GOP keeps pressing Dems on Iraq money

Rescamblicans can blow it out from you know where. Their failures in Iraq after all these years can't just magically be pinned on Democrats.

Iraq is the Republicans baby,always has been always will be.

Maybe the Republicans should explain why their Republican President is rejecting funding for their Iraq war and the VA military hopitals like Walter Reed.

JohnE-

"Maybe the Republicans should explain why their Republican President is rejecting funding for their Iraq war and the VA military hopitals like Walter Reed."

Yes there should be some explanantion- As soon as the House gets back from their kegger party in Daytona there will be someone to discuss it with. Or was an excellent road trip / spring break part of the 100 day plan?

"Iraq is the Republicans baby,always has been always will be."

And- NO- the war belongs to all of us...

Iraq is the Republicans baby,always has been always will be.

This isn't Vietnam and the GOP won't be able to push their responsibilty for this mess off on the Dems this time.

....10 US soldiers killed in Iraq over the Easter weekend........

Heartburn-

If you are gooing to make feeble slams on the Democrats, at least get them right. The Dem's made a first 100 hours pledge, not 100 days.

If the Republicans think it's so important to get the house back in session immediately, why doesn't the "decider" call them into session as is his Constitutional right?

Pelosi made a world-wide fool of herself and violated The Logan Act.Censure this dim-wit wannabee Sec. of State and make her call her white flag waiving minions back into session so America can see what fools(PORK) they really are.
Support our troops Nancy,not your massive ego...maybe if you do what's right,Bush,Darth and Halliburton may give you a bigger plane.

Paulo

Heartburn,

The war in Iraq was inflicted on us by this Republican administration. They are responsible for it. They are the ones who justified it based on phantom WMDs. They are the ones who said the cost would be paid with Iraqi oil. They are the ones who said we'd be greeted with flowers. They are the ones who ignored the recommendations of General Shinseiki and chose to go in with Rumsfeld's smaller invasion force; a force too small to secure known weapons depots or secure borders or prevent anarchy when the government fell. They are the ones who lost whatever Iraqi support they had by re-using Saddam's infamous prison at Abu Ghraib and torturing prisoners there.

Sure, we all will have to live with the consequences of their incompetence, but we know who's to blame for this mess.

....10 US soldiers killed in Iraq over the Easter weekend........

Posted by: John E | Apr 9, 2007 12:07:38 PM

JohnE.

let me put your macabre count into perspective..
....10 US soldiers killed in Iraq over the Easter weekend AND congress is still on spring break.

Tony- get real with the "decider" dodge..

Are you OK with congress on an extended break and being out with this kind of legislation not decided?

Tony,
Heartburn is right about one thing. The Iraq War/Occupation does belong to both parties. The rest of his rant is typical partisan distortion & BS but he did get that part right. While the Executive branch should get the lions share of the blame for their colossal mistakes & misunderstandings you can't just give the (R)s & (D)s in Congress a free pass. At the least they deserve an accessory role in all of it.

You've got to admit, it funny how last year's emergency funding bill got kicked around for months & months before finally getting passed but this one is being stalled after something like 2 whole months? It also starts to sound like a lot of partisan BS when the 'Great Divider' says the Dems are going to deprive the troops if its not fixed soon but the Army says they are going to be fine money-wise for months to come.

10 US Troops killed over the Easter Weekend........ and Republican President Bush goes on spring break down to the ranch in Crawford,Tx.....again

.....Iraq is the Republicans baby,always has been always will be......

Heartburn-

No dodge, just reality. Bush could call congress into session if he so desired. He does not.

The Republican moaning on this issue would sound alot less hollow if the last Congress would not have adjorned without even bothering to pass the budget. They didn't seem to think that was a problem.

The Congress will be back in session in plenty of time to get the bill onto Bush's desk. Wjate he chooses to do with it is his problem.

Tom O

Predictable, lockstep, liberal "its not my fault, so I am not going to do anything" whine.

