The Democrats were successful in the 2006 elections, and may be successful again in 2008. Their success in large part was due to their negativity towards the war in Iraq and the demonizing of the President in charge.
Democrats say the war on terror is a "bumper sticker." They tell us that we must set a date for withdrawing troops from Iraq.
They tell us the war is lost.
It's a self-fulfilling prophecy, because it influences both the attitudes of our enemies and the attitudes of the Iraqi Government - it encourages the former - and discourages the latter from making the reforms necessary for the fledgling government to move forward.
In the words of John Burns: "...the more that the Democrats in the Congress lead the push for an early withdrawal, the more Iraqi political leaders, particularly the Shiite political leaders, but the Sunnis as well, and the Kurds, are inclined to think that this is going to be settled, eventually, in an outright civil war, in consequence of which they are very, very unlikely or reluctant, at present, to make major concessions. They’re much more inclined to kind of hunker down. So in effect, the threats from Washington about a withdrawal, which we might have hoped would have brought about greater political cooperation in face of the threat that would ensue from that to the entire political establishment here, has had, as best we can gauge it, much more the opposite effect, of an effect that persuading people well, if the Americans are going, there’s absolutely no…and we’re going to have to settle this by a civil war, why should we make concessions on that matter right now?"
Where are our statesmen? Where are the Washingtons, Jeffersons, Adams and other principled leaders who think beyond the next election? Somewhere winning elections became more important than winning the war.
But at what cost?
3 comments:
I was just thinking about our "leaders" and the games being played in order to win an election.
It seems no one cares about the Iraqi people and the bloodshed that WILL occur once we pull out.
I'm glad these "leaders" weren't around during WWII.
Chris,
You're absolutely right about our lack of principled leaders. Unfortunately, that problem runs through the Republican party as well. I would say that more than the Democrats' negativity toward the war being responsible for the '06 Republican losses, the Republicans can blame themselves. The lack of conservative leaders in our party kept many conservative voters at home, and even many of those who did vote lacked enthusiasm for their candidates of choice.
I am afraid the same thing will happen in the '08 Presidential election if the Republicans don't wake up SOON and find a true conservative to run.
This is a time when a real soldier is needed to speak up. (Can anyone find the number for Gen. "Stormin' Norman" Schwarzkopf?) Seriously, someone with chutzpah, and a voice that cannot be labeled as "idiot" by anyone in either party, needs to be heard.
My dad, a vet of the war in the Philippines, Korea, and Vietnam, used to say we don't know how to fight a war anymore. According to him, Washington stopped soldiers from fighting wars and tried to make them into diplomats.
I think he had a point....
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