In a mail-in election, Missoula city residents voted overwhelmingly in favor of a referendum that asks Congress to get the United States out of the contentious war.
The referendum passed by a vote of 9,192 to 4,999, or 64.77 percent to 35.23 percent.
“I think it's a shot in the arm for people who are feeling very discouraged about the work they're trying to do,” she said Tuesday night. “Even to get their voices heard has been difficult. The message here is intended to get people talking, to get a dialogue going about what is the right thing to do.”
The referendum is mostly symbolic. By passing it, “the citizens of Missoula ... hereby urge the Congress of the United States of America to authorize and fund an immediate and orderly withdrawal of the United States military from Iraq in a manner that is fully protective of U.S. soldiers.”
The theory behind the referendum is that if enough cities call on Congress to act, maybe it will. Other cities have passed a similar referendum, including Helena, which also voted Tuesday.
The Democratic-controlled Congress has rattled its collective saber at the White House on developing a timetable for getting out of Iraq. But there hasn't appeared to be the political will necessary to call for a full-scale, immediate withdrawal.
Mulligan-Dague said the point of Missoula's referendum was less to force an immediate withdrawal and more to force a substantative discussion of how America can extract itself from the war.
On Tuesday, 2007 became the deadliest year for American troops in Iraq, with 853 casualties so far, eclipsing the 2004 death toll of 850.
Said Mulligan-Dague: “If enough cities pass this, it's just bound to snowball and become something the Congress can't ignore. It sends a message.”
Even so, she said there's a legitimate discussion to be had about how best to get out of Iraq, including how quickly a withdrawal could reasonably take place.
“I do think there is a debate about the timing of withdrawal, about how to support the troops,” she said. “This brings it to the mainstream. Having a dialogue, especially with people you disagree with, is the way to make peace.”
The referendum reached the ballot in June, but not until Missoula City Council members held a somber, emotional public hearing.
Even after the hearing, the council was deadlocked. Mayor John Engen cast the ballot that broke the tie and sent the referendum on to voters.
City Council member Stacy Rye supported the resolution, and was hopeful Tuesday that the message would carry beyond Montana.
“It's a drop in the bucket, but if you get enough drops in the bucket, maybe something good will happen,” Rye said.
Reporter Michael Moore can be reached at 523-5252 or at mmoore@missoulian.com.
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