"We Can't Leave" Is Not A Strategy and Why Bush Should Shut Up About Osama

George Bush is back on tour, doing what he does best - fear-mongering. What a pathetic coward this man is. FDR said the "only thing we have to fear is fear itself." Bush is saying we have everything to fear, so vote Republican. It's so obvious, it's painful. Only the most craven cowards still find this persuasive.

But let's break down what he's actually saying. First, he tells us that the boogeyman is still out there, so we should all be very afraid. I don't think Bush should be allowed to talk about Osama bin Laden until he captures him. Every time he speaks about bin Laden, the media should immediately ask him why he hasn't caught the biggest American killer in history.

We sent 36 troops to Tora Bora to get Osama bin Laden when we had him cornered. We sent 150,000 after Saddam Hussein. Why? Because we wanted to get Saddam and we had no interest in getting bin Laden. The proof is in the numbers.

The Bush administration loves the boogeyman. The boogeyman wins elections for them.

Bush should never be allowed to utter Osama's name again until he captures or kills him. Here's a man who said earlier, "I am truly not that concerned about [Osama bin Laden]." Then, why don't you shut up about it?

Bush has the audacity to try to scare us with bin Laden two months before an election when he said in 2002, "I don't know where bin Laden is. I have no idea and really don't care. It's not that important. It's not our priority." How the Democrats and the press let him get away with that is beyond me.

In the same "Islamic caliphate" speech Bush gave yesterday, he said again for the 800th time in a row that we can't leave Iraq because fill in the blank - the terrorists will win, Al Qaeda will rule the world, our way of life will be destroyed, bin Laden will become the mayor of San Jose. Other than being preposterous, this is also not a viable strategy.

"We can't leave" is not a strategy. It doesn't translate to how we are going to win if we stay. It is not a plan. It is an act of desperation. Yes, if we leave there will be trouble, but if we stay it might be double.

Is "we can't leave" the best Bush has got? We can't leave, so we have to stay without any plan for success as civil war in Iraq engulfs our soldiers? That's awful.

Finally, will the Democrats please call the president what he is - a liar. Bush said yesterday in his speech that if we leave Iraq, it will become the capital of an Islamic caliphate. What is he talking about? This is a war between Sunni and Shiite sects indigenous to Iraq. To pretend that this is a war between Al Qaeda and the US is nothing short of a lie.

Anyone and everyone with a shred of knowledge knows this already, so why not call him out on it every time he lies likes this. Even his own Department of Defense has issued an extensive report explaining that this is actually battle between Sunni and Shiite sects and militias in Iraq.

Sometimes reporters in the mainstream media get all hurt and indignant when challenged by bloggers. Well, then do your job! As The Rock would say, "Know your role."

You are supposed to bring the public information and keep the government honest by challenging it with facts. The press should be all over Bush every time he pretends Iraq is a war between Al Qaeda and the US. The press should be all over Bush with his own quotes about how he is "unconcerned" about Osama every time he mentions Osama. And the press should ask him this obvious question: How is "we can't leave" a viable strategy for victory in Iraq?

The Young Turks