In tonight's debate, McCain mentioned a bracelet he wears from a soldier who asked him to continue the war in Iraq. McCain said he wanted to honor that soldier by continuing the war in Iraq.
McCain demonstrates a complete failure in leadership with this point. The President has to make decisions about deploying our brave troops. Not one soldier. By focusing on one soldier McCain also forgets that there is a chorus of contrary views from our military men and women as well as their family and friends back home.
It is time for Obama and other like minded Americans to challenge Republicans who make these "bracelet" claims. The President has to make the decision, and the President represents all Americans, not just the views of one soldier. Carried to its logical conclusion, McCain's reasoning would apparently mean that a soldier makes the command decisions or that once we lose a soldier or start a battle that America would be dishonoring the sacrifice of soldiers to change tactics, or strategy. This is, of course, worse than nonsense. It would be lunacy.
The next time we hear this sort of anecdote being offered as proof that we have to continue a war, let's point out forcefully that to mindlessly follow a request of one soldier is to abdicate the President's responsibility to lead and make the hard decisions about how best to employ our brave fighting men and women.
As an aside, Senator Webb of Virginia--a decorated Viet Nam Vet and whose son has served or is serving in Iraq and former Secretary of the Navy under a Republican administration--has repeatedly pointed out that our troops are representative of our nation. They hold a variety of views. It is simply untrue to say that the troops want the war to continue. Some do. Some do not. Other than reports that our troops prefer Obama to McCain, I know of no data from which we can infer what the majority position of our troops is. And even if we knew what the troops wanted, this is a decision for leadership (i.e., our President) not for the troops. What we owe the troops is to honor their valor and sacrifice for America. But that never means that we have to senslessly keep sacrificing the lives of our brave fighting force in any battle or war we get involved in regardless of the wisdom of continuing in that war or battle.