posted on May 10, 2007 09:25:37 AM new
Party relies too much on sloganeering and hawkish obstinacy
Published May 10, 2007
We all know that when it comes to war, Republicans are strong and resolute, while Democrats are weak and craven. We know because Republicans tell us so.
Those have been the constant GOP themes in the congressional debate over the Iraq war. House Republican Leader John Boehner of Ohio accused Democrats who want to mandate withdrawal by a certain date of proposing "a timetable for American surrender." They were cheering for "defeat," charged Arizona Sen. John McCain. President Bush vowed that unlike his partisan opponents, he would not "cut and run."
During last week's Republican presidential debate at the Reagan Library, Rudy Giuliani cited the 40th president as a model of fortitude in dealing with enemies. Among "the things that Ronald Reagan taught us," he declared, is that "we should never retreat in the face of terrorism."
No one present was impolite enough to mention that far from spurning retreat in the face of terrorism, the Gipper embraced it. After the 1983 terrorist bombing in Beirut, which killed 241 U.S. military personnel, he recognized the futility of our presence in Lebanon and pulled out.
Boehner portrays himself and his colleagues as brave patriots who would never accept anything less than victory in war. But in 1993, when things got tough in Somalia, he voted for withdrawal. John McCain likewise favored "defeat" in that conflict. He opposed a timetable for withdrawal not because he wanted U.S. forces to stay but because it would take too long. Our soldiers, he insisted, should leave "as rapidly and safely as possible." Or, you could say, cut and run.
At the same time, Democrats were warning of the dangers of retreat. Among them was a senator from Massachusetts named John Kerry.
Both times, the Republicans favoring withdrawal had the right idea. In neither case was our intervention justified, and nothing at stake in Lebanon or Somalia was worth the cost in American lives.
They also favored an outcome short of victory in the Kosovo war of 1999, when the GOP-controlled House voted down a resolution supporting the president's air campaign. Most House Republicans also supported a measure calling for the withdrawal of American troops from the Balkans.
Back then, House Republican Leader Tom DeLay said, "The bombing was a mistake," and urged President Bill Clinton to "admit it and come to some sort of negotiated end." Can you guess the title of DeLay's new book? "No Retreat, No Surrender."
The truth is, Republican presidents are not known for staying the course in the face of adversity. Dwight Eisenhower ran on a promise to end the Korean war, which he did -- on terms that allowed the communist aggressors to remain in power in the North. Richard Nixon negotiated a peace agreement with the North Vietnamese government, which provided for a U.S. pullout. Gerald Ford presided over the fall of Saigon and the final humiliating American evacuation.
In those instances, the presidents came to grips with the unpleasant truth that sometimes you can't achieve the desired outcome without an excessive sacrifice, if at all. But when it comes to Iraq, Republicans insist we should be ready to pay any price in pursuit of a victory that has eluded us for so long. In their view, weighing the costs against the benefits, or acknowledging that we don't have a formula for success, is tantamount to appeasement.
What Republicans stood for in the past was a sober realism about the limits of our power and our good intentions. That spirit is absent today. They act as though slogans are a substitute for strategy. What they claim as steadfast resolve looks like blind obstinacy.
It's silly to say victory is the only option unless you actually have a way to achieve it and are willing to commit the necessary resources. The administration and its allies on Capitol Hill insist that this time, they know what they're doing. But they said the same thing at every point along the way, and if they had been right, the phrase "Mission Accomplished" wouldn't be a national joke.
Maybe at last they have found the key to success. More likely, though, they are just wasting lives and money postponing the inevitable. It's terrible to lose a war. But as several Republican presidents could attest, it's even worse to persist in one you can't win.
Absolute faith has been shown, consistently, to breed intolerance. And intolerance, history teaches us, again and again, begets violence.
---------------------------------- The duty of a patriot in this time and place is to ask questions, to demand answers, to understand where our nation is headed and why. If the answers you get do not suit you, or if they frighten you, or if they anger you, it is your duty as a patriot to dissent. Freedom does not begin with blind acceptance and with a flag. Freedom begins when you say 'No.'
posted on May 10, 2007 03:43:11 PM new
No, we don't know it 'because the republicans say it's so'.....
We KNOW it by THEIR actions.
Like wanting America to be defeated during the VN war....and NOW again in Iraq.
We KNOW it because they always work to DECREASE our military funding.
We KNOW it because they do all they can to work AGAINST most military recruitment.
The list of how the liberals PROVE they are weak on defense of this Nation....is clearly evident by THEIR own actions....not the 'words' of the republicans.
GET REAL
Edited to add: MORE proof of the liberals ACTIONS.....not something the republicans are SAYING. lol
Reported in both the NYT AND the WA Times....are articles that are reporting the liberals are now trying to CUT missile DEFENSE. Yep....cutting OUR national PROTECTION. That's the liberal way.
"While the democratic party complains about everything THIS President does to protect our Nation": "What would a Democrat president have done at that point?"
"Apparently, the answer is: Sit back and wait for the next terrorist attack."
Ann Coulter
[ edited by Linda_K on May 10, 2007 03:45 PM ]
[ edited by Linda_K on May 10, 2007 04:14 PM ]
posted on May 10, 2007 06:12:03 PM new
"""not the 'words' of the republicans.
GET REAL """
You're right ...anyone taking the word of the Republicans is REALLY REALLY REALLY stupid
It was probably just an attempt to get bushy to drink or snort a little.....pretending they're actually trying to get bush to see reason...an act AGAIN MEANT TO FOOL THE PUBLIC!!!!!
[ edited by mingotree on May 10, 2007 06:16 PM ]
posted on May 11, 2007 10:31:32 AM new
Now Linda is trying to re-write history. The facts speak for themselves. The Republicans had no fears about cutting and running from other wars. It is clearly evident by THEIR own actions.....
Linda it seems like you need a shot of reality with your insulin.
Absolute faith has been shown, consistently, to breed intolerance. And intolerance, history teaches us, again and again, begets violence.
---------------------------------- The duty of a patriot in this time and place is to ask questions, to demand answers, to understand where our nation is headed and why. If the answers you get do not suit you, or if they frighten you, or if they anger you, it is your duty as a patriot to dissent. Freedom does not begin with blind acceptance and with a flag. Freedom begins when you say 'No.'
