Pelosi and Reid Say "No More" To Bush

Finally, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid are taking a firm stand against the Iraq War. Both Pelosi and Reid plan to present President Bush with a $50 billion measure for the Iraq War with the condition that the President begins to bring this disaster of a war to an end. This will be the toughest worded spending bill for the Iraq War since Democrats took control of Congress back last November. And if Bush goes against the wishes of the American people and vetoes the spending bill, he will not get his (and I emphasize "his") war funded for the rest of this year and possibly longer.

Even though I am enthralled that Democrats in Congress are finally taking strong, progressive steps to end the Iraq War debacle, I must admit that I wish it didn't come to this. I have stated in the past that it is the Republicans' responsibility to do what the American people want and bring this war to a safe end. Democrats have been fighting to end this war for years, but they simply do not have the numbers to overcome the Republicans. Pelosi and Reid do get unfairly blamed for not ending the war. Americans should not get angry at the Democrats for not ending the war, they should instead put pressure on the Republicans. It is the Republicans who keep the war going; not the Democrats.

With that being said, it is pretty clear that the Republicans weren't going to do the right thing. They refuse to break with their President and they continue to support a failed policy. So what were Pelosi and Reid going to do? I certainly do not think that funding should just be cut off all together. The troops, as Joe Biden has artfully pointed out, deserve to get the equipment that they need. Yet, at the same time, I feel we are doing them just as much harm by not ending this war. So what are we going to do?

Well, in Pelosi and Reid's proposal, I find a sort of "middle-ground." The Democrats are not cutting off funding for the troops; if anything, they are helping them. It is now on George Bush's hands to decide what course will be taken. Will he defy Congress and the American people yet again by continuing the war? Or will he finally recognize that the war is doing nothing but harming America in every way possible? If Bush does the former, he will be in essence cutting the funding off himself. It will then be the responsibility of the Republican's in Congress to override Bush's veto. If they don't, then they will be to blame for not supporting the troops. The Iraq War is no longer a partisan issue; Americans want it to end. And as usual, it is the Democrats who fight and who will continue to fight for the American people. I pray that the President and the GOP do the right thing and support this bill and begin to bring our brave men and women home...where they belong.

Let The Truth Be Known

President Bush, Mr. Cheney, many Republicans in Congress, and some running for their party's nomination are still trying to convince the American people that bin-Laden and al Qaeda attack and hate America because we are a Democracy who enjoys freedom.

 

Does anyone wonder how these people can get it so wrong and why they continue to mislead the country?  It's called fear.  Pat Buchanan, a true conservative Republican wrote a book titled "Where the Right Went Wrong."  He pointed out bin-Laden's own words on why he attacks and hates America.  He listed the reasons and not one has anything to do with Freedom and/or Liberty.  It is because western countries have in the past and still occupy muslim lands.  Bin-Laden is from Saudi Arabia and he has attacked Saudi Arabia because the United States had bases on their land that the Saudi's let the U.S. use during the 1991 gulf war.

 

Now we have been occupying Iraq for almost 5 years over WMD that did not exist.  That is why al-Qaeda in Iraq was formed.  They did not exist before the invasion.  So called tough talk may make politicians feel macho but 6 thousand Americans have paid the price for the tragic events of 9-11 and the war in Iraq, not to mention over 20,000 wounded. An entire book could be written on all the lies this administration has put forward and how they have misled the American people.  It is pretty sad when the President can't bring himself to tell his own people the truth.  The War on Terror will be won when the War on Terror is fought.  

Face the Nation---A Sad Source for Information

This past Sunday, Bob Schieffer, moderator of "Face the Nation",  had Mike Huckabee and Ron Paul on as his guests.  Both are candidates for the Republican Party  Presidential nomination. 

 

Mr. Schieffer was cordial with Mr. Huckabee and asked soft questions concerning his stand on several issues.  He explored Mr. Huckabee's rise in the polls and good crowds that he was drawing at various events.  However, I did not learn anything new by the questions asked of Mr. Huckabee.  The program is only 30 minutes split between the two candidates.  You would think Mr. Schieffer could ask at least one question concerning the difficulties faced by the next President and what he would do.

 

Then came Ron Paul's turn for questions.  I thought he was treated unfairly with silly questions about 10 issues that Mr. Paul is against.  Mr. Schieffer framed the questions that gave the impression that Mr. Paul was anti everything and anything.  Mr. Paul had to point out that there is a pro side to those issues.  For instance, Paul's position on government spending is to live within our means instead of running up record federal deficits that are taking place in this administration.  That is a "pro" position.  Mr. Schieffer went out of his way to describe Mr. Paul as being against everything and tried to cast him in that vein instead of asking Mr. Paul for his "pro" comments on those issues.  Then Mr. Schieffer seemed to enjoy suggesting to Mr. Paul that he could not win his party's nomination.

 

After 40 plus years as a journalist, Mr. Schieffer's show is not about seeking answers from candidates that would inform the American people about a candidate's likely actions if they became president.  Clearly, this segment of the show with Mr. Paul was to put him down and treat his positions on the issues with disdain.  It is such a shame to see the media become like this.  

***NOTE: My (John Lucia) posts will no longer be written in a different font than those of Joseph***