The three blind mice, led by Harry Reid
Nope. Not gonna do it. Not gonna believe it when politics are involved:
Democrats are increasingly bailing on their previously held view that the troop surge in Iraq has been a "failure," but Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid isn't ready to jump on the bandwagon with other Democrats who say the surge has worked.
The Senate re-opened for business on Monday after a two-week Thanksgiving break, during which key Democrats traveled to Iraq and declared that the surge is working, at least from a security and military perspective. Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.), one the top war critics, stunned fellow Democrats late last week with his statement that "the surge is working," even though he added that political reconciliation has been lagging. Murtha's view was backed by Rep. Norm Dicks (D-Wash.), who also said the surge worked after he returned from Iraq.
But Reid, in a Monday press conference, ceded no ground.
"The surge hasn't accomplished its goals," Reid said. "... We're involved, still, in an intractable civil war."
Reid's comments show that Democratic leaders in Washington may not be on the same page as their rank-and-file members when it comes to interpreting results on the ground in Iraq. Reid, as a leader, still needs to maintain some negotiating leverage as Democrats try to figure out a way to give President Bush some $50 billion in temporary war finding while at least attaching some strings to the money so it's not a blank check for the war.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) took to the Senate floor on Monday to highlight the "stunning reversal" in Iraq, and chided Democrats, saying "unfortunately, talk of congratulations is scarce among the anti-war left."
Reid said Monday that the Senate still might take up a war funding bill before Christmas, and Democrats were still trying to find a compromise so it doesn't look like they've caved in to the White House on troop funding. Democrats are considering tweaking troop withdrawal language to lure a few more GOP supporters so the Senate could achieve a 60-vote filibuster-proof margin.
"I think we'll address war funding this month," Reid said.
McConnell says negotiations on war funding, have heated up in recent days, and suggested that the $50 billion "bridge" funding could be rolled into one giant omnibus spending package before the end of the year.
Reid also accused President Bush of bluffing about the potential layoffs of 100,000 Pentagon employees if the war funding doesn't come through immediately. Bush says civilian employees will be furloughed because the Pentagon will have to pull from regular accounts to fund the war due to the Democrats' intransigence on Iraq funding.
You have to hand it to Harry. He tries. Oh, he tries, and most of the time it's him trying our patience. anyone notice that the only time the Democrats pay attention to polls is when the news is bad? Unless of course the bad news is their own. Remember that piece by Brian Faughan? The one showing bad numbers for Congress right now?
The poll also includes interesting data on domestic politics. Most notably, Congress is almost exactly as unpopular today as it was before the 2006 election. In October 2006, 35 percent approved of the job Congress was doing, compared to 53 percent who disapproved. The result today is nearly identical: 35 to 50. This is yet more proof of the continued inability of Congress to deal with issues of importance to Americans.
Republicans have also seen a significant rebound in partisan identification. When voters were asked a year ago--right before the Democratic sweep--to state whether they considered themselves Republican, Democrat, or Independent, they answered Democrat by a margin of 25 to 36. Now, the edge is just 28 to 33. The Democratic edge has been reduced by more than half.
That's right. things aren't looking well for them right now. And Harry Reid, in his infinite wisdom, has decided it's because America saw them actually admitting that the surge was working. Now, Harry has seen that the nutroots, moonbats, and other assorted flavors of his base aren't happy. Now he has to switch back, or at the very least play to the special interests the Democrat party -- as a whole --is indebted to and invested in.
This is a mistake on his part, but why bother explaining things to the guy who thinks he's second to Hillary as being the smartest woman in the world. Honestly speaking, his true base -- the one that's wondering what the Hell happened to their party, with the perception that the lunatics are running the asylum -- isn't going to be happy with this at all. They saw it. A great deal of the country has seen the truth and the truth is that the goal of the surge -- to end the internecine violence in Iraq, and provide a level of security for the domestic affairs of the new government to be accomplished -- is working far better than expected.
Al Qaeda is on the run in Iraq not just because of us, but because of the Iraqi military, and both Sunnis and Shias turning on them. The government is moving forward at the pace that most governments move -- slowly. If Harry's gripe is this aspect of the Iraqi theater, then I posit to him "What have YOU done for America lately, Harry?" Not much. The Democrats have little to crow about. since taking control, their idea of "success" has resulted in a minimum wage increase, and an ethics reform bill which does little for "reform," and hardly addresses the ethically challenged in Congress. Nice try. Trust me, the Yankees aren't calling back with that batting average.
Finally, regarding the comment itself. This is another incident of a Democrat walking into the rake laying in the yard. He can SAY what he thinks is the truth. Meanwhile, many Americans are turned onto the fact that indie embeds like Michael Yon, Bill Roggio, and Michael Totten have been over there, and seen what's going on. Add the numerous members of Congress who have gone over there and reported -- stated on the record -- that the situation has drastically improved in Iraq. Yes, there is still some violence, but the "civil war" the Democrats still keep hyping doesn't exist. Sunni, Shia, and Kurd are working together for the sake of the nation they love, and the potential for internal peace.
Harry Reid's denial reads like a buffoons' autobiography.
