Wow. I have seldom seen less effective communication of the Democratic strategy on Iraq. I suppose I should be more charitable, as there apparently is no Democratic strategy on Iraq. CNN’s Wolf Blitzer sat down with Speaker Pelosi for a softball session. If ever there was an opportunity to lay out a clear Democratic vision on Iraq, it was here and now:
Instead, we have Nancy with a mouth full of mush, portraying the Democratic Congress as powerless and helpless, repeating her brain-dead vow not to impeach those fucking criminals in the White House, fluttering around trying to explain parliamentary procedure and the details of various amendments and plans that have already failed when no one gives a flying fuck at a rolling donut as to why Democrats have utterly failed. We want to know what’s next.
Pitiful. There will be another installment of the interview tomorrow, but I don’t expect any better.
What Speaker Pelosi needed to communicate more clearly than anything else – what should have been her sole message, in fact – is that we aren’t getting out of Iraq now without a Democratic President. That’s the bottom line take-away message. Here’s what that sounds like:
"Americans overwhelmingly want an end of the occupation of Iraq. So do I. But the only way we are going to get that, now that the Republicans in the Senate have closed ranks with their failed President and his ruinous policies on Iraq, is to elect a Democratic President in 2008."
But Pelosi couldn’t even manage that.
I can’t even begin to express my contempt for Pelosi’s continued ‘promise’ not to allow Congress to use its constitutional power of impeachment. It’s as if she promised not to pass any legislation, or not to fund the government, or not to make war on an enemy who attacks us. Who would put up with those promises by a Speaker? Who in their right mind would elect a Speaker who made such promises? The second she uttered those words, promising not to allow Congress to exercise its rightful authority under the Constitution, she should have disqualified herself for the Speakership.
It is completely irresponsible to make such a blanket statement about impeachment. What if congressional hearings turn up yet more testimony and evidence of blatant Executive crimes? What if Bush arrogates yet more unconstitutional powers? What if he declares a state of emergency and suspends the rule of law? What if Bush and Cheney cook up a war with Iran? Will she continue to block invocation of Congress’ constitutional powers in those circumstances? Is that what ‘off the table’ means? All these things seem not only possible, but increasingly probable, and the only way to halt them and reign in this out-of-control Executive is to use impeachment as the Founders intended.
It’s as if a burglar has broken into the nation’s home and begun to steal our rights, our freedom, and our honor, rape our wives, torture our children, kill our brothers, and terrorize the entire neighborhood, and Nancy has locked away our only weapon, which was provided precisely to protect us against this very kind of violation.
And she won’t give anyone the key.
No, we have to allow the burglar to steal, destroy, and kill as he likes, because Nancy made the burglar a promise not to harm him, so he feels perfectly free to do what he wants. Nancy is thereby making ‘Democrats’ synonymous with ‘gutless victims’ in the eyes of an entire generation. She’s a disgrace and a failure.
I’ve had enough. It’s time for a no-confidence vote in the caucus. Nancy has had 9 months to craft a strategy for dealing with the worst, most corrupt Administration in history, and she’s only made things infinitely worse. It’s time a for new speaker who isn’t stupid enough to lock up our only real leverage over a criminal Executive and then ask us to bear with her until the criminal runs out of laws to break.
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Phillip, don’t mix your religious beliefs with policy making. I am not saying you are right or wrong, you are just being biased. At least don’t link your name to your website, for the sake of this debate.
Pelosi is an absolute fool! Regardless of what your political views are you have to see that Pelosi is mentally retarded! Now she wants taxpayers to pay for other people’s contraception! WTF? Why not have taxpayers pay for food, and shelter, and clothing and new cars and a yacht and everything else ever freaking deadbeat asks for? Oh wait we already pay for food and shelter for deadbeats. Well, while the deadbeats are sitting in a government home, eating government cheese, might as well pay for some contraception so they can have some government sponsored sex too. Pelosi = IDIOT!
Well I hope the next terror attack lands on one of you fucking idiots bush wants to win the war not turn his back and run like you fucking cowards so maybe we can pull all our troops out and say to hell with spreading the democracy that makes our country great and you guys can go to iraq and hold hands with Saddam’s family and thank them for my dead brother
Pelosi has been an extreme disappointment to her constituents (such as myself). Are we, or are we not a nation of laws? It is the Speakers constitutional obligation to help bring articles of impeachment to the floor -whether she likes it or not.
Instead, she has chosen to protect the warmongers.
Instead, she has actually escalated the funding for the illegal and immoral Bushwar.
She learned about our torure and rendition policies in 2002, and kept quiet about them, and didn’t do anything to stop them.
She completely put a fork into the momentum of stopping this war and going after the white house criminals.
She has joined the dark side. Prtecting war criminals will be her legacy.
