I'm not trying to say anything sophisticated here; this is a very simple sentiment.
Iraq is becoming more and more of a mess. This is hurting President Bush but, more importantly, it is hurting the world. If the Iraqi resistence manages to drive us out, the radical forces of the Middle East will be emboldened. Any subsequent attempts to foster democratic reforms will be doomed, at least in the near future. The next time the radicals take the fight to our borders, they will be even more confident of their ability to break our will. We need to turn this thing around, and we can't wait until the next presidential election to do it.
If we can change the momentum in Iraq so things are getting better rather than worse, President Bush will be re-elected. This will provide him with an opportunity to plunder our treasury for another four years, further delaying any chance of meaningful health care reform, etc.
But our country is strong and resilient and will recover in time. It is more important right now that we do right by Iraq. Cheney was foolish for thinking this would be easy, for thinking the crowds would be cheering our occupation, for thinking that years of ruthless autocracy would fold over into a nice little desert community of picket fences. But we have to hope and pray that the fools who got us into this mess are not so foolish that they can't find a way to make this work.
I know what this means. It means that I am hoping that Bush will be re-elected. Lord knows I won't be voting for him, and I wouldn't encourage anyone else to do so. But I think all good people of conscience want Iraq to emerge from this debacle better off than it is right now. And if Bush can point to a successful Iraq, he will be re-elected, no matter how criminally negligent he has been in every other respect. And I have to learn to live with that.
