JOSHUA FRANK: Democratic Hawks -- The Avian Flu of the Antiwar Movement

[Tace]

By Joshua Frank -- World News Trust

They won’t pull out troops from Iraq and they won’t vote for any strategy that calls for immediate removal of United States occupation forces. Of course it took a Republican to put forth an “out-now” resolution, which was supposedly intended to split the Democrats. But the vote in the House late Friday didn’t slice a wedge in the Democratic Party -- on the contrary, it united them behind a bloody and illegal occupation in Iraq. Of course this could well have been the Republican strategy all along.

Only three Democrats voted in support of the Republicans’ Iraq withdraw proposal: Representatives Wexler, Serrano and McKinney. And their point was well made. They want the troops home now and they don’t care who wrote up the legislation or the reasons why they did it. It was the right move to make. If U.S. troops were pulled out tomorrow, Iraq would be a safer place for all of us.

A handful of House Democrats did take the podium to express their seething disgust over the Republicans’ political feat. Talk is cheap, however. Votes are what count. If there ever was a subject that should gash the thin-skinned Democratic Party, it’d be the Iraq war. But as the House vote verified, the Democrats don’t want U.S. troops home now, let alone in six months as Rep. John Murtha proposed Thursday.

Murtha, a veteran war hawk who championed the Iraq invasion from its inception, announced at a teary eyed press conference that he wished to withdraw the nearly 160,000 US troops in Iraq "at the earliest predictable date." Recent polls indicate that the majority of Americans agree with Murtha’s call to pull out U.S. forces, which wasn’t even close to an “out-now” proposition. Regardless, the Democrats took cover as Rep. Murtha began making headlines with his remarks.

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http://worldnewstrust.org/modules/AMS/article.php?storyid=1721

[mike_c]

1. I agree with this-- dems should have voted as a united bloc...

...in favor of immediate troop withdrawals.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

2. It was bogus, and wouldn't have gotten us anything.

It was completely toothless.

Dems did the right thing. The 'talk' is not worthless, at this point, it's priceless. imho

[mike_c]

3. I realize that, but a dem vote to accept the non-binding resolution...

...would have sent a powerful message, and would have thrown the tactic back in the repigs' faces. I don't think it matters much now-- the writing is on the wall for "Plan Iraq," but I'd just like the dems to stand united against it for once....

[Tace]

7. I Don't Understand Strategy Well Enough To Make A Judgement

But, I'm anti-war, and feel we should exit quickly.

[DarienComp]

4. no.

the Republican resolution was a fraud, pure and simple. Why should the Democrats play that game?

[Clarkie1]

5. It's unfortunate that 3 Democrats allowed themselves to be so

cynically manipulated by the G.O.P.

[madfloridian]

6. Joshua Frank is very wrong on this.

There is nothing he despises more than Democrats....a real shame.