West Coast City Formally Rejects Iran Attack

[rodeodance]

POLITICS-US: West Coast City Formally Rejects Iran Attack
By Omid Memarian*

http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=39966

OAKLAND, California, Nov 7 (IPS) - The eight-member city council of Oakland, home to nearly half a million people, unanimously passed a symbolic resolution opposing any U.S. attack against Iran Tuesday, in a bid to pressure lawmakers in Congress to reestablish their constitutional authority over U.S foreign policy and war policy and funding.

Before the city council meeting began, about 15 concerned Oakland and East Bay residents spoke out against the U.S. entering into another war. Dozens of others rallied in front of City Hall in support of the resolution.

"The Bush administration and many of its Congressional allies are engaging in a systematic campaign to convince the American people, and their representatives in Congress, that the Islamic Republic of Iran is a clear and present threat to the safety and security of the United States of America, members of our armed overseas and our allies," the resolution states.

"In a strategy eerily reminiscent of the lead-up to the Iraq war and occupation, the Bush administration and its congressional allies are using unreliable sources, exaggerated threat assessments, the selective use of information, and questionable accusations in their case to the American people for war against Iran," it says.