Mere Words

Vice President Dick Cheney keeps putting his foot in his mouth at every opportunity. Yesterday, he was a interviewed by Martha Raddatz of ABC News on the grim milestone of 4,000 U.S. deaths in Iraq.

Q Mr. Vice President, I want to start with the milestone today of 4,000 dead in Iraq, Americans, and just what effect you think that has on the country. Your thoughts on that?

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Well, it obviously brings home, I think for a lot of people, the cost that’s involved in the global war on terror in Iraq and Afghanistan. It places a special burden, obviously, on the families. We recognize, I think — it’s a reminder of the extent to which we’re blessed with families who have sacrificed as they have. The President carries the biggest burden, obviously; he’s the one who has to make the decision to commit young Americans. But we are fortunate to have the group of men and women, the all-volunteer force, who voluntarily put on the uniform and go in harm’s way for the rest of us. You wish nobody ever lost their life, but unfortunately it’s one of those things that go with living in the world we live in. Sometimes you have to commit military force, and when you do, there are casualties.

So, what Cheney says is that it that the troop deaths are hard on families, but even harder on the President. I think that sentiment is appalling… To speak of the pain families feel when losing a loved one on the other side of the world in war, the daily pain and hardship of dealing with that loss, then say that the President has it harder? This is the same President Bush who has never served in active duty, has never had to say goodbye to a loved one who may not come back, or felt the pain of telling a child that their daddy isn’t coming home.

I think if our leaders truly understood the burden that military families bear, they wouldn’t speak so lightly of their burdens. They would be less likely to send our troops into a war that should never have been waged.

Earlier, I brought to you the news that U.S. casualties in Iraq have reached the grim milestone of 4,000 deaths. Brandon Friedman notes that the last two weeks have been the deadliest two week period since September 2007.

American forces have just experienced the most violent two-week period in Iraq since September 2007. Unfortunately, I’m afraid this fact will be lost in the media coverage over the number 4,000 during the next several days. Of the two significant numbers this week–4,000 killed during war and 25 in the last two weeks–the latter figure is far more significant with regard to the current situation on the ground.

We hear talk of attacks against Americans “ebbing,” ceasefires holding, and of the situation in Iraq being “not that fragile,” but this is all a bunch of happy-talk nonsense. Between March 10 and March 23, 25 American soldiers were killed in Iraq. The last two-week period in which U.S. forces sustained similar losses was between September 14 and September 27, when 26 were killed–a period that capped off the bloodiest summer of the war.

Hopefully, the next time George Bush gives a speech a speech on Iraq instead of touting the “success” of the troop surge, he will acknowledge that things on the ground are still very bad and his current policies have failed. Somehow, I doubt he will. He is determined to stay the course, no matter how reckless that may be or how many Americans may disagree.

This news underscores the importance of getting a fresh pair of eyes in the White House next January, instead of a candidate who will continue to stay in lockstep with Bush in regards to the Iraq war. John McCain says that we need to put even more troops into Iraq on his campaign website:

A greater military commitment now is necessary if we are to achieve long-term success in Iraq. John McCain agrees with retired Army General Jack Keane that there are simply not enough American forces in Iraq.

John McCain and his new buddy Joe Lieberman want a greater military commitment in Iraq, and that simply will not work. We can’t keep throwing away American lives and dollars in a failed attempt in Iraq. After 5 years, it is time to start looking for a way out, or a new plan.

This idea of constantly adding more troops for a long period of time might work. But we do we really want to keep 100,000 soldiers in Iraq for the next 5 years, spend another 600 billion dollars, and lose another 4,000 American lives?

Yesterday, we reached a terrible milestone in the Iraq war. There have now been over 4,000 U.S. servicemen and women killed in the line of duty. There have been over 29,000 injured, many returning maimed for life. According to the House Budget Committee, the was has cost over 600 billion dollars of taxpayer money and that number will continue to rise by 9.5 billion dollars every month. To quote President Bush “”No one would argue that this war has not come at a high cost in lives and treasure.”

The question on many Americans minds is… Why?

Why are embroiled in a war against a country that never threatened us, nor asked us to liberate them?

Why were we misled into fearing WMD’s that didn’t even exist?

Why have we paid 600 billion dollars for a war that was originally supposed to cost 50 or 60 billion?

Why are we wasting American lives in a war the majority of Americans doesn’t want to be in?

Why isn’t President Bush looking for a way out?

I don’t have all the answers.

What I do know, is that our next president should have those answers. We can’t keep following George W. Bush’s failed policies in Iraq. Instead, its time to start looking for a way out, not settling in for the next hundred years.

We owe our soldiers the same steadfast service and dedication they have given us. After 4,000 have sacrificed their lives for Iraqi freedom, it is time we start looking for a way to bring them home.

Yesterday, I brought you a snippet from an interview with Dick Cheney regarding the Iraq war. Here’s a refresher:

“Q Let me go back to the Americans. Two-thirds of Americans say it’s not worth fighting, and they’re looking at the value gain versus the cost in American lives, certainly, and Iraqi lives.

THE VICE PRESIDENT: So?”