Pelosi has been an extreme disappointment to her constituents (such as myself). Are we or are we not a nation of laws? It is the Speakers constitutional obligation to help bring articles of impeachment to the floor -whether she likes it or not.
Instead, she has choses to protect the warmongers.
Instead, she has actually escalated the funding for the illegal and immoral Bushwar.
She learned about our torure and rendition policies in 2002, and kept quiet about them, and didn’t do anything to stop them.
She completely put a fork into the momentum of stopping this war and going after the white house criminals.
She has joined the dark side. Prtecting war criminals will be her legacy.
Francine and Liza:
I challenge you to call GIFFORDS and ask her to DONATE the remaining RIO NUEVO money she has The City of Tucson(Mike Hein signed the deal) paying her Family Trust for the next 55 years for the El Campo Tire site on 22nd Street millions of dollars plus all taxes and enviornmental clean up; that IS NOT in the Rio Nuevo District!
IF $GIFFORDS$ donates your and my tax dollars BACK to Rio Nuevo than I might refrain from using The Money Whore when I talk to the MEDIA about GIFFORDS during the 2008 Campaign Cycle!
All the Democrats are really doing is rearranging the deck chairs while the Repubs sink the ship of state. Fuck them all in the neck.
No more (legitimate) checks to Dems, but instead to progressive organizations.
Alright, its later.
There are two ways that you lie. One is to just simply make a statement that is not the truth. The other is to withhold vital information.
Both Republicans and Democrats are guilty of both types of lying, and nowhere is it more evident than in plundering of Iraqi oil that is sanctioned by the majorities of both political parties. Nowhere is the moral bankruptcy of our government more exposed than in the outright theft of something that does not belong to us, that clearly is the property and birthright of the Iraqi people or whatever is left of them.
I am a registered Democrat, but only for the last six years and I have every intention of changing back to an independent. I feel no obligation to support the Democrats because they are the lesser of two evils.
I will just say this to those of you who are Democrats and are so defensive of your party. I spent the first 18 years of my life in the south during the civil rights era. I have some very early memories of Jim Crow. Less than ten miles from where I lived I could see ghettos and housing projects where families and children were impoverished beyond what most of you can imagine.
This is what we have done to Iraq. Latin American journalist Pepe Escobar has repeatedly warned us about “the sanctions generation,” the Iraqi children who grew up with nothing and would never forget it. “The blowback will be perennial,” warns Escobar. And, at this point most of us have at least some awareness that this unnecessary and immoral war has impoverished, displaced, and destroyed millions of Iraqi families. Yet, our government continues to do it because, amazingly enough, they have not yet reached the point at which the cost and destruction is too high a price to pay for the ultimate “prize.”
The majority of Democrats in Congress are complicit in this theft. They have been part of the lie from the very beginning. It is for this reason that the Democrats will not end the occupation of Iraq. They believe in it.
The blowback will be perennial.
Roger,
Here’s something interesting from thenation.com:
“”The Senate agreed on Thursday to increase the federal debt limit by $850 billion — from $8.965 trillion to $9.815 trillion — and then proceeded to approve a stop-gap spending bill that gives the Bush White House at least $9 billion in new funding for its war in Iraq.
Additionally, the administration has been given emergency authority to tap further into a $70 billion “bridge fund” to provide new infusions of money for the occupation while the Congress works on appropriations bills for the Department of Defense and other agencies.
Wisconsin Senator Russ Feingold, the maverick Democrat who has led the fight to end the war and bring U.S. troops home from Iraq, was on the losing end of the 94-1 vote. (The five senators who did not vote, all presidential candidates who are more involved in campaigning than governing, were Democrats Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and Joe Biden and Republicans John McCain and Sam Brownback.)
Said Feingold, “I am disappointed that we are about to begin the 2008 fiscal year without having enacted any of the appropriations bills for that year. I am even more disappointed that we voted on a continuing resolution that provides tens of billions of dollars to continue the misguided war in Iraq but does not include any language to bring that war to a close. We need to keep the federal government operating and make sure our brave troops get all the equipment and supplies they need, but we should not be giving the President a blank check to continue a war that is hurting our national security.”
In the House, the continuing resolution passed by a vote of 404 to 14, with 14 other members not voting.
The “no” votes in the House, all cast by anti-war members, came from one Republican, Ron Paul of Texas, and 13 Democrats: Oregon’s Earl Blumenauer, Missouri’s William Clay, Minnesota’s Keith Ellison, California’s Bob Filner, Massachusetts’ Barney Frank, New York’s Maurice Hinchey, Ohio’s Dennis Kucinich, Washington’s Jim McDermott, New Jersey’s Donald Payne, California’s Barbara Lee, Maxine Waters, Diane Watson and Lynn Woolsey.””
