February 6, 2007
The Senate may vote this week on several resolutions concerning Iraq. No matter which one passes – if any pass – the message to our enemies will be clear: the United States of America, supposedly the most powerful nation on the planet, is ready to give up.
Politicians are reading their polls and some who were once strongly behind President Bush are now wavering as the 2008 election approaches. They care more about winning elections than they do about winning this war.
The best thing that could happen now is for some immediate and visible military and political victories in Iraq. The surge of Baghdad reportedly is coming soon with neighborhoods targeted for insurgent cleansing. Let’s hope – and pray – it works. Progress will stiffen backbones here, but I worry that if progress doesn’t come soon, pressure will build for a cutoff of funds, which will effectively end our attempts to reform Iraq and give the terrorists an opportunity to create a base from which they will attack Israel and eventually the united states. Those are the stakes. Too bad some politicians don’t want to see it this way.
Cal Thomas is a nationally syndicated columnist based in Washington, D.C.
