Pelosi questions Bush's competence
The emperor has no clothes. When are people going to face the reality? Pull this curtain back. The situation in Iraq and the reckless economic policies in the United States speak to one issue for me, and that is the competence of our leader. These policies are not working. But speaking specifically to Iraq, we have a situation where -- without adequate evidence -- we put our young people in harm's way.... I believe that the president's leadership in the actions taken in Iraq demonstrate an incompetence in terms of knowledge, judgment and experience in making the decisions that would have been necessary to truly accomplish the mission without the deaths to our troops and the cost to our taxpayers.
- Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Ca)
Say what you will about Nancy Pelosi, but one could never reasonably accuse her of lacking an opinion. In this case, she is merely giving voice to what Democrats already know to be the case. Few Democrats in any sort of elected position have the cojones to stand up and voice their opinion a la Pelosi. No, they're too busy being cowed by the intimidation tactics of Tom DeLay, that voice of political moderation who is all too willing to use the "loose lips sink ships" argument.
Nancy Pelosi should apologize for her irresponsible, dangerous rhetoric. She apparently is so caught up in partisan hatred for President Bush that her words are putting American lives at risk.
Apparently, exercising her right as an American to voice an opinion has been suspended in wartime by the Republican majority. Nancy Pelosi is no risk to the safety of our men and women in uniform. Voicing legitimate criticisms of failed policies is hardly a national security risk. Interesting, isn't it? We've gone to war in Iraq to help install democracy while that democracy at home is being chipped away in the name of Fatherland...er, Homeland Security.
No, the problem here is not that Pelosi is risking the lives of American soldiers. Pelosi is standing up for the very sort of things American soldiers are fighting for. There is nothing in what she said that presents ANY sort of national security risk. The problem is that DeLay and his ilk cannot begin to debate the issues on the merits. The emperor really DOESN'T have any clothes, and no amount of Republican bluster will change that fact. It would seem that Tom DeLay is so caught up in protecting the Republican (and his own) grip on power that he is willing to use any means at his disposal to silence dissent. Is it just me, or is DeLay beginning to resemble Joseph McCarthy more with each passing day?
