Posted on 02/07/2008 6:32:52 PM PST by SmithL
SACRAMENTO -- Republican Assemblyman Guy Houston of San Ramon announced plans today to punish Berkeley's stance against Marine recruiting by withholding $3.3 million in state road funds, atop a $2.3 million federal allocation that's being challenged.
Meanwhile, Move America Forward -- which calls itself the nation's largest grassroots pro-troop organization -- scheduled an all-day demonstration against the Berkeley City Council on Tuesday, until the council meeting begins at 7 p.m.
The council voted last week to tell the Marines that a recruiting office is not welcome in their town.
Move America Forward today asked Berkeley to rescind its action and issue a formal apology to all military personnel. Some council members said Wednesday that they are considering actions to defuse the controversy.
Houston, the Bay Area's lone GOP state lawmaker, said he will introduce legislation to strip Berkeley of $3.3 million in voter-approved transportation funds until Berkeley leaders rescind their "war on the U.S. Marine Corps."
The Republican move at the state level mirrors action Wednesday by several GOP congressional members who want to punish the liberal city by withholding $2.3 million in federal funds for a wide array of uses.
Assemblywoman Loni Hancock, D-Berkeley, was not immediately available for comment.
Both the state and federal moves to withhold money were largely symbolic, with little chance of passing.
Houston said in a statement that he "cannot stand by and do nothing while the City of Berkeley declares war on the United States Marine Corps."
"The Marines, and all of our branches of the military, deserve the honor of our elected officials, not their scorn," he said.
The city "took the extraordinary action of approving a resolution that will result in a letter being sent to the Commandant of the United States Marine Corps that their Marine recruiting office is not welcome in the City of Berkeley, and if recruiters choose to stay, they do so "as uninvited and unwelcome intruders," Houston said.
The legislator said the city's resolution also applauds residents and organizations "that may volunteer to impede, passively or actively, by nonviolent means, the work or any military recruiting office located in the City of Berkeley." He added this "nonviolent means" has resulted in people chaining themselves to one another in order to physically obstruct people from entering the Marine recruiting office.
Houston provided a web site to view video of protesters physically blocking access to the Berkeley Marine Corps office: http:/www.breitbart.tv/?p=41464&comments=1.
Move America Forward said it held an October rally in solidarity with the Marines outside the Marine Recruiting Center in Berkeley, after the site was "vandalized and defaced" by anti-military protesters.
So does this soldier...
The petition
We, the undersigned condemn the Berkeley City Council’s treasonous attack on US Marine Recruiters stationed in their city. We ask that Congress cut off funds from any and all municipal entity within the confines of the city of Berkeley, California, until such time as the city council withdraws it’s action.
The City Council has voted to tell the Marines their downtown recruiting station is not welcome and “if recruiters choose to stay, they do so as uninvited and unwelcome guests.”
The measure passed last week by a vote of 8-1.
The council also voted to explore enforcing a city anti-discrimination law, focusing on the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.
In a separate item, the council voted, also 8-1, to give the Marxist protest group Code Pink a parking space in front of the recruiting office once a week for six months and a free sound permit for protesting once a week.
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/cutoffberkeleynow
If you wish to, please share with your friends or e-mail to your address books.
Didn’t the city of Berkeley back down already?
Yes. But that shouldn’t mean that the Senators need to re: the Berkeley earmarks. DUmmies.
Signed and delivered.
Even if they did, it’s not good enough. No weasel-words are good enough. Berkeley must be made to pay the price of sedition.
Well, they're all in PRIME BIG earthquake zones - maybe God has a plan?
LOL, well if He does I hope He waits until I get my butt out of San Diego.
Come on. Showgirls wasn’t that bad. At least it had plenty of nudity!
Oh, please do. Otherwise let them secede and call themselves the “People’s Republic of Berkely”. They just do not want to soil themselves with considerations of national interest; they are just too insular.
only kinda sorta.
Code Pinkie still has their parking space and permit for protest in front of the Marine office. And they are saying they need to moderate the letter not rescind it.
Where is the San Andreas Fault when you need it?
Notice the title. It makes it seem the lawmaker is at fault not Berkeley. Take away more than the $3.3 million, take away all the state and federal tax money given to these slimeballs.
The Berkley morons explicitly advocated impeding the military in their vote. THEY NEED TO BE TRIED FOR TREASON.
The Berkley morons explicitly advocated impeding the military in their vote. THEY NEED TO BE TRIED FOR TREASON.
....I really hope that the Berkeley city council does NOT rescend their letter...I want this thing to get bigger and bigger....I want more people like Barbara Boxer to get sucked in....I want Hollywood to get sucked in....I want to see a line drawn in the sand so that the anti-military appeasement whores will be spotlighted for the whole country to see....no more quibbling....no more wiggle room....you’re either for the Marines or you’re against them.....no in between.
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