In an article titled, Clinton and Obama on the Same Page as MoveOn

In an article titled, Clinton and Obama on the Same Page as MoveOn.org (Human Events Online), Jed Babbin made the following observations:

 

In a Dec. 9, 2004 e-mail to supporters, MoveOn.org leaders Eli Pariser and Justin Ruben wrote, “In the last year, grassroots contributors like us gave more than $300 million to the Kerry campaign and the DNC, and proved that the Party doesn’t need corporate cash to be competitive. Now it’s our Party: we bought it, we own it, and we’re going to take it back…The Sept. 10 full-page MoveOn.org ad in the New York Times -- and the Dems’ reaction to it -- apparently proved the point.”


The MoveOn.Org Newspaper AD

 

Appearing on the first day of Gen. David Petraeus’ congressional testimony, the MoveOn ad featured a half-page picture of Petraeus above the headline, “General Petraeus or Betray Us?” It said, “General Petraeus is a military man consistently at war with the facts…Today, before Congress and before the American people, General Petraeus is likely to become General Betray Us.” (Emphasis mine).

 

What we have not heard is the Democrats or their leaders, including their presidential candidates, disavowing this offensive ad or MoveOn.org for placing it.

Estimates indicate that the extreme Left represents about one-third of the Democrat Party. If so, it means that at least one-third of those who profess to be Democrats do not support the troops.

 

What About the Other Two-Thirds?

 

To find the answer, we only have to consider some of the comments that have been made about the Iraq War by some of the key leaders of the Democrat party.

 

What Democrat Leaders Have Said

 

Senate Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.): In a statement that was made before the “surge  was actually launched, Senator Reid said, “I believe ... that this war is lost, and this surge is not accomplishing anything, as is shown by the extreme violence in Iraq this week.” 

Comment: How is it possible to “support the troops” while declaring their mission is a defeat before it starts? - HRS

House Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.): Nancy Pelosi told Fox News…that Iraq is “not a war to be won, but a situation to be solved.” 

 

Question: If the “situation” in Iraq is not a war, what is it? – HRS. 

 

“An apparently botched message during a widely discouraged visit by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Syria…has U.S. officials criticizing rogue efforts at diplomacy among U.S. politicians. State Department officials said…they made it quite clear they did not want Pelosi to visit Syria, a nation that is listed as a state sponsor of terror and is home to terror group Hezbollah, which started a low-grade war with Israel last summer.” (“Fox News,” April 5, 2007). 

 

Comment: By attempting to deal directly with a terrorist state that is facilitating the efforts of the very people who are killing Americans in Iraq, Ms. Pelosi is indirectly giving aid and comfort to the enemy during wartime, an act that would have been considered treasonous in an earlier era..  Surely, that cannot be viewed as “supporting the troops.” - HRS 

 

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.): “Well, that’s the difficulty. A resolution that says we’re against this escalation, that’s easy. The next step will be how do you put further pressure on the administration against the escalation but still supporting the troops who are there? And that’s what we’re figuring out right now.” (Jan. 26, 2007: Chuck Schumer on “The Today Show”). 

 

Question: How is it possible to “support the troops” while attempting to interfere with their mission? - HRS

 

Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.): “Now, I’m not saying he’s a traitor. I am saying he [Kennedy] made an outrageous and shameful charge that puts politics above the safety of our troops, success in Iraq, and national security….First, let’s be clear. Kennedy wasn’t offering sober military analysis. He didn’t attempt to explain how Iraq and Vietnam were comparable strategically or tactically.” (Jonah Goldberg, Whistling Defeat, National Review Online, April 12, 2004).

Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) - told General Petraeus, “You have been made the de facto spokesmen for what many of us believe to be a failed policy. Despite what I view as your rather extraordinary efforts in your testimony... I think that the reports that you provide to us really require the willing suspension of disbelief.”

 

Comment: In other words, she accused him of lying before even hearing his testimony. - HRS

 

Sen. John Kerry (D-Pa.): John Kerry spoke to students and revealed what he really thinks of U.S. soldiers. “You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you do your homework, and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well. And if you don’t, you get stuck in Iraq.” (Viewpoints Today, John Kerry, American Troops Are Losers, Oct. 31, 2006). 

 

Comment: That’ll really boost troop morale. Tell us again why Americans should entrust Democrats with national defense?

 

Rep. Dennis Kucinich (D-OH, candidate for President): “After praising Syria following a meeting in Damascus with President Bashar Assad, Democratic presidential candidate Dennis Kucinich declared he will not visit troops in Iraq during his Middle East tour because he considers the American military presence in Iraq to be illegal.” (WorldNetDaily.com, Sept. 6, 2007). 

 

Comment: This doesn’t sound like “supporting the troops” to me. - HRS

 

The Enemy Takes Advantage of Everything We Say

 

In an article titled, “The Enemy is Watching” on Political Maven.com, Arnold Ahlert observed: “The Democrat Party has an incredible blind spot when one considers the level of modern communication, and its primary, undeniable reality: whatever you say or do, THE ENEMY IS WATCHING….And what does the enemy see? A political party dedicated to the idea of allowing al Qaeda to emerge as the dominant force in Iraq and the Middle East, as long as a Republican party and president can be blamed for it.

 A party willing to characterize the outcome of our military efforts as “already lost,” and reports of their recent successes to require a “willing suspension of disbelief….It is impossible to measure the effects of such statements on enemy morale or their efforts get new recruits for their murderous cause. (Emphasis mine)…But it doesn’t take a genius to figure out that every time some witless Democrat expresses his or her surrenderism, it goes global: to Al Jazeera, militant websites and oppressive regimes in every corner of the world. It becomes an integral part of terrorist propaganda, the chief component of which is the idea that America is a “paper tiger” with no stomach for a prolonged fight.”  

 

Comment: Surely this can’t be interpreted as “supporting the troops.” - HRS

 

The Entertainment Industry

 

Then we have the entertainment industry, which is largely Democratic and presumes to speak for the public. Members of this elite group hold forth in films and just about every chance they get to make their personal views known at awards shows, concerts, on talk shows or any venue that puts a microphone in their hands. They seem to think they speak for everyone and, although they may not be a large group numerically, this rabidly Liberal crowd clearly does not speak for all Americans and does not “support the troops.”

It seems abundantly clear to me that the Democrats do not “support the troops” in spite of all their protestations to the contrary. And, unfortunately, during times of conflict, partisan politics no longer stops at the water’s edge.  

 

© 2007 Harris R. Sherline,

All Rights Reserved