Dems wield war debate to weaken GOP in 2008

[helderheid]

(07-19) 04:00 PDT Washington -- Democratic Senate leaders knew going into Wednesday's procedural roll call on their proposal to withdraw most U.S. forces from Iraq that they didn't have the votes to win, but victory wasn't their goal.

Instead, the Democrats forced the Senate into a marathon 19-hour debate as a way of putting pressure on Republicans for their continued support of President Bush's Iraq policy, which polls show is opposed by large majorities of the American public.

And the Democrats used the publicity they knew their talkathon would generate to spotlight a small group of Republican senators up for re-election in 2008 who haven't yet split with Bush over the war and whose seats are prime Democratic targets.

The Democrats' tactic was accompanied by the mobilization of anti-war groups that organized grassroots meetings across the country and urged voters to call their senators to encourage their support for the withdrawal measure offered by Democratic Sens. Carl Levin of Michigan and Jack Reed of Rhode Island. The party's official campaign arm, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, chimed in with a quick purchase of TV spots aimed at four of the targeted Republicans, Sens. Norm Coleman of Minnesota, John Sununu of New Hampshire, Susan Collins of Maine and the Senate's minority leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.

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http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2007/07/19/MNG8MR382A1.DTL

[StClone]

1. Blah- HAH HA!

Way to stick it to the evil bastids.

[whistle]

2. Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) did not like what happened and I

...believe Specter knows deep in his black heart that this repuke obstruction will backfire on republicans in the coming election.