Monday, December 19, 2005

Position: No Position

After an exhausting week of finals that treated me none to well, I am back. Did you miss me?

With Bush stumbling all over himself because of Iraq--he hasn't sounded this humble in... forever--the Democrats should be able to capitalize, right? Not according to the Washington Post.

House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said yesterday that Democrats should not seek a unified position on an exit strategy in Iraq, calling the war a matter of individual conscience and saying differing positions within the caucus are a source of strength for the party.

This makes a lot of sense Nancy. It's only the biggest issue of the 2006 elections. Ignoring the elephant in the living room is a brilliant move. The Republicans are vulnerable, but rather than try to win a few games, the Democrats are throwing in the towel and playing for a draft pick. After all, Reggie Bush is one heck of an athlete.

"There is no one Democratic voice . . . and there is no one Democratic position," Pelosi said in an interview with Washington Post reporters and editors.

That's why you keep losing, Nancy. The Democratic party is a hodgepodge of special interests, often enough only divided against the Republicans. Maybe if Reggie Bush runs with Barack Obama... no pun intended of course.

In all seriousness, there is a reason for Pelosi's party not taking a stance on the most important issue of the election. Simply put, they cannot afford to.

If they come out in support of this war, they end up copying the Republicans, losing any chance to capitalize on Bush's mistake and alienating the liberal base at the same time.

If they say although we shouldn't have invaded Iraq, we should go ahead and try to finish now that we're there--the correct position--the Dems have some questions to answer. First, why didn't Congress declare war? Why wasn't debate raised about Iraq? Why was Feingold the only one among you with balls enough to vote against the Patriot Act?

Bush may be a rotten president with a poor excuse for foreign policy, but the Democrats are, by and large, cowards. Too scared that opposition to a war or an unconstitutional act decmicating personal liberty would mean an end to the eternal term in Congress, the Democrats played along.

One had hoped they have learned a valuable lesson, but meanwhile, we the people are stuck between a rock and a hard place. The Republicans and the Democrats are not fit to lead this country, and the time is more ripe than ever for a viable third party to fill the large gap. Good luck to us all.

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