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F I S C A L I M P A C T R E P O R T

SPONSOR Ortiz y Pino

ORIGINAL DATE

LAST UPDATED

1/31/08

HB

SHORT TITLE Withdraw Troops from Iraq

SM 44

ANALYST Shaya

SOURCES OF INFORMATION

LFC Files

SUMMARY

Synopsis of Bill

Senate Memorial 44 expresses the intent of the New Mexico State Senate asking that the United

States

Congress hereby be called upon to rescind the Iraq resolution and to pass a resolution

calling for the immediate withdrawal of American troops from Iraq that this resolution in no way

condemn our military men and women who honorably performed their duties in Iraq according

to their understanding; and that copies of this memorial be transmitted to the president of the

United States senate, the majority leader of the United States house of representatives and the

members of the New Mexico congressional delegation.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS

No Fiscal Implications

SIGNIFICANT ISSUES

Senate Memorial 44 makes the following statements;

•

Over four thousand New Mexico army and air national guard troops have served in Iraq;

and

•

Approximately five hundred New Mexico army and air national guard troops are

currently serving in Iraq; and

•

Nearly four thousand United States troops have lost their lives in the war in Iraq and

nearly thirty thousand have suffered injuries; and

•

Thirty-five soldiers from New Mexico have been killed in Iraq, including two in January

2008; and

•

President Bush deployed New Mexico's army and air national guard troops on the

pretense that weapons of mass destruction existed in Iraq; and

•

It has been conclusively determined that there were no weapons of mass destruction in

Iraq; and

•

President Bush deployed New Mexico's army and air national guard troops on the

Senate Memorial 44 – Page

2

pretense that Iraq was linked to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attack; and

•

It has been conclusively determined that Iraq was not involved in the September 11, 2001

terrorist attack; and

•

President Bush deployed New Mexico's army and air national guard troops on the

pretense that Iraq was the most serious threat facing the national security of the United

States; and

•

It has been conclusively determined that Iraq poses no risk to the national security of the

United States; and

•

The center for public integrity reported in January 2008 that the Bush administration

made at least nine hundred thirty-five false statements that led our nation into war in Iraq

under false pretenses; and

•

According to an MSNBC online survey, ninety-four percent of Americans believe that

President Bush misled the nation in order to go to war in Iraq; and

•

According to an October 2006 Newsweek poll:

o

sixty-four percent of Americans believe that the United States is losing ground in

the war in Iraq; and

o

sixty-six percent of Americans say the war has not made the United States safe

from terrorism; and

•

According to a November-December 2007 USA Today/Gallup poll, fifty-seven percent of

Americans believe that it was a mistake to go to war in Iraq in 2003; and

•

According to a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll, fifty-five percent of Americans do not view

the war in Iraq as being related to the war against terrorism; and

•

United States' allies in Iraq have drastically reduced their forces since the March 2003

invasion; and

•

Three of the United States' allies in Iraq, Italy, Bulgaria and Ukraine, withdrew all of

their forces in 2005 and 2006, and a half dozen other allies are debating possible

withdrawals; and

•

According to a January 2008 Los Angeles Times/Bloomberg poll, nearly three out of four

American voters believe that United States forces should withdraw within the year; and

•

More than one thousand uniformed, active-duty military personnel, many of whom have

served in Iraq, have appealed for redress to congress stating that "staying in Iraq will not

work and is not worth the price. It is time for U.S. troops to come home."; and

•

According to a January 2008 International Policy Attitudes poll, eighty-seven percent of

Iraqis want their government to request a withdrawal of United States forces in Iraq; and

•

According to a December 2007 NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll, fifty-six percent of

Americans do not believe that the United States can achieve victory in Iraq; and

•

According to a January 2008 CNN/Opinion Research poll, sixty-three percent of

Americans oppose the war in Iraq; and

•

America's soldiers are caught in the middle of a civil war from which there is no victory

in sight; and

•

Almost one-half of all American military casualties are caused by roadside bombs, such

that American forces have simply become defenseless human targets for pointless

slaughter;

RS/mt