“Half of each dollar you spend [on gasoline] props up some of the most repressive dictatorships in the world,” said Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur at a recent foreign policy town hall meeting in Oberlin. The consequences of American dependence on foreign oil were one of the main topics of Kaptur’s remarks.

In February, Kaptur became the first Female Democrat to serve on the Defense Appropriations Committee. She represents the ninth congressional district and has been Oberlin’s representative since 2002.

“We must recognize our economic dependencies and how our foreign policy is bound up in them,” she said. “I really believe our engagement in the Middle East and Central Asia is driven by this. When you consider what it costs to defend our oil lanes and where our troops are, we are on the bulls eye.”

Kaptur promised to be a “constant, nagging voice” for a transition to energy independence. Alternative energy sources such as biodiesel and ethanol fuels are, in Kaptur’s view, part of the solution to America’s energy problems. She criticized the Bush administration for putting pressure on the NASA Glenn Research Center to move away from long-term projects such as researching fuel cell technology.

Iraq was another issue that was addressed repeatedly by the congresswoman and several questioners from the audience

“How can Congress exercise the power of the purse to influence the White House [on Iraq]?” one audience member asked.

Kaptur answered that she would not vote against a funding bill while American troops were in combat.

“I cannot deny them what they need,” she said. “They did not ask to be put there. I am very angry about what has happened to our troops. [The Bush administration] never thought there would be a policing action after the ‘mission was accomplished.’ The president didn’t know what he was getting into.”

The growing role of private security contractors in Iraq was another policy that worried her. She said 25,000 of the 130,000 troops in Iraq were contractors.

“Trouble may be caused by contracting,” said Kaptur, who has been “confronted by troops about unfair pay scales” for contractors, who are paid significantly more than soldiers.

“I have never seen this in the military,” she said.

In response to questions about the continuing occupation of Iraq, Kaptur said she had opposed the Iraq war, but was concerned that “if we left tomorrow the pieces are not in place for it to govern itself.”

Kaptur was presented with a letter signed by members of the Unitarian Universalist congregation. The letter condemned the alleged consideration of the deployment of “death squads” in Iraq. Kaptur said “the jury is out” on the role of Iraqi security forces and “the sooner we can have other nations involved [in Iraq] the better.”

The “Orange” revolution in Ukraine was also discussed. Kaptur said “I have worked for 30 years to get to happen what happened in Ukraine. It’s a very precious moment in history,” she said.

The most contentious part of the afternoon’s discussion was when Kaptur was asked about her position on “global reproductive freedom.” Kaptur said “I do not support federal funding of abortion...the priority has to be life.” Her answer elicited murmurs from the audience.

Citizens for Global Change, a Washington D.C.-based organization that supports cooperation with international institutions to solve international problems, and the Community Peace Builders, a newly formed local activist group, sponsored the town hall meeting at Kendal of Oberlin.