Pelosi's Hamfisted Turkey Move

It's this type of tactical dissonance that has made Pelosi's first nine months such a rousing failure, if congressional approval polls are to be believed.
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Despite howls of protest from Turkish officials, Nancy Pelosi seems intent on bringing to the floor a resolution condemning Armenian genocide nearly 100 years ago. The debasement and massacre of hundreds of thousands of people clearly merits attention.

But the timing of this resolution is a bit sub-optimal. Why target a genocide which occurred 100 years ago, and not offer a similar resolution against the Japanese for genocide that occurred in World War II, half a century ago? Could it possibly be related to the fact that nearly 70% of all air cargo destined to supply the troops in Iraq passes through Turkey, who thus far have been a reasonably reliable ally?

The Turkish government has indicated they might revoke our ability to send supplies, including new mine-resistant vehicles, if Pelosi follows through with her non-binding resolution. So why now? To complicate Bush's life? You might very well think that. I couldn't possibly comment.

Even Barney the Dinosaur could figure out that Pelosi is trying to be too clever by a half with the timing (not the content) of this resolution, and if Barney can, so can a good deal of the American public. I was once criticized on the Jon Stewart show for opining that Americans are smart enough to think for themselves. They are.

It's this type of tactical dissonance that has made Pelosi's first nine months such a rousing failure, if congressional approval polls are to be believed. The Democrats need a leader who plays chess, not hopscotch. Where's Francis Urquhart when you need him?

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