Publius II
Democrats are increasingly bailing on their previously held view that the troop surge in Iraq has been a "failure," but Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid isn't ready to jump on the bandwagon with other Democrats who say the surge has worked.
The Senate re-opened for business on Monday after a two-week Thanksgiving break, during which key Democrats traveled to Iraq and declared that the surge is working, at least from a security and military perspective. Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.), one the top war critics, stunned fellow Democrats late last week with his statement that "the surge is working," even though he added that political reconciliation has been lagging. Murtha's view was backed by Rep. Norm Dicks (D-Wash.), who also said the surge worked after he returned from Iraq.
But Reid, in a Monday press conference, ceded no ground.
"The surge hasn't accomplished its goals," Reid said. "... We're involved, still, in an intractable civil war."
Reid's comments show that Democratic leaders in Washington may not be on the same page as their rank-and-file members when it comes to interpreting results on the ground in Iraq. Reid, as a leader, still needs to maintain some negotiating leverage as Democrats try to figure out a way to give President Bush some $50 billion in temporary war finding while at least attaching some strings to the money so it's not a blank check for the war.
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) took to the Senate floor on Monday to highlight the "stunning reversal" in Iraq, and chided Democrats, saying "unfortunately, talk of congratulations is scarce among the anti-war left."
Reid said Monday that the Senate still might take up a war funding bill before Christmas, and Democrats were still trying to find a compromise so it doesn't look like they've caved in to the White House on troop funding. Democrats are considering tweaking troop withdrawal language to lure a few more GOP supporters so the Senate could achieve a 60-vote filibuster-proof margin.
"I think we'll address war funding this month," Reid said.
McConnell says negotiations on war funding, have heated up in recent days, and suggested that the $50 billion "bridge" funding could be rolled into one giant omnibus spending package before the end of the year.
Reid also accused President Bush of bluffing about the potential layoffs of 100,000 Pentagon employees if the war funding doesn't come through immediately. Bush says civilian employees will be furloughed because the Pentagon will have to pull from regular accounts to fund the war due to the Democrats' intransigence on Iraq funding.
You have to hand it to Harry. He tries. Oh, he tries, and most of the time it's him trying our patience. anyone notice that the only time the Democrats pay attention to polls is when the news is bad? Unless of course the bad news is their own. Remember that piece by Brian Faughan? The one showing bad numbers for Congress right now?
The poll also includes interesting data on domestic politics. Most notably, Congress is almost exactly as unpopular today as it was before the 2006 election. In October 2006, 35 percent approved of the job Congress was doing, compared to 53 percent who disapproved. The result today is nearly identical: 35 to 50. This is yet more proof of the continued inability of Congress to deal with issues of importance to Americans.
Republicans have also seen a significant rebound in partisan identification. When voters were asked a year ago--right before the Democratic sweep--to state whether they considered themselves Republican, Democrat, or Independent, they answered Democrat by a margin of 25 to 36. Now, the edge is just 28 to 33. The Democratic edge has been reduced by more than half.
That's right. things aren't looking well for them right now. And Harry Reid, in his infinite wisdom, has decided it's because America saw them actually admitting that the surge was working. Now, Harry has seen that the nutroots, moonbats, and other assorted flavors of his base aren't happy. Now he has to switch back, or at the very least play to the special interests the Democrat party -- as a whole --is indebted to and invested in.
This is a mistake on his part, but why bother explaining things to the guy who thinks he's second to Hillary as being the smartest woman in the world. Honestly speaking, his true base -- the one that's wondering what the Hell happened to their party, with the perception that the lunatics are running the asylum -- isn't going to be happy with this at all. They saw it. A great deal of the country has seen the truth and the truth is that the goal of the surge -- to end the internecine violence in Iraq, and provide a level of security for the domestic affairs of the new government to be accomplished -- is working far better than expected.
Al Qaeda is on the run in Iraq not just because of us, but because of the Iraqi military, and both Sunnis and Shias turning on them. The government is moving forward at the pace that most governments move -- slowly. If Harry's gripe is this aspect of the Iraqi theater, then I posit to him "What have YOU done for America lately, Harry?" Not much. The Democrats have little to crow about. since taking control, their idea of "success" has resulted in a minimum wage increase, and an ethics reform bill which does little for "reform," and hardly addresses the ethically challenged in Congress. Nice try. Trust me, the Yankees aren't calling back with that batting average.
Finally, regarding the comment itself. This is another incident of a Democrat walking into the rake laying in the yard. He can SAY what he thinks is the truth. Meanwhile, many Americans are turned onto the fact that indie embeds like Michael Yon, Bill Roggio, and Michael Totten have been over there, and seen what's going on. Add the numerous members of Congress who have gone over there and reported -- stated on the record -- that the situation has drastically improved in Iraq. Yes, there is still some violence, but the "civil war" the Democrats still keep hyping doesn't exist. Sunni, Shia, and Kurd are working together for the sake of the nation they love, and the potential for internal peace.
Harry Reid's denial reads like a buffoons' autobiography.
Publius II
posted by Syd And Vaughn | 5:30 AM
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