Berkeley Could Lose Funding Over Anti-Marine Stance
POSTED: 9:31 pm PST February 6, 2008

BERKELEY, Calif. -- Republicans in Congress are playing hardball with Berkeley after the liberal city council issued a declaration urging the U.S. Marines to move its recruitment office out of the East Bay college town last week. Now conservative lawmakers are fighting back with legislation that could eliminate millions of dollars in funding for UC Berkeley and a variety of city programs.

The controversy erupted last week after the City Council passed an item condemning the Marines' downtown recruiting center on Shattuck Avenue. The item told the U.S. Marines that if its recruiters choose to stay in their rented downtown space "they do so as uninvited and unwelcome guests."

A small band of GOP lawmakers is fighting back with legislation that could eliminate millions of dollars for UC Berkeley, public safety programs, a new ferry service, and the Alice Waters foundation, an organization that provides lunches to public schools.

It was quiet Wednesday evening in front of the Marine Corps recruiting station on Shattuck in Berkeley, but the battle between city officials and the federal government is escalating.

An anti-war protest vehicle remains parked in front of the recruiting station, and now some republicans are retaliating by trying to slash $2.3 million in federal funds from several Berkeley programs after the city council voted last week to ask the Marines to leave.

Wednesday night, Berkeley's Mayor Tom Bates backed down from those earlier calls for the Marines to hit the road.

"We went too far when we passed [the resolution]. We said things we probably shouldn't have said," explains the mayor.

Pictures of the vocal protests that took place in front of the Marine Corps recruiting office from last week's demonstration infuriated some members of Congress.

Republican South Carolina Senator Jim Demint was among those angered. "Patriotic American taxpayers won't sit quietly while Berkeley insults our brave marines and tries to run them out of town, and the city doesn't deserve a single dime of special pet project handouts," said Senator Demint in a statement.

Senator Demint has joined forces with five other Republican senators and an Orange County representative to introduce companion bills called the Semper Fi Act of 2008.

One cut amounting to almost a quarter million dollars would impact the Chez Paniesse Foundation, which helps provide school meals to thousands of Berkeley public school students. Not surprisingly, Berkeley residents are shocked that the proposed legislation would go to such lengths.

"If you want to give a slap on the hand of a community because of their opinion and viewpoint, that in itself is questionable. But to attack our children to do that is absolutely unconscionable," said Berkeley School District spokesman Mark Coplan.

On the streets of Berkeley Wednesday night, many people said Berkeley city leaders went too far in their anti-war efforts.

"I'm against war, but I think if we didn't have the Marines we'd probably be all be speaking German," said Ralph Kratz of Richmond.

"I think Berkeley has a right to their opinion and I think the Marine Corps does too. I don't think federal funding has anything to do with whether there's recruitment or not," said San Leandro resident Ed Shapiro.

Mayor Tom Bates says he hopes the city can clarify it's position: "I'm not saying we're anti-Marines or anti armed forces. We're just trying to set the record straight that we're against this war. We think it's illegal. We think it's immoral. We think it's wrong and we think we've been lied to. We want this war to be over."

The showdown between Berkeley's city council and its critics comes to a head on Tuesday when the city council will vote again whether or not to urge the Marines to leave. Some council members appear to be softening their positions.

A pro-military group called Move America Forward says it will hold an all-day protest in front of City Hall the try to get Berkeley to back down.
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