What opposition party?

As the Bush Administration runs roughshod over the right to privacy, international law, human rights and the economy, all while amassing a 39% approval rating according to FOX/Opinion Dynamics RV and a 38% approval rating according to CNN/USA Today/Gallup. Despite such a dismal performance the Democrats, the "opposition" largely lay silent.

For more than a year Iraq has topped the list of voter concerns in poll after poll. Asked what should be the highest priority for America this year, the largest number of respondents in the latest NBC/Wall Street Journal poll chose bringing most of the troops home. Despite this Democrats continue to sit back and play nice. To prance around the issues in fear of being labeled soft on terrorism.

"Democrats are so obsessed with not looking 'weak' on defense that they end up making themselves look weak, period, by the way they respond to Republican attacks on their alleged weakness." -E.J. Dionne, Washington Post.

Hell, its taken the Democrats three years into the conflict and thousands of American deaths for them to finally offer a cogent critique of how the Bush Administration misled the American people and mismanaged the Iraqi occupation. Surely it doesn't help that "leading" Democrats like Kerry and Clinton voted for the use of force. Democrats have finally gotten to the stage that some have been able to call for withdrawal, but often times they're unwilling or unable to suggest clearly how the United States should extricate themselves from the mess.

There is little hope in sight with leading canidates for the Democratic ticket being fuzzy on the situation to say the least. Joe Biden, Evan Bayh, Wesley Clark, and Hillary Clinton have all been extremely wishy washy on the subject. Here is a classic example;

"I do not believe that we should allow this to be an open-ended commitment without limits or end, nor do I believe that we can or should pull out of Iraq immediately" said Clinton in a letter to her constituents in late November.

If the Democrats have any shot at becoming the majority party again they need to stop being Republicans-light. If you want a Republican you vote for a Republican, you don't vote for a half-assed Republican. If you want a Democrat you sure has hell want to vote for a Democrat not these folks that are offering themselves up as Democratic leaders.

Its time we get some people in office that are straight shooters that tell the truth and stop all this warm and fuzz mystery talk about a conflict that has cost this country so dearly in lives and capital. No more games lets start holding people accountable and rewarding people that are worthy of office. We need more John McCains, Barack Obamas, Patrick Leahys, and Russ Feingolds.

This is really more of a rebutal as I have been accused other places as giving the Democrats a "free pass" as enablers of the Iraq conflict. For the record I am no Democrat. I don't vote along party lines and I don't plan to or want to. I see myself as an independent thinker and one that looks for a person who values what I value. Tell you right here and now, war, violence, destruction, propagation of poverty, elitism, and divine right is not my modus operandi.

Links:
The Democrats: Still Ducking by ARI BERMAN of The Nation