- As the administration prepares for war with Iraq, a new
mantra has emerged in the campaign to win the hearts and minds of Americans
and, in effect, put Saddam Hussein on notice.
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- "America speaks with one voice," says President
Bush. In Washington, Bush, having been empowered by both houses of Congress
to use force, seems to face very little opposition on Iraq.
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- On the streets of America, nothing could be further from
the truth.
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- Across the nation, in city after city, ABCNEWS found
voices of opposition, and many of them were from military towns.
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- "I am not convinced President Bush has yet made
the case," said Miles Harvey, a San Diego retiree. San Diego is home
port to the Navy's Pacific Fleet, which directly employs more than 100,000
people.
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- "We have to be convinced that there is a credible
threat from Iraq and that's what I haven't seen," said Harvey.
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- Algene Miller, a Vietnam War veteran, said he was worried
about potential casualties.
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- "You can't have a war without them," he said.
"I know, I've been there."
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- On the other side of the country, in Charleston, S.C.
ó home to The Citadel military college and Charleston Air Force
Base ó there is also opposition, especially from those who remember
U.S. forces becoming bogged down in Vietnam while losing support back home.
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- "If the president could show a clear and present
danger I would support action against Iraq, but I don't support it without
any evidence, " said Robert Rhame, a retired businessman who served
in Vietnam.
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- "To me, our economy is far more important than removing
Saddam Hussein from power," he said.
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- Skepticism Over Presidentís Motives
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- In the Central Plains states, there is concern about
the prospect of the United Staets going to war alone.
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- At a coffee shop in Denver's Cherry Creek neighborhood,
homemaker Christa Rogers said unilateral action would be a mistake. "I
think we have to go with other people, other countries, I don't think we
can take this on, on our own," she said.
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- Her friend Cathy Roper agreed. "It all seems too
fast," Roper added. "We need to do something, but it seems like
it's really being shoved onto everybody, it seems too fast."
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- In addition to concern over timing and unilateral pre-emptive
action, people question the president's motives. Many people told ABCNEWS
they thought it was a "diversion from the faltering economy."
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- Debra Cassens, a businesswoman from San Diego, said it
was about revenge.
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- "Bush is trying to settle a score that began with
his father," she said referring to the failed Iraqi assassination
attempt on the president's father following the Persian Gulf War.
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- John Schneider, also from San Diego, said, "I think
the president wants to take action to enhance his own position.
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- "The war powers resolution was timed to benefit
those running for election this November," Schneider said.
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- Although organized demonstrations have yet to produce
large crowds, there have been several protests. In Los Angeles, 3,000 people
gathered outside the federal building this month and chanted "no war,"
while a group of American Indians staged a peace dance nearby.
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- In Portland, Ore., approximately 6,000 people recently
crowded the narrow streets to march and be heard while about 10,000 people
gathered in New York City's Central Park to oppose war plans.
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- "What concerns me," said Rhame, the retired
Vietnam War vet, "is what we do over there could bring more terror
to the United States."
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- Denver resident Cassens agreed. "We need to build
some bridges with the Muslim world, not make things worse," she said.
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- Contrary to what the president says, when it comes to
war, Americans do not speak with one voice. A national day of protest has
been scheduled for Oct. 26. http://abcnews.go.com/sections/wnt/DailyNews/war_opposition021014.html
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