cross-posted at MyDD

Robert Lopez served 8 years in our military, fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan as a tank commander.  He was told he'd get his whole education bill paid for when he got out of the service. Mr. Lopez has fought and sacrificed for our country but like so many others, Mr. Lopez has faced the bleak reality of a government that has turned its back on its veterans.

That is why Senators Jim Webb and Chuck Hagel proposed a new GI Bill, which would bring back WWII-style standards of providing vets with full tuition, room and board.  And that is why 51 senators have signed on, including 9 Republicans like John Warner, giving this GI Bill tremendous bi-partisan support.

But it isn't enough.  Faced with unprecedented filibusters, the only way to ensure Senate passage of the GI Bill is to get 60 cosponsors. So far, John McCain has refused.  The same McCain who insists he supports our troops.  The same McCain who is voting lockstep with the Bush administration (who have also resisted this bill).  We need to get John McCain to do the right thing.  We need him to sign now and signal to other Republican leaders that we should be strongly behind our vets.

There is no doubt that Iran poses a threat to stability in the Gulf, to US allies in the region, and to our efforts in Iraq. But all of this was perfectly predictable: after all, we knocked out Iran's greatest enemy, Saddam Hussein, and left them the largest force in the region. And now they are, by every indication, seeking to acquire nuclear weapons.

But the right response now is to engage Iran diplomatically. Use sanctions against their terrorist elements as a way of underscoring our purpose, but talk, and talk without pre-conditions to explore their interests, understand their motives, and seek some common interests.

It was great to meet many of you at YearlyKos this past weekend. Many thanks to Gina, Nolan, and all the volunteers for putting together a great conference.

I wanted to continue the discussion we began after my remarks Friday morning. (You can watch highlights here or the entire speech here.) As I said on Friday, we need to reshape the international institutions that provide the framework for the global economy and addressing the problems of mankind that are too big for any one nation to handle -- poverty, health, disease, global warming, the prevention of war, the protection of human rights. We need to rebuild American so we can compete more effectively in this global economy - healthcare, education, infrastructure, the environment, new technology, a better business environment, new relations with labor.

We can't do these things until we find a way out of Iraq.

Last week I posted about the looming conflict with Iran. Many of you asked, "What can I do?"

Over the course of the week I worked with Jon Soltz and the team at VoteVets.org to come up with a solution: StopIranWar.com. I believe it is critical to give voice to the vast majority of Americans who want to avoid a military conflict with Iran, and I hope you will visit StopIranWar.com to add your voice to our efforts.

As the President fights for public support of his troop surge in Iraq, he is also ratcheting up the pressure on Iran. A second aircraft carrier battle group (with Newsweek reporting a third group likely to follow), Patriot missiles to protect our allies, arresting Iranian personnel in Iraq, releasing additional information about Iranian involvement, appointing a Navy Admiral to command forces in the region, even seeking diplomatic support from Sunni Arab friends in the region - Yes, the Iranians are interfering inside Iraq and seeking nuclear capabilities. Yet the President's recent actions give the US little additional leverage to engage and dissuade Iran, and, more than likely, simply accelerate a dangerous slide into war.  The United States can do better than this.

The American Constitution gives us the right and the duty to question our government during good times and bad.  Republicans may not believe it, but debate and criticism are patriotic!  It's our duty as citizens to stand up and hold our leaders accountable, for the good of all Americans.

Now, with our nation facing many critical challenges, we must fulfill that duty and exercise those rights while we still have time to turn things around and get America back on track.  How?  By taking back Congress and ending the Bush Era of one-party government in November.

... certainly should NOT stay in Vegas!

Thank you so much for allowing me to join you in Las Vegas for YearlyKos -- the first of what I'm sure will be many more gatherings of the progressive political blogosphere.

It truly was a tremendous event.  Congratulations to Gina Cooper and the entire organizing committee for pulling together a wonderful conference.