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Politics : View from the Center and Left -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Elroy who wrote (36711)	4/23/2007 5:08:47 AM
From: ig	Respond to of 541969

Your "we won the war against Saddam" is an interesting way to look at things, and I agree that the Dems would do well to switch to the language you are recommending, but I don't think your language is all that accurate. You want to say that "the war" was against Saddam. I'd say that the action against Saddam was quite a bit less than a "war" -- more like a battle, or at most a campaign. campaign: n. 1. A series of military operations undertaken to achieve a large-scale objective during a war: Grant's Vicksburg campaign secured the entire Mississippi for the Union.

To: Elroy who wrote (36711)	4/23/2007 10:16:09 AM
From: JohnM	Respond to of 541969

Well, I wouldn't say it's a trap for Bush - it serves him well to consider the ongoing activity in Iraq as part of a war - no one wants to lose a war, and Presidential authority is stronger during wartime. From a purely political point of view, that did work for him early after 9-11 through either late 03 or early 04. Sometime in there it became apparent that the language of victory/defeat and war on terror was wildly inappropriate to a response to 9-11 and, in turn, to describe the reasons for the invasion of Iraq. The public is now on that page. And the long term liabilities of that political strategy are now apparent. As a language to convey actual policy goals and implementation, both were terribly wrong. The invasion of Afghanistan should have been cloaked in a direct response to 9-11, not a "war against terror." And resources targeted precisely for that goal. As for whether the victory/defeat and wot language works for Bush now, it all depends on how well the Dems handle their rhetorical counter attack. The public has clearly left that terrain; the Dems only need follow. Finally, the entire Iraq invasion is an enormous setback for US foreign policy in the ME. It's one big, ugly package at the moment; not divisible. And it can get much worse. Bush has another however many months to continue to make it worse in his obvious attempt to sacrifice lives to pin the blame for the end of it on the Dems. And the prospects of a regional wide conflict just continues to simmer and simmer.