Democrats Struggle to Regain Offensive

[Purveyor]

Source: Associated Press

Anti-war Democrats struggled to regain the political offensive in Congress on Tuesday after two days of testimony by Gen. David Petraeus appeared to solidify President Bush's support among Republicans.

"My sense is the general has been so successful in his testimony that positions have hardened," said Sen. Gordon Smith, R-Ore., although he said be believes the public "still wants a plan that equals a pathway home" for all troops.

--
"The biggest surprise that I have had is not that the president has stuck to his guns ... but that so many Republican senators who know it's wrong, substantively as well as politically, are just sort of almost blindly following him," said Sen. Chuck Schumer of New York, head of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee.

Democrats gained power last fall after pledging to end the war, and some of the most skittish Republicans are on the 2008 election ballot — Smith and Sens. Norm Coleman of Minnesota and Susan Collins of Maine among them.


Read more: http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2007/09/11/national/w155202D99.DTL

[msongs]

1. democrats keeping using republican language - war instead of occupation, etc, so why bother to

think there's much difference between dems and repubs when the democrats talk and sound like republicans anyway?

its an occupation, not a war.

its an occupation, not a war.

we heard bush's parrot yakking for 2 days, and we heard the parrot's trainer yakking, and now we hear the democrats yakking and using
republican words and phrases. bummer ent it?

so the congressional dems keep proving that people who stand for nothing will fall for anything. maybe its time for democrats to stand for ending the american part of the occupation of iraq, dump the private war profiteers who are fleecing the US taxpayer, disband the
corporate paramilitaries, and quit using american soldiers to provide security for corporate evil doers.

Msongs
www.msongs.com

[Olney Blue]

2. Good post.

Have you been away msongs? I haven't seen you much lately (but maybe its my schedule)

[David__77]

3. Unsurprising.

A strategy premised on compromise with centrists isn't going to win. The strategy should be to stay on the offensive and make them capitulate totally and mercilessly.

[Totally Committed]

4. Regain the offensive?

They don't have to regain anything.... they're already offensive enough.

Jeesh.

TC

[bemildred]

5. Bullshit. nt

[Demeter]

6. The Democrats Can't Do Defense or Offense

As a team, they are worthless. As leaders, they are clueless. As statesmen, they are pathetic. Trade them to someplace where they don't have to face any expectations, and get us some real talent!

[OHdem10]

7. If they trust the Republicans they will always be holding the

bag. The GOP plays to win.

[rodeodance]

8. "I don't sense an enhanced sense of skittishness, if that's what you're asking here, on the part of

While several Republicans peppered Petraeus with questions and criticized the administration's policy during the day, none committed to joining a small group of GOP rebels willing to support a fixed deadline for the withdrawal of all U.S. troops.

"I don't sense an enhanced sense of skittishness, if that's what you're asking here, on the part of Republican colleagues of mine in the Senate," the party's leader, Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, told reporters.

"I'm optimistic that when the votes are counted, they'll be roughly the same as they have been all year. As you know, we've lost some, but not a lot and I think that's the likely outcome again."

Nor did Democrats claim they had won any converts toward their goal of a 60-vote, filibuster-proof Senate majority.

[GeorgeGist]

9. Duh ...

it's impossible for this Congress of Democrats to regain something they were given but never accepted. They won the election, handed the ball to the Republicans and continued the only game they know: CAPITULATION.

[deacon]

10. This is a travesty. How does a recommendation to return to pre surge

levels do anything for any of them??? This is utter madness.

This is the worst case of denial ever to come out of congress.

It's like whatever Petreaus said (and Feingold DID catch him in lies) said, they were going to claim some sort of 'victory is within our reach' bullshit.