Our troops are fighting and dying there.
Our country stands to lose the most if we lose there.

We can go around in circles forever deciding if we should have gone there-

But the fact remains that since we are there - the best solution is to win.

Try this at work..
Be a a key player on the most important project your company has going and then take a two week long vacation - and put the most important project on hold while I was gone-
I would/should be fired.

This exposes very clearly what is the Dem motivation or priority-
Hate Bush-
Inrease Minimum wage
Hate Cheney
Increase Taxes
Hate Bush
Chair a subcommitte on researchung what happened to the pet food.
Hate Cheney
Conduct investigations on meaningless "crimes"

The Republican administration trumped up "intelligence" to get us into Iraq.

The lock-step Republican Congress took this phony "intelligence" and made the minority party Democrats vote on it before they could examine some of the W. administrations bogus claims about Iraq.

The American people find out about this and vote the Republicans out of power in Congress.

It's time to complete this Republican exorcism. Impeach President Chimpy, Cheney would then resign....health reasons.

"MISSION ACCOMPLISHED" !

Tony- its a huge dodge-

You know exactly what the reaction would be if he forced the house to put their beer bongs down and get back to class.. I mean work.

King Bush! Impeachement! Blah Blah Blah..

We can talk about history and we can probably find many examples of the Repubs doing this as well.. but this congress is here NOW and until NOW they wanted everyone to believe this issue was worth their time...everyone needs a vacation but this is nuts.

Do you honestly believe that this congress gives a D*** about the troops?

JohnE-

The lock-step Republican Congress took this phony "intelligence" and made the minority party Democrats vote on it before they could examine some of the W. administrations bogus claims about Iraq.

made them vote?

so let me understand that twist of common sense..

You are saying that a member of congress voted on a bill sending soldiers to war without knowing the facts?

Do you understand how dumb that sounds? If you were not sure about something would'nt you error on the side of caution and vote NO?

They are responsiblefor finding out about what they are voting on before they vote on it... quit giving these people passes for bad politcal moves- they can take care of themselves..

Tony, whether Bush called Congress into session or not wouldn't matter. They're not going to vote on a funding bill until there actually IS a bill that both sides find acceptable. They wouldn't even need to be in session is Pelosi would've named house conferees before she jetted off to Sudan. The Speaker neglected to appoint House conferees before the two-week break, further delaying negotiations on any final bill.

The conferees could've been meeting informally amongst themselves discussing the bill so that it'd be ready to vote on when Congress goes back into session, but because Pelosi couldn't be bothered the process was further delayed.

And if you're going to talk about that 100 hours BS, I'm still waiting for Pelosi to allow the minority to make amendments as she said they'd do once the very important work of that first 100 hours was up.

heartburn,
How many days did it take Republican majorities to pass the last 2 emergency supplementals for Iraq?? Were you up in arms then?

Republicans pushed the vote on Iraq thus giving the Dems no time to investigate their phony Iraq "intelligence" claims before voting on it.

I love it when Republican lockstepers get on here and try to defend their Iraq war.

Impeach Chimpy McFlightsuit!

Our country stands to lose the most if we lose there.
Posted by: heartburn | Apr 9, 2007 1:27:09 PM

Gotta rank that statement right up there with 'I was for it, before I was against it'
What actually is a 'Win' in Iraq? I mean is it a win if we leave Iraq free & democratic but they are allied to Iran? I've always wondered why we assume that a free & democratic Iraq automatically translates into Irag being a US ally? I mean France is free & democratic & quite a few people on both sides of the ocean would say we aren't allies or even friends.

One other thought for Iraqi War/Ocupation supporters:
If, as many conservatives claim, Al Qaeda will quickly take control in Iraq if we pull out now, what have we been doing for the last 4 years? Thousands dead, billions spent & if not for us there today, Al Qaeda takes over? 4 years ago there was no Al Qaeda in Iraq but if we leave now they take over? Isn't that an admission that the occupation has been a complete failure? Can you explain how the occupation wouldn't be considered a complete failure? 4 years & we have achieved what? How many more years will it take before we can start to say we have actually achieved something?

