April 16, 2007
Parallel Political Polemics
Well, Our Fine President has spent much of the last few years talking about how he wants to bring Iraq and the Middle East all the fantastical wonders of our unmatched democratic bliss, and overall I’d have to say that plan is going not so well. Still, he’s at least come somewhat close as his fledgling Iraqi government and it’s big brother role-model in Washington are currently hung up over the exact same issue.
A majority of Americans want our troops out of Iraq, and the Democrats in Congress are baby stepping their way toward officially asking for that to happen. Just as soon as their done grilling the ever-more-bungling Attorney General, they’ll be choosing which sort of timetable to put on the war in the form of a provision-loaded funding bill. Our Fine President is threatening a rare veto and here’s where we have a conflict that’s growing verbally more heated by the day.
But more on that later…
First to Baghdad, where the newly-free nation’s budding democracy is struggling with rampant ethnic and militia violence while trying to find ways to solve ages-old conflicts and restore the country after years of war and dictatorial neglect. The 38-member Cabinet now has six job openings after Shiite cleric Moktada al-Sadr (often described as radical) had the six members loyal to him resign in protest. It seems they’re very upset because the government will not set a timetable for the withdrawal of American forces.
Now see, here in America we want our troops home, there in Iraq, they want our troops anywhere but there in Iraq. It’d seem like these two countries could find a way to make that happen. Sure, Sadr might not represent a majority of Iraq’s people and his militia is a big part of the sectarian fighting and his parts of the government were not always run on the up and up, but he represents a real power in that country, a power the elected government has not shown it can match. Sadr wanting American troops on a timetable might be something that catches on.
Unless Our Fine President and his crack squad of PR sorcerers get to work on this and push their surge even further. They’re already out there selling hard on the endless war thing and pushing back against anyone who challenges their plans or tries to keep them from spending whatever they want in their effort not to lose. Just this weekend Vice President and Rifleman in Chief Dick Cheney was on TV ruining my breakfast.
“I do believe that positions that the Democratic leaders have taken, to a large extent now, are irresponsible.”
That was one of his many galling comments and he used that “I” word a number of times while describing the Democratic Congress in his talk with Bob Schieffer. Cheney once again espoused unwavering confidence in his plan and his assessment of the situation. Sure, all his previous plans and assessments have been wrong, but this is too important to fail at so, basically Cheney said he believes if at first we don’t succeed, keep trying the same thing over and over and over and eventually it’s gotta work because failure is not an option.
Of course, we all know in reality trying a failed plan over and over rarely winds up with success and when the price is paid in lives, it’s really not very conscionable to try. But they seem really determined to keep trying and while they’ve been reluctant to directly take on Sadr before, maybe his insistence on a withdrawal timetable will match up perfectly with Our Fine President’s desire to make the Democrats look weak and vaguely treasonous.
First he ramps up the rhetoric against Sadr; really talks the guy up as an agitator and opponent to freedom. He announces that we’ll be going after his Mahdi Army in a big way because they’re the new enemy standing in the way of the harmonious society just under the surface of the war. Sure, we’ll still try to stop those pesky al Qaida fighters, but the Mahdi army is now a critical part of the mission. I’m sure he and his people are more than capable saying Sadr’s linked to terrorists and his Army is trying to buy a suitcase nuke or two even if they have nothing resembling evidence to confirm this.
Then all he has to do is turn back to Congress and say, “Sadr, our biggest enemy is calling for a timetable, do you agree with him that there should be a timetable?” Done and done, Our Fine President gets to press on in his vain and futile attempt to pull his name from its dubious spot in history, and the Democratic Congress is silenced in their attempt to cut funding and or force an end to the war.