Democrats back away from Iraq plan

[maddezmom]

~snip~

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (news, bio, voting record), D-Nev., said Monday he wanted to delay votes on a measure that would repeal the 2002 war authorization and narrow the mission in Iraq.

Senior Democrats who drafted the proposal, including Sens. Joseph Biden (news, bio, voting record) of Delaware and Carl Levin (news, bio, voting record) of Michigan, had sought swift action on it as early as this week, when the Senate takes up a measure to enact the recommendations of the bipartisan Sept. 11 commission.

~snip~

"Iraq is going to be there — it's just a question of when we get back to it," Reid said, predicting it would be "days, not weeks" before the Senate returned to the issue. The war reauthorization legislation also appears to lack the 60 votes it would need to pass the Senate

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (news, bio, voting record), D-Calif., meanwhile, said she doesn't support tying war funding to strict training and readiness targets for U.S. troops.

more:http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070227/ap_on_go_co/flailing_over_iraq_3

[DUyellow]

1. Whoo hooo Go DEMS!

oh wait, i thought we had some balls

[Union Thug]

2. Depressing, isn't it?

This is NOT my father's democratic party, that's for sure.

[rodeodance]

21. very.

[mzmolly]

35. "This is NOT my father's democratic party"

You said it!

[saigon68]

44. Except Joementum the EX Democrat

[texastoast]

31. Nope. Just BB's

Small gauge.

[tblue]

3. So this is what 'fear of failure' looks like.

Why are they so afraid to go for it?

[anitar1]

5. I am beginning to feel a bit of contempt creeping

into my heart. although I did not expect miracles from them, I did expect something.Guess it's going to be the same old games. Anyone seen a lobbyist around ? edit for spelling

[tblue]

8. What is it they don't understand and what the hell are they afraid of? Why don't they 'get' that

their constituents don't want them to be malleable? We want them to take a stand & fight. The RW media is gonna trash them no matter wht they do anyway, so they may as well stand their ground.

[Lasher]

20. This is worse than just a lack of courage

First they talk it up then they chicken out. If they lack the wherewithal to get this done, I wish they wouldn't draw attention to it. Sheesh.

[RiverStone]

29. WTF is so hard to grasp about the November vote...

which elected DEMS with the most compelling message being - get OUT of Iraq?!

I'm trying to remain patient, though all this political posturing and wimpy non-binding b.s. is not serving what We The People elected them to do.

I'm really wishing Russ Feingold would give some of our other DEM leaders assertiveness lessons!

[anotherdrew]

50. they're probably afraid bush will have them all arrested and disapeared

it's not impossible, our military has a piss-poor track record of disobeying illegal orders.

Hell, he has the power now to revoke the citizenship of every dem in congress, which would make them unqualified to hold office.

he could very well be able ready for endgame.

[PFunk]

4. And people wonder why more dems are leaving the party and going indie instead.

[mzmolly]

36. I don't think that's accurate?

I think most people realize that Democrats (while not as good at opposing R's as they could be) are far better at policy than the alternative.

[jannyk]

6. My disgust knows no limits n/t

[tuvor]

7. "Iraq is going to be there." My God, how blasé.

You know what else will be there whenever they decide to get around to it? A lot fewer Iraqi citizens and soldiers.

[fidgeting wildly]

46. Exactly.

Iraq will be there. Untold numbers of Iraqi citizens and American soldiers may not.

I am utterly disgusted. :puke: The Democrats have learned nothing about how to run a majority. Who cares if they don't have the 60 votes? Getting the hell out of the war is an urgent moral issue, and they need to try. Pin the Republicans to their anti-soldier policies. If they block the measure, or if they block debate, they are obstructionists. How many more men and women have to die while our leaders buckle under the weight of their own nervousness?

[sandnsea]

9. Sept 11 bill

"Reid, who will huddle with Democrats Tuesday to discuss whether to postpone the Iraq debate, cited pressure from victims' families for quick action on the Sept. 11 bill as the reason for doing so."

[Forkboy]

10. What about the families of dead soldiers?

Not trying to pit one against the other,but if he's going to bring up victimized families...

[sandnsea]

17. Agreement on 9/11 bill

and can be done quickly, 'days, not weeks', as the article says. Might not get filibustered, as any Iraq legislation will be anyway. Those families have fought beside Dems for years now, they deserve some success.

[Forkboy]

18. I know...you're right

I certainly didn't mean anything against them.The Iraq thing has me a little tense...and I'm tense to start with.

I do hope it can be done quickly.

[rodeodance]

25. Dems have injected Collective Bargaining-----Pepugs not like it. so, we

will see.

[Straight Shooter]

34. Always always always, Dems caught between a rock and a hard place.

And I'm not trying to make a pun of "Iraq."

How things get manufactured so that we're all twisted every which way to Sunday, I don't understand, but this time I can't criticize the reason for the delay. :(

[PhilipShore]

11. Surprise Surprise

Who are they afraid of? PNAC?

[Skittles]

12. What the F*** is their problem???

WE'LL GET BACK TO IT? :puke:

[leftchick]

19. Iraq will still be there!?!

:puke:

[robinlynne]

33. He will NEVER live that sentence down.

[Skittles]

13. dup

still pissed though

[radfringe]

14. looks like their "Subscription to Spines-R-US" has been canceled

Rate my toon on The Radical Fringe
Sign up for a FREE SUBSCRIPTION and get the toons e-mailed to you every day.Comics Sherpa

[EST]

15. Hey, hem haw Harry,

for precisely what purpose are we keeping our powder dry? (this time)

[Name removed]

16. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[rodeodance]

22. and the new poll on the same day says MORE-over 50% WANT to start

to Withdraw!!