Today, the White House Press Secretary Dana Perino was questioned by Helen Thomas over Cheney’s blatant disregard for the opinion of the public.

“Q Let’s set aside the meaning of the word “so” for a second, and get to something the Vice President then said… is the Vice President saying it really doesn’t matter what the American public thinks about the war?

MS. PERINO: No, I don’t think that’s what he’s saying… what he went on to say is that President should not make decisions based on polls. And we fully recognize that people across America are unhappy with the war; possibly they didn’t agree with the decision in the first place…

But what the President has said is that while people might not like the decisions that he makes, he has to do what he thinks is right for the country, and he cannot try to chase an opinion poll and try to make things better that way. “

The president can’t make decisions based on what people want done in Washington! His opinion is all that matters!

Q …There is the impression that the Vice President doesn’t care about what the American people think in policy like that. Is that a wrong impression? And does the President share that impression?

MS. PERINO: I think that is the wrong impression. I think that the Vice President and the President both, together, all of us across the administration, would like for people to support the President’s decisions. We realize that that’s unrealistic, especially in a time of war — and in particular this war. And while we’re not able to change public opinion, we also have to follow a principle and stand on principle. And you have to ask yourself, what kind of a person do you want in the Oval Office?

So we believe that the President stood on his principle. He hasn’t chased public opinion polls. He’s aware of them, but he hasn’t made decisions because of them….”

President Bush wishes people would agree with him, but since they don’t he thinks its best just to ignore them.

“Q The American people are being asked to die and pay for this, and you’re saying they have no say in this war?

MS. PERINO: I didn’t say that, Helen. But, Helen, this President was elected –

Q Well, what it amounts to is you saying we have no input at all.

MS. PERINO: You had input. The American people have input every four years, and that’s the way our system is set up.”

What Ms. Perino has said is that Americans get their voices heard once every 4 years, and a dictatorship the rest. That sounds like a democracy, doesn’t it?

“MS. PERINO: And we listen to different points of view. The President, in fact, had many meetings with members of Congress leading up to his decision about the surge.

Q Isn’t this supposed to be a government for the people, of the people, by the people?

MS. PERINO: I would submit to you that people across America, if asked what type of a President do you want: one that stands on principle or that one that chases polls? And I think that they would want one who stands on principle.

I would submit to Ms. Perino that people across America, if asked, would want a President that listens to what they want and crafts his policy accordingly. Americans would want the true reason behind a war, and to not be misled with false accusations of WMD’s.

Americans want a president who cares more about fixing problems today, than how historians will view him years from now. They want one who is worried about providing a leg up for the poor and disenfranchised, not giving tax cuts to the top 1%. We want a president who listens voice of the populace, not one hitting the mute button.

Helen Thomas asks one last question before Dana brushes her off and moves on. I think its a question a lot of Americans are starting to ask. When they go to the polls in November, they will demand an answer…

“Q What’s the principle of going to war against the people who did nothing to us?”

Today is the 5th anniversary of the Iraq war.

Earlier today on Good Morning America, the Vice President Dick Cheney was interviewed regarding economic policies, the upcoming election, and finally the war in Iraq. Throughout the interview Cheney showed once again why only 31% of Americans think George W. Bush is doing a good job. He spewed the same tired lines and showed his total disregard for anyone who disagrees with him. I would like to share just one exchange when he and Martha Raddatz were discussing the Iraq war:

Q Two-thirds of Americans say it was not worth fighting.

THE VICE PRESIDENT: They ought to go spend time, like you and I have, Martha. You know what’s been happening in Iraq. You’ve been there as much as anybody. There has, in fact, been fundamental change and transformation, and improvement for the better. I think even you would admit that.

Q Let me go back to the Americans. Two-thirds of Americans say it’s not worth fighting, and they’re looking at the value gain versus the cost in American lives, certainly, and Iraqi lives.

THE VICE PRESIDENT: So?

Q So — you don’t care what the American people think?

THE VICE PRESIDENT: No, I think you cannot be blown off course by the fluctuations in the public opinion polls. Think about what would have happened if Abraham Lincoln had paid attention to polls, if they had had polls during the Civil War. He never would have succeeded if he hadn’t had a clear objective, a vision for where he wanted to go, and he was willing to withstand the slings and arrows of the political wars in order to get there. And this President has been very courageous, very consistent, very determined to continue down the course we were on and to achieve our objective. And that’s victory in Iraq, that’s the establishment of a democracy where there’s never been a democracy, it’s the establishment of a regime that respects the rights and liberties of their people, as an ally for the United States in the war against terror, and as a positive force for change in the Middle East. That’s a huge accomplishment.

Martha: So, Dick, two thirds of Americans think we shouldn’t be wasting our soldiers lives.
Cheney: Who cares? They don’t matter…

The vice president said that the majority opinion of Americans does not matter. Nearly two years of majority dissent is a “polling fluctuation”. The Iraq War is comparable to the Civil War. The Bush presidency is comparable to the Lincoln presidency. How much more ludicrous can you get?

Thank god we have only a few months until they are gone…