THE WAR PARTY - Ted Rall

Ted Rall tells it like it is, which is, incidentally, something I've been very annoyed about. Democrats are whining about how they can't stop the war because Republicans won't help them override Bush's expected veto. The truth is, if they didn't give Bush a defense budget to veto, they wouldn't have to override it. They'd just have to sit back, wait for the Pentagon to run out of war funding, and then bring the troops home on their own. Republicans like to spin it that Democrats attempting that would be leaving troops sitting in the field with no bullets, but all they're really doing is giving the Dems political cover. "We CAAAAAAAN'T end the war because Republicans won't let us! We have to fund the troops, timetable or not!" Bullshit. What Dems really want is to drag this fucker out until 2008, so they can batter the Republicans with the idea that we're still in Iraq because they wouldn't help bring the troops home.

Newflash: Democrats are extending the war be not cutting off the funding. They're in control. All Harry Reid has to do is say "Nope, we don't have time to work on your defense spending bill."

And, as Rall points out, the media is perpetuating the lie that their hands are tied.

-pb