Democrats Make Enormous Mistake / Send Wrong Message

Just as the troop surge was beginning to show real promise that the tides are turning in Iraq and total victory is within reach (see progress in Iraq posts), the Democrats in the House have taken the first steps towards ensuring defeat in the War on Terror.

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The US House of Representatives Friday voted to impose an August 31, 2008 deadline to pull combat troops out of Iraq, prompting a veto threat and a furious rebuke from President George W. Bush.

In the boldest challenge yet to Bush's war powers, lawmakers voted 218 to 212 to link a 124-billion-dollar war budget to a timeline for withdrawal, significantly raising the stakes in an escalating feud with the president.
More.

In doing so, Congress sends a powerful message to the troops:



The Democrats have claimed a "mandate" since the '06 election when they gained the narrowest of margins against the Republicans. They have taken their new found power and have at every opportunity provided no solutions for victory or for dealing with terrorism. Instead they have put forwards a "slow bleed," cut and run strategy that will only ensure that 9/11 is just a preamble to the what will inevitably come next.