question the government's policies.
"We're all part of this together, whether you're in the military or not," Furey said.
The resolution is to be heard by the Senate State Administration Committee on Monday.
Gallus' resolution is Senate Joint Resolution 9.
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