Kagen introduces a little levity to the White House While meeting last month with a group of area peace activists, then Congressman-elect Steve Kagen told a story of his first visit to the White House that shows a feisty and humorous side to our new man in Congress. He told the group one of the first lessons he learned in Washington is to never pass up a rest room because you dont know when youll see one again. Hed already had a long day of freshman orientation when he and his wife, Gail, were expected at the White House. Upon arrival, he asks a Marine where he can find a rest room, and is sent down a long flight of stairs, to another Marine, who directs him to a rest room. Its a small room ­ two spots on the wall, one stall one sink. I see in the mirror the door opens, and who walks in, Karl Rove (Bushs deputy chief of staff who was charged with orchestrating strategies for the 2006 general election). After Rove washed his hands (At least hes a hand washer, Kagen said), he attempted to leave, but Kagen prevented his departure by holding the door closed and said, Youre in the White House and you think your safe, huh? You recognize me? My names Dr. Multimillionaire and I kicked your ass. Kagen expected to make Rove squirm, but said acted like it was a tennis match and simply said, Oh, congratulations. Were walking up these long steps, I stopped him and said, Look, the race is over. Were here to do the peoples business. I want you to join me on something, but you cant steal it, Ive got the trademark, No patient left behind. He goes, I like the sound of that. We get to the top of the steps and theres Vice President Cheney with a glass of white wine and a hand in his pocket. So I wasnt going to miss this opportunity. Gail wasnt there to hold me back. Mr. Vice President, thank you for your service to the nation, and thank you so much for coming to Green Bay and campaigning against me. I couldnt have won without your help. He then asked Cheney to enunciate his vision for Iraq. Well, Id like to see a stable government that could take care of itself and its people. I said, at what price? He said, I dont understand your point. I walked away. Then we had an opportunity to take a picture with the president and his wife. I was feeling real good at this point. I said to my wife, Honey, just follow my lead. She said, Steven, its the president. I said, Yeah, but hes not any taller than I am. So the cameramans here. Were introduced by a Marine. I said, Mr. President , thank you for coming to Green Bay. My name is Dr. Multimillionaire.That was before the race. Now they call me Doctor Thousandaire. I couldnt have won without you coming. He said Bush gave one of his smiles and said, Ive lost a lot of money in my life, too. Then I go to his wife, Hi Barbara, how are ya? I did that because I learned on the campaign that the meanest thing you can say to another gentlemen is, hes a fine fellow, and you then refer to his spouse by a different name. Expect this side of Kagen to show up when he appears on the Colbert Report in February. National rally puts focus on Congress National peace movement organizers were planning a rally in Washington the weekend of March 19-20 to mark the 4th anniversary of the war in Iraq, but something happened to move the date up. Our national steering committee met a few days after the election and we realized that something quite remarkable had actually happened in the election, and that was that the voters in this country used the election as an opportunity to voice their opposition to the war, said Leslie Cagan, co-chair of United Peace and Justice and national coordinator for the UFJPs Jan. 27 peace rally in Washington, D.C. We really believe coming out of that, and the fact that there were some significant changes in Congress, that there was a new kind of energy in the country in terms of the opposition to the war and the sense of urgency that this stay the course option of the president even though he denies it is just not working, and that we have to step up and make our voices heard and make that demand that the war end even stronger and louder, Cagan said. In this new context, we felt it was very important to go to Washington sooner rather than later, and that was to do this as early in the new session of Congress as early as we could. Thats how we got to Jan. 27. Nothing special about that date. Its not an anniversary or a particular holiday or anything like. Its just the earliest we could on a practical level figure out how to organize a demonstration on a large scale. Cagan said the theme of the event is that the people have spoken and now its time for Congress to act. And Congress does have a role to play here, she said. It could end the war. Its the money, the purse strings. While Congress will soon be voting on supplemental funding for the war effort to the tune of anywhere from $70 billion to $130 billion in a war that is costing the American taxpayer $4.5 billion a month, incoming House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has already gone on record by saying Democrats will not cut off funding for troops, but not before adding, we will have oversight over that funding. Still, Cagan said there is value in this rally, mainly because past efforts have focused on the Bush Administration, while this one is aimed at a Congress full of fresh faces. We dont know yet how many people we can get to Washington, but we believe we can bring large numbers of people from around the country to really bring a focused message to the new Congress, you are the Congress because the people of this country want this war to end. So now, do it. Take whatever steps you need to make that happen. Those who attend the Saturday rally will be asked to stay for a training session on Sunday, followed by a lobbying day on Monday, when peace delegates will meet with members of Congress and/or their staff. None of us expects that if we march on Saturday then on Monday Congress is going to vote to cut off the funds and end the war, Cagan said. What we do know, though, is it puts pressure on them and it energizes people to go back home and continue to do the work. Thats a very, very important part of a national mobilization like this. We do think there will be a major turnout and we will prove this is not a regional phenomenon. It is a nationwide anti-war sentiment. Because of the numbers, but also because of the clarity of our message, it will be a very powerful day. You can learn more about the national rally and Congressional lobbying day on the UFPJ website at www.unitedforpeace.org. Several buses are heading from Wisconsin to Washington. If youd like to learn more about them check with Peace Action in Milwaukee (www.peaceactionwi.org), Peace North in Hayward (www.peacenorth.org) and the Campus AntiWar Network in Madison (www.revoltingstudents.com
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