Last week we learned that Iran has succeeded in enriching uranium and declared themselves a member of the
Nuclear Club. This report was followed by 24 hours of frenetic cable news coverage: breathless talking heads brandishing satellite photos and telestrators notching up the fear with each red circle and arrow.
Then I read this: "Iran Could Produce Nuclear Bomb in 16 Days, U.S. Says." OMG! 16 days!!! Next my local television news reported Iran is training an army of 40,000 suicide bombers to be deployed against American and British targets. Good grief!
Is it hype? In a word, yes. We all know Iran is years away from gaining a nuclear weapon. We know this is just another reckless, Rovian political ploy to distract attention from the fiery wreck that is the Republican party.
Liberals and the reality-based community have stepped up to challange this new push for war. The strategy seems to be coalescing along a two-pronged approach: 1) discredit the overreaching claims about Iran's nuclear program, and 2) make various demands of Bush such as 'take the nuclear option off the table' or 'get Congressional approval before any military action'. With a paltry 40% of the country saying they trust Bush to handle this crisis, the current strategy may work just fine. However, I'm guessing Karl Rove is betting it won't.
I'd like to propose another tack.
No one really wants Iran to acquire the bomb. It's just not a good thing... for anyone. Here's a way progressives could use the issue against Bush without boxing themselves into a specific position or risking being branded appeasers.
Iran has succeeded in enriching uranium -- the first step on their path to gaining nuclear weapons. This is a serious matter and time is of the essence. We can't wait until Jan 20, 2009 for a new administration with the credibility and capability to handle this crisis. Iran's march toward possession of a nuclear weapon marks the greatest challenge that the free world will face over the next few years.
Unfortunately, Mr. President, you and your administration have shown yourselves incapable of leading our country on crucial issues of national security and military planning.
Secretary Rumsfeld, please resign.
Whether or not one agrees with the mission in Iraq, there is widespread agreement that the military planning was botched. In fact, six retired U.S. Generals have taken the unprecedented step of calling for your resignation.
Mr. Secretary, these are dangerous times. We need the best leadership possible at the Pentagon. Please resign.
Vice President Cheney, please resign.
Colin Powell, former Secretary of State in your administration, recently admitted that the State Department never thought Iraq had nuclear capabilities, and that you prompted the President to push those claims despite the convincing evidence against them.
Additionally, your former Chief of Staff, Lewis Libby, testified, under oath, that you authorized the leaks that lead to the outing of Valerie Plame, a covert CIA agent working, ironically, on WMD issues in Iran.
Mr. Vice President, you pushed us into an unnecessary war which has consumed far too many of our resources, both financial and military. This limits our ability to effectively respond to the threat that Iran poses. Please resign.
President George W. Bush, please resign.
Your administration has failed us on national security. We're bogged down in an intractable and unnecessary war in Iraq. And yet you stubbornly stand by that decision and the current strategy -- if you can call it that -- to stay the course and punt off to your successor.
Your secretary of defense sent our military into war without the necessary resources, yet you've decided to stand by him.
You've lost the trust of the world community -- even your best mate, Tony Blair, has backed out on you regarding Iran. And now, even the American people don't trust you to handle this crisis.
Mr. President, some have called for your censure and even impeachment over questions of law breaking and your attempts to circumvent the balance of power our Constitution demands. Make no mistake, these are important issues. But this -- Iran -- is about our security. This is about the world my children will grow up in -- or not. Mr. President, please resign.
The harder they push, the stronger the case gets: In the interest of national security, Bush must resign.