MoonDawg's Den: Who is the enemy?

MoonDawg's Den

Friday, February 16, 2007

Who is the enemy?

I had such high hopes of productive things happening in Washington after the elections in November. I believed--naively--that with the balance of power being shared between the two major parties that they would actually have to work together and compromise. I was so wrong.

Since the elections, the congress has passed a handful of bills that they promised during their first 100 hours, and then they got to the business of Iraq, and life got much more complicated. Unfortunately, everything is breaking on party lines, and nothing will ever get accomplished, especially in the senate where 60 votes are needed to break a filibuster.

I offer 2 examples of complete partisan stupidity as proof that nothing will happen in the next two years except a lot of kvetching by both sides:

  1. Nancy Pelosi supported the surge in Iraq until the president came out in favor of it. Then, she changed her tune. I'm opposed to the surge, but Pelosi's change of heart doesn't seem to be motivated by conviction, just by politics.
  2. John Warner filibustered his own resolution on Iraq and the surge in order to protest the way the vote was being handled by Democrats. That's just stupid. He could have voted for cloture to not look stupid, and the filibuster still would have held. I guess that was too easy.
I'm sick to death of hearing the partisan bickering in Washington. While they fight, our soldiers are fighting a very real enemy. I know Republicans think Democrats are the enemy (listen to their rhetoric and try to disagree with me), and Democrats believe that Bush is Satan (I've probably used that metaphor myself at least once :)). But, there are much bigger issues that need to be settled. It's time for our elected officials to do their job. It's time for them to debate and come up with real solutions. It's time to come up with a plan in Iraq that will work, not a meaningless surge or a hopeless withdrawal. I'm not sure what that should be, but I bet that the brilliant minds in Washington can come up with something if they quit acting like four-year-olds.

I'm not holding my breath.

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posted by Jeff at 11:41 PM

7 Comments:

  • yeah, Jeff--

    I'm not too disheartened by Nancy's lameness, as, well-- I didn't really like her all that much in the beginning and it doesn't surprise me. But I AM disheartened by the stupidity that things in congress have descended into. Sigh.

    Maybe we need to get a bunch of non-party affiliated people in to make the swing vote a real knockout. Or something.

    Jeff, I think Bush is Satan, if it makes you feel any better.

    By Blogger Unknown, At 11:27 PM, February 18, 2007  

  • A politician who's motivated by politics? I'm shocked - shocked I tell you!

    Far be it for me to defend San Fran Nan, but give credit where credit is due - for example, she did a good job working with Repubs on passing earmark transparency reform, and looks set to help shepherd through the Patients Bill of Rights legislation co-sponsored by my late Congressman, Charlie Norwood.

    Certainly I don't agree with her on most public policy issues and think she's a ranting loon as far as the war on terror is concerned; nevertheless she is showing definite leadership ability to create bi-partisan consensus on some important legislation.

    By Blogger Garry, At 9:28 AM, February 19, 2007  

  • nevertheless she is showing definite leadership ability to create bi-partisan consensus on some important legislation.

    The problem is that the one place they need to work together is the war in Iraq, and that's not happening. I do think that this congress will be good for domestic issues, which is something that I can't say for the Republican congress that they replaced.

    By Blogger Jeff, At 1:30 PM, February 19, 2007  

  • Maybe we need to get a bunch of non-party affiliated people in to make the swing vote a real knockout. Or something.

    We'll call ourselves the Sanity Party!

    By Blogger Jeff, At 1:31 PM, February 19, 2007  

  • The problem is that the one place they need to work together is the war in Iraq, and that's not happening.

    And it won't happen until Dems finally recognize, let alone admit, that the transnational Jihadist movement represents an existential threat to the Western democracies.

    By Blogger Garry, At 9:59 AM, February 20, 2007  

  • I liked Bushes Social Security program, but the congress just wouldn't let it pass. What was wrong with 12% going into SS. and just 2% going into an account of our own choices. I don't think most people know that the Social Security funds go into the general funds and are used for most everything. There are many who don't want the individual to have any control of their own destiny.

    I think there is just too wide a split between the Dems and the Republicans to get anything done. What ever happened to the moderates. Will our country ever get back to a middle ground?

    PS. Don't like Ms. Nancy myself. The war in Iraq is nothing but a Pandora's box.

    By Blogger Lucy Stern, At 7:05 PM, February 22, 2007  

  • And it won't happen until Dems finally recognize, let alone admit, that the transnational Jihadist movement represents an existential threat to the Western democracies.

    Or, until Republicans quit conflating Saddam Hussein's secular government with the religious fanatacism of the "transnational Jihadist movement."

    Of course, our little exchange here proves Lucy's point about the lack of moderacy. The two parties are speaking different languages. They are comparing apples to spoons as Garry put so well in another comment (the comment was about polls, but I liked the metaphor).

    By Blogger Jeff, At 7:27 PM, February 22, 2007  

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