Last week on Capitol Hill was particularly unsettling. As another 15 sons and daughters of America died in the crossfire in Iraq, as 130,000 American troops over there still saw no light at the end of the tunnel, as Osama bin Laden continued to control his own safe zone, and as the United States Senate debated a change of course, the news coverage and the political dialog zeroed in on... a newspaper ad.
A number of Republicans pointed to the ad in question while demanding, "Support the troops!" Then, they turned around and blocked a measure to give our troops time at home equal to their tours overseas -- a measure supported by the 360,000 member Military Officers Association of America. Apparently, the irony was lost on many.
And so it was another Iraq debate in Washington, perhaps the only place where the uproar over an advertisement can supplant the devastating reality on the ground. Meanwhile, buried in the who-said-what headlines about a newspaper ad was the fact that one of the most seminal weeks of the war came and went without nearly enough attention.
It was a week in which once-realistic hopes for a broad coalition needed to change course in Iraq were dashed. It was a week in which Senators whose consciences had seen enough of this awful war in July were suddenly pulled back in line with the president. And in the end, it was a week in which "stay the course" got another Republican stamp of approval.
Media interest in these developments appeared to have been sucked away by the fabricated controversy over the ad, as well as the skillfully orchestrated, if marginally accurate, PR surrounding "The Surge."
With the true significance of the week muddled, many Republicans latched onto General Petraeus, hiding behind his personal poll numbers instead of facing the facts and images from the ground. With actions like this on the most important issue we face, the Republican Party is losing the public faith more each day.
Their staunch support for the president and this war means that they must be accountable for the failed policy -- and I believe that their constituents will take them to task. The more times they act to extend this dead-end war policy, the less they have in common with the American people.
Politically, that is an untenable place to be with the most important elections in recent memory a little more than a year away. But they chose a short-term political victory. They chose to back a president who lost credibility on this war about the same time he stood on the deck of an aircraft carrier under a banner that read "Mission Accomplished", four and a half long years ago. And they will have to live with that.
Still, the electoral implications of the Iraq debate always take a back seat -- a far back seat -- to the more immediate life-and-death consequences. These are the consequences that were somehow glossed over last week.
Perhaps some have grown weary of the tangible results of our Iraq policy -- after all, this war has worn on our country and its psyche for years. Perhaps some in the media simply enjoy the peripheral maneuvering more than the reality of the Iraq war. Perhaps my party continues to fall short in our attempts to communicate the real meaning of these Iraq votes.
Whatever the reason, the story about one of the most seminal weeks of the war got buried. Because we still haven't broken through, the real, human consequences of our votes on Iraq should be repeated again... and again, and again, until we all focus on what's at stake and understand that a newspaper ad isn't all that important in the grand scheme of things.
That's why everyday, in everything we do, we should keep in our minds that 130,000 sons and daughters of America remain in the crossfire, with no prospects for coming home. That our military continues to be stretched thin to the point that it can't adequately respond to other threats that may arise. That our national guard remains overused and overburdened to the point that it can't properly respond to disasters here in the homeland.
That the terror training ground in Iraq remains fertile, and one day those trainees could be on our soil. That Osama bin Laden is back in business and continues to roam free in a safe zone along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border.
That thousands upon thousands of Americans fighting in Iraq won't be sitting at the table this Thanksgiving... or the next one. And that some won't see another Thanksgiving, period.
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You have one group of radical fundamentalists doing battle with another group of radical fundamentalists.
Bin Laden sees the GRERAT Satin.
George Bush and his,,,,, Armageddon Crusaders,,, see the devil himself incarnate in bin Laden.
Senator, with all due respect. General Pace sat before Congress last week and defied the LAW of the LAND, by refusing to get off his RADICAL pontifications opposing the “Don’t as don’t tell” LAWS of American treatment of Gays and Lesbians in the military.
By his own mouth, right there as America Watched, and before YOUR EYES.
