The Republican Congressman, a member of the House Armed Services committee, the guy who compelled the Capitol cafeteria to rename two of its offerings "Freedom Fries" and "Freedom Toast", will next week send a letter to the White House calling for a 'date certain' withdrawal of US troops from Iraq.
When asked on whom he blamed the failures of the Iraq War --and was prodded by Stephanopoulis to blame Rumsfeld, or Bush -- he said:
"I blame the neoconservatives in the runup prior for providing bad information to the administration."
I cannot say I have ever heard a Republican use the word 'neoconservative' like that.
Rep. Jones apparently came to his change of heart after writing letters to the families of the fallen (and receiving letters back from them), and after attending a funeral for a soldier at Camp LeJeune, who among his survivors left twins he never saw.
The finger's out of the dike, folks.
When a GOP congressman of this man's once-proud conviction jumps off the war bandwagon -- the one, incidentally, Joe Biden is still on -- it's the beginning of the end.
For this war. Thank God.
There's no transcript up yet at ABC News.com, but when there is, I'll post it in the comments.
Update: Congressman Jones, along with Ron Paul and Dennis Kucinich, will announce tomorrow their bipartisan legislation that will call on President Bush to 'set a plan for beginning the phase-out of US troops in Iraq.' A press conference will begin at 10:30 a.m. (presumably EDT).
