http://www.smirkingchimp.com/thread/8839When Harry Met Harry: Reid Finally Starts Channeling Truman Instead of Dukakis
by David Michael Green | Jul 20 2007
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Finally, one of the most brilliant aspects of Reid's tactic is that it also demonstrates that Democrats are finally waking up to the importance of framing, and that they've maybe taken on some Republican-quality Madison Avenue talent to assist them in that most crucial aspect of political warfare. Whoever it was (I wish it was me!) that gave Reid the slogan outing the Republicans in Congress for "protecting the president, not our troops" should be given the Medal of Honor. And Karl Rove's office in the West Wing, starting January 20, 2009. If not sooner. (High marks also go to Senator Barbara Mikulski for this line: "Some people say Democrats are micromanaging the war. Well, hey, someone's got to manage it, and it's about time.")
But the bit about Republicans "protecting the president, not our troops" - that's a brilliant construction. First, because it is so utterly true. Second, because it so beautifully resonates with the existing public perceptions about the war. And, especially, because it removes from the bloody dripping hands of the GOP the disgustingly false notion that they speak on behalf of the welfare of the troops. For way, way too long, Democrats have lost sixty percent of any battle over national security issues before it even started because of the extremely clever and even more extremely cynical way in which Republicans have wrapped themselves inside the flag and the supposed welfare of the troops. That has to stop right now if Democrats are ever to have any hope of winning these debates, and if we are ever to have any hope of a semi-sane foreign policy in this country.
Reid's move is a hugely important first step. It is a sea change for Democrats, which also means it may be the beginning of the end for the GOP. Mark your calendars - this was the day Harry met Harry. And you could see that the regressives knew it, too, and that they were rattled by the visage of a real opposition for once. So rattled, in fact, that they released a national intelligence report concerning the threat posed by al Qaeda that actually made BushCo look insanely incompetent for ignoring that threat all these years, and, worse, for massively exacerbating it with their little adventure in Iraq. Anything to change the channel so that the American people would never wake up to read this headline across the front of their morning paper: "Democrats Seek to End War, GOP Blocks Even Discussion of the Topic".
Put these pieces together and, all in all, not a bad show for Senator Reid, a guy who sho'nuff badly needed one. Any move that can simultaneously force Republicans to sacrifice for their lunacy, make them responsible for it in the public eye, put the opposition to the war on the offensive, drain GOP support for Bush in Congress, increase the likelihood that the right will fold their bullying bluff by calling them out, give the Democrats a reputation as fighters, and properly reframe the debate - all in one easy step - any move that can do all that is quite something.
Unfortunately, of course, that possibility has existed for seven months now, and why Reid didn't avail himself of it earlier, I don't know.
Maybe because, like so many Democrats for such a long time now, he just didn't have the stones. It's good to see, though, that the load in Harry's jockey shorts just got a bit heavier this week.
There are a whole lot of people in America and abroad depending very much - indeed, depending for their very lives - on what goes on in there.
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