No,,, correction,, THE WORLD watched as the hear of the American military Said that Gays are IMMORAL, go against Gods will, and equated them ALL with adulterers and deviants.
NOW.. To the basics. Dow you think a Gay would make four star General if BUSH or General Pace has anything to say about it?
These radical fundamentalists beliefs have infected the ranks of the United States military command and anfd officer corps ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP!
GET IT!
They only promote who they want5, when they want and WHY they want and they have taken this country to war based on their Narrow extremist,,,,, Armageddon Crusader,,,,, belief systems.
And they will sit right there and DEFY the LAW, with God, the American people and the WORLD watching.
Do I defend gays?
YOU BET YOUR SWEET ARSE I DO!
They are Americans!!!!!!!
Senator, with respect.
This is NOT firkin Rocket Science!
They defy the LAW!!!!!!!
And your Officer Corps in infected to the TEETH!!!!
This is NOT a RightLeft thing,,, it is about THE LAW!!!!!
All the best
Knute (Neo-LIB)
Raw story describes it as a "spontaneous" act of civil disobedience to the war, inspired by the people of Burma.
i am not a cut and runner. I couldn't hardly wait to sign up in 1950.I have to admit though that the paragraph above relating to growing weary can be applied to me. I am sick of hearing the low poll numbers of the Congress. They are doing what they can against the republican war machine. I hope we can get the House, The Senate and the Presidentcy in the 08 elections. Sen. Webbs try to get the troops to spend as much time home as in battle getting defeated was a disgrace.I know it would cost him his Senate seat but I wish he would kick somebodys ass up there. I believe he could do it. Keep fighting for justice for the country Dems I believe your day is coming
Why in hell is George Bush still in the White House, like why is impeachment off the table? " Nancy?
What about all the other places that possible terrorists can come into the US?
Based on how poorly our borders are secured, and the possibility of a terrorist destroying power grids from the internet, I can't see how Iraq is the biggest problem.
Maybe our biggest threats are from Washington, with the inability of Congress to stop supporting the funding for a "war" that is not likely to end with much more than what we already have.
"If there were more Democrats in Congress, this war would be over. If there were a Democrat in the White House, the troops would be coming home and the healing could begin."
Just HAMMER that one message over and over -- it's driving clarity is irefutable.
Unfortunately, given the pathetic performance of Democrats since the last election, this message may not even be true.
We should also demand that our representatives in Congress, stand firm side by side in the steps of the Capitol for as long as it takes telling the thruth to the American people.
THE ONLY REASON WE NEED TO GET OUT OF IRAQ "WE ARE COMMITTING A CRIME" iRAQ IS AN ILLEGAL WAR AND OCCUPATION. posted 09/26/2007 at 12:15:42
How does the Congress, State Department, the newsmedia respond to Ahmadinejad's unnamed evil empire? These entities identify the unmentioned culprit as America!
Ahmadinejad clearly establishes himself as one very clever dude, but the lesson is lost on the naive, the guileless.
If the Iranian president had spoken the same words in 1941, everyone hearing his speech would have quickly identified the evil empire, not as America.
"It was a week in which Senators whose consciences had seen enough of this awful war in July were suddenly pulled back in line with the president."
How does the word "consciences" fit with such a statement?
There is a "broad coalition" for changing course in Iraq. That coalition is the mass of the citizens of this country. While you denizens of Capitol Hill choose to ignore it, it is none the less there.
You should stop playing ends against the middle . Do what should be done or have the grace to get out of the way.
I like to see these merchants of death pay for their inhumane means of destruction, make them pay the families of our soldiers who have lost or have an injured soldier to support them for their rest of their lives and don't forget to pay for all the destruction their weapons have done to the nation of Iraq.
The people spoke and the Democrats have ignored us as well.
I would like to introduce a bill that would fund the retrofit of spines for the Democrats. And, if some money is left over, maybe a few pair of huevos.