We can talk about history and we can probably find many examples of the Repubs doing this as well.. but this congress is here NOW and until NOW they wanted everyone to believe this issue was worth their time...everyone needs a vacation but this is nuts.

Do you honestly believe that this congress gives a D*** about the troops?

Posted by: heartburn | Apr 9, 2007 1:57:03 PM

I was talking about Congress not passing last years budget. Less than a year ago. Hardly history.

Yes I believe this Congess give a D*** about the troops. That's why they are taking a lead in getting us off the failed stategy of this administration, which continues to kill american servicemen to no good end.

It is the Bush administration that has sent us to war with no justification, a bad strategy, insufficient equipment, insufficient training, and substandard care for the wouned. Do you believe Bush honestly gives a D*** about the troops?

"Do you honestly believe that this congress gives a D*** about the troops?"

Posted by: heartburn | Apr 9, 2007 1:57:03 PM

What garbage, from a chickenhawk that enjoys watching young soldiers march into a buzzsaw.

IMPEACH! IMPEACH! IMPEACH! IMPEACH!

I think this Mr. Bush and (some) Republican congressmen are forgetting who controls Congress these days. This is not the rubberstamp do nothing Congress under J. Dennis (I'm good friends with Jack Abramoff) Hastert. I'm still wondering if fatso had any independent thoughts between his ears, or just empty space. The Republicans are in the minority in both houses. They lost most elections on Nov. 7th.
When Newton Gingerich assumed the speakership, one of the first things he said is that he would not make any compromises. I think the Democrats should do the same.
Bush denounced the Democrats for taking a spring recess, but where is he?? He's at his daddy's ranch playing cowboy.

There's always a couple GOP guys on here who want to pass the blame for their war to the Dems.

"President Stupid says,lockstep followers follow"

"Stupid is as Stupid does"

We need to Impeach the Republican leader of this lying administration and be done with it already.

Presidente Chimpy no tiene gusto de America!

El quisiera que los Estados Unidos fueran una dictadura.

Acuse el Chimp!

Ahora!

IMPEACH! IMPEACH! IMPEACH! IMPEACH!

Posted by: John E | Apr 9, 2007 2:16:04 PM

Thanks - it tool you less than 20 minutes for you to confirm my predictions of your response. I hope the therapy starts making progess soon.

Lots of "well they did it too" posts ...

But still no posts that help me understand the Beach Blanket bingo break- the ball is in the Dems court... i am trying to be fair- I want my repubs back in session too..

Maybe they got stuck in immigration coming back from Cancun??

Nacho- gracias por nada-

You are doing a large diservice to a classic movie with your posts..

I love listening to the whining MINORITY.At least Juanito had the good sense to just go away.Or did we run him off?

BAGHDAD - Tens of thousands of Shiites — a sea of women in black abayas and men waving Iraqi flags — rallied Monday to demand that U.S. forces leave their country. Some ripped apart American flags and tromped across a Stars and Stripes rug.

Cut the funding NOW.

this heartburn guy he sounds like...like....... it is...it's Juan Leo!

Juanito never left here Loon.

Impeach Chimpy McFlightsuit!

John E,

I don't usually subscribe to your paranoid nightmare scenarios, like the one about the 'window scrapers', and the woman in Casper, WY.

But I got to agree with the 'heartburn' analysis.

The Failed Commander In Chief, The failed Defense Department, The failed Joint Chiefs and the failed Generals of each of the services want company. They screwed this war up for four years and have no shame. They, each and every one, know that the "surge" will fail. They know that the Maliki Government can not meet it's bench marks. If they can get the Dems to make them take a deadline, they can blame the Dems along with the Iraqis for the U.S. establishment failure. Give Bush what he asks for.Let him take the blame he deserves. We will be leaving Iraq by next August in any case. There is an election coming. Let Bush handle it. Do not give him cover.

