June 10 E-Mail from Congressman Lujan

[CodeManBob]

Dear Mr. Stearns,


Thank you for contacting my office in Washington, D.C. Discussing
critical issues with my constituents is very important to me.


Reaching peaceful and prompt resolutions to our engagements in
Afghanistan and Iraq are extremely important to me. I strongly believe
that we must support our brave men and women in combat, and that
bringing the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan to an end will improve our
national security and bring needed stability to those nations.


The Afghanistan Exit and Accountability Act, HR 1735, was introduced
by Rep. James McGovern on May 5, 2011, and I am proud to join him as a
cosponsor of this legislation. This bipartisan bill would require the
President to submit a plan to Congress for the safe, orderly, and
expeditious redeployment of United States Armed Forces from
Afghanistan. This legislation would provide the military with time to
draft and execute an exit strategy from the Afghan conflict and
require regular updates to Congress on the military's progress. In
addition to this I recently signed onto a letter to President Obama
calling for the administration to honor its commitment to begin the
withdrawal of US Troops from Afghanistan no later than July of this
year.


I continue to be an advocate for an end to the wars in Iraq and
Afghanistan. In August of 2009, I traveled to Afghanistan and met with
several U.S. and Afghan officials to discuss how we can successfully
and safely bring our troops home. The following September, fifty-seven
of my colleagues and I wrote to President Obama urging him to reject
further troop increases. My time in Afghanistan has shed light on the
fact that the Afghan people must take responsibility for their nation
and respond to government corruption without continued American
engagement.


Once again, thank you for expressing your opinion on this matter.
Please feel free to contact any of my offices if I can assist you in
any way. I am very interested in your opinions and your concerns. To
find more information regarding current legislation, services I can
offer, or ways my office can be helpful to you, please visit my
website at: www.lujan.house.gov.


Sincerely,
Rep. Ben Ray Luján
United States House of Representatives
NM-03