What you can see here is the very, very short list of Democrats who are truly against the occupation of Iraq and the plundering of the Iraqi oil.
More later….
Thank you for responding Michael. In the key Presidential canidates, I am seeing no change. I mean really. It appears that they have been persuaded somehow that we might need a presence there until 2013!!! That base that my dad worked on in Iraq is really coming to fruition and as Liza often reminds us and warns, this is about controlling the spiggot of oil.
I am wondering now just how the Democrats are going to differentiate themselves in this election. They are quickly falling into a retrospective style of election, where they hope people will vote to punish those who screwed things up in the past. However, people often vote prospective. Its not that they forgive, but they want to see how you are going to be different and what you are going to bring us.
I think this stuff about staying in Iraq until 2013 makes the 3 Democrat leaders really muddy the waters.
What does everyone else think here?
Fair enough… I just hadn’t gotten around to that yet. First of all, those candidates didn’t say they wouldn’t remove troops in the first term, they only declined to pledge that, though all of them have said that it is there intent to remove troops in their first term, they are balking at a PLEDGE to remove ALL troops. The GOP and the media are simplifying this issue a bit much.
And, for the record, I do think it is a mistake NOT to make such a pledge, though I can understand why some of the candidates are unwilling to make it, and it doesn’t mean they don’t want to end the war. It just means that they want some flexibility to ensure that ending the war doesn’t get Democrats the blame for LOSING the war. I think that’s a forlorn hope. We are going to get blamed and that is why we are idiots for not pressing with everything we’ve got to get the ball rolling on ending Iraq BEFORE Bush leaves office. Impeach the bastard and you’ll see this war begin to end in short order.
OK…lets see how you handle this Michael. Why the hell are you attacking Pelosi on Iraq, when MOST of the major candidates for President are all planning to keep troops in Iraq far far past April. Hillary wont do it, nor will Obama, nor will Edwards. The are all, save maybe Richardson and Kucinich, talking out of both sides of their mouths.
I would think you should take these folks to task. They are running for President, the only office that can do ANYTHING about this war. They are the ones likely to WIN. And ya’ll are picking on Pelosi?
“We are NOT getting OUT of Iraq WITH-OUT a Democratic Preaident Mike??????”
NONE of the three front runners Today who were at the Russert Debate of Democratic Presidential Candidates would commit to removing Troops from Iraq until AFTER there first 4 year term in Office!
Korea sending Nuclear parts and fuel to Syria by ship and after being unloaded into Syria Israel Launching a SECRET BOMBING raid that was NOT seen on very high tech new Russian Anti- Aircraft Radar Systems- taking out a Syrian Nuclear Site UNKNOWN to the World – has everyone talking even Iran! How did Israel pull it off destroyng the site that WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION from IRAQ were moved into plus the Korean Nuclear parts and fuel!
Everything Nuclear was removed from IRAQ and moved to this Syrian Site!
Iran is sweating bullets right now asking everyone around the World in high places WHEN Israel will take out there Nuclear Sites!
We in the West are Laughing at Iran as they got caught with there pants down in Palestine – Lebonan and Syria with Korean ships being used as transports!
Its time Iran pay for killing our Men and Women in Iraq by taking out the factories and pipeline that is shipping arms into Iraq to kill Americans!
Iam aware Jeff Latas is an Iranian Lover and wants Iran to continue its Killings in Iraq of our Troops as he has been very vocal in Democratic Meetings about his love for Iran and how nothing should be done to Iran what-so-ever!
The Democratic Party Leaders are soon going to be saying ” Goodbye” to hard Left Wing Progressives and move toward the Center leaving MoveOn and people like Jeff Latas in the Cold!
Good post, Michael. I mentioned it over at my place with a link.
” Get rid of her and find someone who can speak TO the American people.”
This IS the problem with our Party right now we are engaged in speaking TO the American people instead of speaking FOR the American people!
Harry Reid is another JERK and landswapper that is a prime example of someone who has lost it as he wants losses at any cost in an unpopular war that can be won!
I think it was about a month ago that I searched for op-eds that were critical of Pelosi’s leadership and found nothing of any significance. Well, the honeymoon is long over and it is high time for her to be under the hot, bright lights defending the Democrats exceptionally weak opposition to the war in Iraq. This Wolf Blitzer interview is really pretty good. Pelosi, aside from being just another gasbag full of excuses, shows herself to be impatient, arrogant, and condescending. She answered Mr. Blitzer’s questions as though she were explaining something to her teenage son for the fifth time in as a calm voice as she could manage before going off like a bomb.
Perhaps her lack of leadership skills were not so apparent when the Repbulicans controlled the House, but at this point it should be a matter of great concern to rest of the House leadership. This lady ain’t got it, folks, and that is the bottom line. Get rid of her and find someone who can speak to the American people.