In an appearance on PBS's Tavis Smiley Show and in a WaPo chat, Fiasco author and WaPo reporter Thomas Ricks tells it like it is, but not as it has to be:
Ricks, author of the acclaimed book about the war called "Fiasco," has long offered a frank and balanced perspective on the course of the war. He did so again in the Smiley interview, suggesting that in some ways Gen. Davis Petraeus’s recent report on the "surge" left much to be desired. Then, in closing, he remarked that President Bush’s current strategy was simply to make sure there are at least 100,000 troops left in Iraq when he leaves office in January 2009. Further, Ricks said he wouldn’t be surprised if "we are still fighting in Iraq" when the next president’s term ends.
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Earlier this week, in an online chat at www.washingtonpost.com, Ricks replied to a question about antiwar Americans feeling helpless this way: "This sense of despair worries me. I was on tour last month for the publication of the paperback edition of 'Fiasco' and as I gave talks and readings from Massachusetts to Texas to California I was struck by how many expressed this sense that they hate this situation but feel they can't do anything about it.
"I would say that however you feel about the war, you can have an effect. Talk to your member of Congress. Write letters to the editor of your newspaper. Speak up. Iraq isn't going to go away anytime soon, so the participation of American citizens could help the situation."
Here's the basic problem, the only group of people satisfied with the status quo is the Republican base (maybe Democrats should have worked harder to get the Bush immigration plan the base hated so much passed, after all). This 30 percent that still approves of Bush and that even thinks Congress is doing ok hold inordinate sway: they dominate the DC punditry and shore up the likes of Cornyn and Boehner.
I honestly don't know what it will take for the Dems to realize that they don't have anything to fear from these guys. That bullshit amendments like Cornyn's need to be called bullshit and voted down. That the hours and energy spent on this debate should have been spent hearing from wounded veterans, from the families of servicemen and women serving their fourth and fifth tours in Iraq, from the troops who see the futility of what we're doing, and want Congress to end it.
The Democrats in Congress read the same polls we do. They know that the majority of the people want them to take control in Iraq, want this war to end. Want Congress to fight Bush. They understand the obstacles, but they need to see the fight.
But I guess old habits born of fear and too long in the electoral wasteland will take some time, effort, and a lot of primary challenges to change. The only solution I have is the same solution Ricks has. If you don't want this war to last 10 more years, keep telling them what we want them to do. Fight back. No more funding for Iraq unless it's for withdrawal.