Sep 11, 2019
Sen. Bernie Sanders marked the anniversary of the September 11th attacks on Wednesday by calling for the nation to get off the path of never-ending war it's pursued since the start of the so-called war on terror.
\u201cToday, we remember the thousands of lives lost on September 11, 2001, and the bravery of first responders who put their lives at risk to save others.\n\nThe attacks began an era of endless war for our country and we must change course. https://t.co/UcKuln00lg\u201d— Bernie Sanders (@Bernie Sanders) 1568209597
"Instead of staying focused on those who attacked us," Sanders said in a statement, "the Bush administration chose to declare a global 'war on terror' in order justify its 2003 invasion of Iraq, a country that had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks. The war on terror has turned into an endless war."
And that, Sanders continued, has had deleterious effects, including a $6 trillion price tag and a weakening of U.S. democracy. Endless war has also unleashed blowback--"it has produced more terrorists," he said.
His somber reflection stressed the need to one of the post-9/11 conflicts--the war in Afghanistan.
"If we do not move decisively to end America's longest war," Sanders wrote on Twitter, "we will soon see servicemembers fight and die in Afghanistan and around the world in a conflict that was started before they were born.'"
A new approach to global engagement is necessary, said Sanders.
"We must envision a new form of American engagement: one in which we lead not in war-making but in finding shared solutions to shared global challenges," he said. "U.S. power should be measured not by our ability to blow things up, but to bring people together around our common humanity."
Sanders is one of the Democratic White House hopefuls that has signed a pledge affirming his intention of ending the "endless war."
Rolled out earlier this year by the veteran-led grassroots organization Common Defense, signers promise they will "act to bring the Forever War to a responsible and expedient conclusion."
While frontrunner Joe Biden has not added his name, other 2020 Democrats have: Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker, former HUD Secretary Julian Castro, and entrepreneur Andrew Yang.
Join Us: News for people demanding a better world
Common Dreams is powered by optimists who believe in the power of informed and engaged citizens to ignite and enact change to make the world a better place. We're hundreds of thousands strong, but every single supporter makes the difference. Your contribution supports this bold media model—free, independent, and dedicated to reporting the facts every day. Stand with us in the fight for economic equality, social justice, human rights, and a more sustainable future. As a people-powered nonprofit news outlet, we cover the issues the corporate media never will. |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Sen. Bernie Sanders marked the anniversary of the September 11th attacks on Wednesday by calling for the nation to get off the path of never-ending war it's pursued since the start of the so-called war on terror.
\u201cToday, we remember the thousands of lives lost on September 11, 2001, and the bravery of first responders who put their lives at risk to save others.\n\nThe attacks began an era of endless war for our country and we must change course. https://t.co/UcKuln00lg\u201d— Bernie Sanders (@Bernie Sanders) 1568209597
"Instead of staying focused on those who attacked us," Sanders said in a statement, "the Bush administration chose to declare a global 'war on terror' in order justify its 2003 invasion of Iraq, a country that had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks. The war on terror has turned into an endless war."
And that, Sanders continued, has had deleterious effects, including a $6 trillion price tag and a weakening of U.S. democracy. Endless war has also unleashed blowback--"it has produced more terrorists," he said.
His somber reflection stressed the need to one of the post-9/11 conflicts--the war in Afghanistan.
"If we do not move decisively to end America's longest war," Sanders wrote on Twitter, "we will soon see servicemembers fight and die in Afghanistan and around the world in a conflict that was started before they were born.'"
A new approach to global engagement is necessary, said Sanders.
"We must envision a new form of American engagement: one in which we lead not in war-making but in finding shared solutions to shared global challenges," he said. "U.S. power should be measured not by our ability to blow things up, but to bring people together around our common humanity."
Sanders is one of the Democratic White House hopefuls that has signed a pledge affirming his intention of ending the "endless war."
Rolled out earlier this year by the veteran-led grassroots organization Common Defense, signers promise they will "act to bring the Forever War to a responsible and expedient conclusion."
While frontrunner Joe Biden has not added his name, other 2020 Democrats have: Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker, former HUD Secretary Julian Castro, and entrepreneur Andrew Yang.
Sen. Bernie Sanders marked the anniversary of the September 11th attacks on Wednesday by calling for the nation to get off the path of never-ending war it's pursued since the start of the so-called war on terror.
\u201cToday, we remember the thousands of lives lost on September 11, 2001, and the bravery of first responders who put their lives at risk to save others.\n\nThe attacks began an era of endless war for our country and we must change course. https://t.co/UcKuln00lg\u201d— Bernie Sanders (@Bernie Sanders) 1568209597
"Instead of staying focused on those who attacked us," Sanders said in a statement, "the Bush administration chose to declare a global 'war on terror' in order justify its 2003 invasion of Iraq, a country that had nothing to do with the 9/11 attacks. The war on terror has turned into an endless war."
And that, Sanders continued, has had deleterious effects, including a $6 trillion price tag and a weakening of U.S. democracy. Endless war has also unleashed blowback--"it has produced more terrorists," he said.
His somber reflection stressed the need to one of the post-9/11 conflicts--the war in Afghanistan.
"If we do not move decisively to end America's longest war," Sanders wrote on Twitter, "we will soon see servicemembers fight and die in Afghanistan and around the world in a conflict that was started before they were born.'"
A new approach to global engagement is necessary, said Sanders.
"We must envision a new form of American engagement: one in which we lead not in war-making but in finding shared solutions to shared global challenges," he said. "U.S. power should be measured not by our ability to blow things up, but to bring people together around our common humanity."
Sanders is one of the Democratic White House hopefuls that has signed a pledge affirming his intention of ending the "endless war."
Rolled out earlier this year by the veteran-led grassroots organization Common Defense, signers promise they will "act to bring the Forever War to a responsible and expedient conclusion."
While frontrunner Joe Biden has not added his name, other 2020 Democrats have: Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Cory Booker, former HUD Secretary Julian Castro, and entrepreneur Andrew Yang.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.