About The Soul, Honor, and Strategy Of Democrats On Iraq

[Caro]

From BuzzFlash.com:

I Challenge Celinda Lake To A Debate About The Soul, Honor, and Strategy Of Democrats On Iraq

by Brent Budowsky

One of the Democratic Party's leading pollsters, consultants and strategists is quoted in the Washington Post as advising Democrats to avoid taking a strong stand against the troop surge and escalation of the war in Iraq.

Ms. Celinda Lake is quoted as follows: "people are not looking to their individual members of Congress to solve the Iraq war." And: advising Democrats to focus on domestic issues rather than opposing the escalating war, Ms. Lake is quoted saying this is "the perfect juxtaposition."

It is high time and long overdue that Democrats across America, from the grassroots to the high levels of leadership in Washington, initiate a serious debate about both the honor and soul of the Democratic Party on Iraq, and about the political strategy of a Party that should aspire to lead the nation and be credible on national security issues…

I will be glad to debate Ms. Lake on the pure politics of the matter, any time, any place, in any medium, on this fact: Democrats won control of both Houses of Congress in the election where they took the strongest stand of conscience, and lost obvious opportunities for leadership and control in 2002 and 2004 when their positions ranged from sellout of support for a neoconservative war to weak and incoherent vacillation.

To repeat: weak leadership on Iraq in 2002 and 2004, Democrats lost. Far stronger leadership on Iraq in 2006, Democrats won.

If Ms. Lake believes "people are not looking to their individual members of Congress to solve the Iraq war" one wonders which Democratic voters she has been polling and what election returns she has been reviewing…

Honorable men and women should make decisions on war and peace, based on high principle and sound military doctrine. It is fine and proper to have honorable disagreements on policy and principle but it is wrong, dead wrong, to treat the lives of our troops and the security of our Nation as the petty cash of small minded politics.

The people are right, the insider consultants who offer this rotten advice are wrong, and it is high time this issue be debated openly and honestly, because the future of our party and our country hang in the balance.

Brent Budowsky served as Legislative Assistant to U.S. Senator Lloyd Bentsen, responsible for commerce and intelligence matters, including one of the core drafters of the CIA Identities Law. Served as Legislative Director to Congressman Bill Alexander, then Chief Deputy Whip, House of Representatives. Currently a member of the International Advisory Council of the Intelligence Summit. Left government in 1990 for marketing and public affairs business including major corporate entertainment and talent management. He can be reached at [e-mail].

Posted with the permission of the author.

Click the title, above, to read more. And give a High Five to the Democratic Party for finally standing up against the Iraq War.

Carolyn Kay
MakeThemAccountable.com

[PuraVidaDreamin]

1. Those who were sleeping now know they were lied to

Dems need to start calling the war a lie every second
of the day

[blm]

7. I agree - the Downing Street Memos prove the extent of the lie - there is no reason

for any Dem to couch their words - Bush LIED, and forced many to lie for him to have his war. My undergod, he even lied to Colin Powell, and Powell's chief of staff has no problem admitting it, why should any Democrat?

[Cary]

2. One needs to be practical.

Bush is the CIC and he is going to make whatever decision he is going to make. Perhaps Bush is sensitive to the 2008 elections. Perhaps he isn't. Of course he isn't going to be running.

We have been in the wilderness for a long time. We have had to pay a huge price to regain Congress and we only have slim margins to show for it at the moment. I think we have be very smart and practical in terms of the way we go about things for the next two years. I know it's frustrating. I know it's unbearable. However we aren't yet in any real position to fix things in Iraq.

We need stronger majorities in Congress and we need to win the presidency in 2008.

In the interim we desperately need to demonstrate to the American people that the Democrats are ready to govern more effectively, honestly, and competently than the Republicans have governed. I have voted almost straight Democratic tickets for my whole voting lifetime, and even I am a bit skeptical about Democrats being all that different. While I dislike Glenn Beck, I had give pause the other day when he suggested that Nancy Pelosi wasn't going to be any different than the Republicans because at the end of the day they are all about nothing except getting themselves re-elected. This is what politicians do.

So as horrible as this war is, and as cynical and stupid as Bush, his apologists, and neocons have been, I do think we have to cut the Democrats some slack. We have to give them a chance and trust their judgment.

If they fail us, I don't know what to tell you. But I think we should cross that bridge if we come to it. Hopefully, of course, we don't.

[Caro]

3. The Democrats are sounding ...

... tougher and tougher. It only makes sense to give them the moral and financial support to keep doing what we want them to do.

Carolyn Kay
MakeThemAccountable.com

[Cary]

6. I'll take their lead.

I'll yield to their judgment. That was the point I tried to make.

[Tierra_y_Libertad]

4. Politics as usual. Politicians don't "lead", they must be led, kicked, forced,

threatened, and held responsible for their actions or, in this case, lack of action.

The DLC inspired slogans of "triangulation", "keeping our powder dry", "practical politics", etc, have no place in taking action to stop an immoral and illegal war.

[Caro]

5. So we never, ever forgive them?

And teach our children to never, ever forgive them? And get them to teach THEIR children to never, ever forgive them?

If we never, ever approve of anything, we will ever and always be disappointed.

Carolyn Kay
MakeThemAccountable.com

[pberq]

8. It's not about forgiveness

It's about complicity by some Democrats in the gross violations of national and international law in the illegal invasion and continued criminal occupation of Iraq; the unnecessary deaths of thousands of Americans and Iraqis; the torturing of prisoners in violation of the Geneva conventions and U.S. law; and the illegal spying on American citizens.

This is about the ideals this country was founded on; it's about the rule of law; it's about a serious threat to our democracy by those who are trying to turn it into a fascist dictatorship.

The Democrats must take a stand against this if they want to make any claim to upholding the Constitution