[maddezmom]

23. looks like it's about Joe

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x2747216

[Lone_Star_Dem]

30. Yes, but he's not going to be getting more Dems elected in 2008

Responding to the will of the people who vote will.

[Massachusetts]

24. Bu hui de ba!

Who woulda thunk it?

[coalition_unwilling]

26. Dump Reid. Replace with Feingold n/t

[Boo Boo]

27. I see some folks are still trying to figure out how Congress works

Here, let me translate Reid's statement for ya:

"We don't have the votes."

Duh.

[Zhade]

43. Get it on record anyway. Fuck this political cowardice.

If they don't have the votes, those who voted no WILL be brought down by the voting public, the VAST majority of whom voted for us to get the fuck out of Iraq.

Might mean it's a couple of years until we do have the votes, but not even trying is both self-defeating and spineless. It's fear. And it's utterly pathetic and worthy of contempt.

MLK didn't wait until he "had the votes" to work on equal rights. We can't afford to throw up our hands and whine "oh, we'll never do it, so why even try?"

Some might be able to live with giving up like that. I can't, and refuse to.

[rocktivity]

DING DING DING! Zhade, you're our grand prize winner!

Get it on record anyway...

At the very least, each vote can put a nail in the GOP '08 coffin.

Token resistance is better than none. So what if we haven't got the votes?

:headbang:
rocknation

[m.standridge]

49. vote-counting went out in 2004--or

was it in 1984, or 1988, or 2000...anyway.
So blame the Democrats for that? The votes aren't there in the Senate right now, because some unnamed party (in some of these posts) rigged some voting machines--remember how there was as much an issue with the outcome of some of those Senate races in '04 as there was about Ohio in the Pres. race?
Even MSM reporters like Leslie Stahl on election night live coverage could barely cover their being stunned at the outcome in four or five Senate races where the Democratic incumbents were thought safe, based on the polls. The same turnaround occurred in many cases in those races that night, as occurred in the OH Pres. --around 1 or 2 a.m.
So, now we have to pick up the pieces, with few at this thread, remembering--all at once--even that far back. How come? This post does refer to the real problem. How to come up with the 60 votes, allowing for Lieberman not being there.
Meanwhile, what about the GOP Senators who have semi-privately stated they are definitely opposed to Bush's Iraq policies, and have been under intense pressure from constituents at home.
They face the real dilemma of Bush's Republican National Committee money actually working AGAINST them, for once, as people see them whimpering instead of speaking up like men and women against Bush, his Iraq war and his big money.
They know what their constituents want, and some of them are from states where votes register correctly. There are at least another 6 or 7. Maybe Reid is trying to build pressure on them?
Or maybe we HAVE been sold out. It costs so much to run these campaigns, it's hard to say, sometimes. It will take 60 votes, not counting Lieberman's. There are 60. How do you drag those GOP Senators into voting their statements? That's the question.

[Vidar]

28. Run away, Run away!

[robinlynne]

32. aw shit.

[Felix Mala]

37. But they give Bush all the rope he needs...

The country could be spared anymore "neocon" presidents.

[Vinca]

38. When we get back to it?????????????? WTF?????????

You'd think Americans serving in Iraq were sitting by the pool throwing back Pina Coladas instead of slogging around in desert heat wearing a ton of gear and hoping to make it to the end of the day alive. Who stole Harry's balls??

[bkcc]

39. Spineless bastards.

This is so discouraging. Inaction like this is the reason we were out of power for so long.

For God's sake, take it to Bush already!!

[ShortnFiery]

40. Gutless Wonders! Replace them ALL with their next Democratic Challenger.

:grr: :nuke: We need to elect Democratic Populists NOT corporate sycophants ... go along to get along centrists have nearly destroyed our country.

BTW Sen Reid, has your wife quit the Lobbying career? No. I didn't think so.

Reid should resign as Majority Leader as he sets a poor example. :grr:

[scavenger]

41. Home of the brave and land of the free, my ass

We have a bunch of cowards living in this country.

When the democrats said impeachment of Bush was off the table, they through justice off the table right along with it and with out justice we have no democracy or hope.

Home of the brave and land of the free, my ass

[ShortnFiery]

47. Home of the depraved, land of the freaks.

Where the hell is our illustrious DEMOCRATIC REPRESENTATIVES? Those bastards have kept their powder dry for eons now. Show some guts or lose your seats, you gutless wonders! :grr:

[The Stranger]

42. How many more are going to die while you dither, Harry?

[TexasLawyer]

45. Joe Lieberman

should take a lot of the blame for this.

[scavenger]

48. I don't think so

Joe the con couldn't give a rats ass about it. His main interest is whats good for Israel and he sees the war as a good thing for Israel.

[superconnected]

51. The defense lobbyists have spoken.

[IndianaGreen]

52. Each day we delay is a day in which an American dies or is wounded in Iraq

The American people want out of Iraq now, not next year or the year after next. The voters will look unkindly on any politician that prolongs this war, regardles of which party they represent.