"Rescamblicans can blow it out from you know where. Their failures in Iraq after all these years can't just magically be pinned on Democrats.
Posted by: RomanB | Apr 9, 2007 10:58:47 AM"

Yet that is exactly what they will try to do. We can see this one coming from a long way away.

C. Morris-

I am with you on being with the Heartburn. I havent posted much lately because the endless left AND right zealots have been so shrill of late, ahh for the good old days of the Swamp, not even a few months ago, where there actually were a *couple* of civilized debates between adult Americans who would dare put open thought before Right AND Left talking points...
But I digress.

Heartburn, once you mentioned you claim this spring break for BOTH parties then I was with you. I dont think they give a D*** about anything but keeping the votes in their favor, which means both sides eating pork, throwing mud, wasting money on useless investigations. We're at war, our president is clearing brush, and Congress goes fly fishing for two weeks. Obama raises cash, McCain campaigns in a flak suit, and meanwhile our capital sits quietly, the only sound a man with a mop.

Wake up America. Feel free to harass back and forth as Dems and Repubs, but you folk on the extreme ends of BOTH parties..grow up. Be an adult American and allow for the possibility of some decent ideas from the other party. Hold BOTH parties responsible for spring break, hold BOTH in disgust for their pork, their paid influence and pandering to special interests. Its our country and my childrens future, dammit lets all grow up and leave the name calling for the 5th graders. Loony Lefters, Darth Cheneys, man.

I dont agree with a lot of Republicans posting here, but I sure dont agree with all the Dems either. Occasionally at the Swamp there was actually some good debate BACKED with documented evidence. Havent seen much of late.

But I'm hopin!
Erick

Heartburn,

What a silly post.

"lockstep liberal"? I always thought the problem with those liberal Democrats was that they couldn't get their party members to agree on anything. The fact that they passed any Iraq war funding bill in the house is actually pretty amazing.

"The best solution is to win"? Hard to argue with that...at least until you define what would constitute a "win". And darn hard to achieve if a win means that somehow we convince the religious factions to put aside centuries of conflict, share power, and govern Iraq as a peaceful democracy. How many decades do you think we should stay? Actually, Bush may be on the brink of unifying some of Iraq's factions temporarily. One Shiite leader has said his militia should avoid killing other Iraqis and target Americans. That sort of Iraqi unity just doesn't seem like a "win" to me.

"Try this at work" - If you're such a key player, they can't afford to fire you and you write your own schedule. Particularly when the customer (the army in this case), tells you that the timing is not critical and the "project manager" (Bush) is clearly just trying to make political points with management. He knew the schedule. He's the one who should be fired.

TomO

I used lockstep in terms of not seeing beyond the "I hate Bush" blinders that has driven much of the left/liberal agenda. Turns out the Senate is in a little disarray and not following Mr Reid.. (Carl Levin's back away from Mr Reid )

So "Winning" is off the table? I would like to hear the "Win" come from any of the leaders on the left- why is this such a foreign concept?

Your analogy is naive- Congress had a key task - not ownership- of the project. They didn't deliver, not because of anything the president did or did not do, they missed their deliverable because they were/ are absent..

Heartburn,

Then we agree that the president owns this fiasco. Congress has the key task of trying to minimize the damage he does by controlling the funding. The army has stated they have the resources they need for now, so the president's attempt to strongarm Congress by fabricating an emergency is recognized by most people for the lame negotiating ploy that it is.

Until you can tell me what we're going to win and how we'll know when we've won, I'm not going to get real excited about it. After all, as they say in the advertisment, we may have already won! We did verify the absence of WMDs, we did get rid of Saddam, and Iraq has had elections. Maybe it's time for us to declare victory and start heading home.

I think the "hate Bush" line is a little over- used. He's a really awful president and has made some very bad decisions and appointed some truly useless and incompetent individuals, but I have nothing against him personally. I just don't think he's capable of doing the job.

TomO

Yes - I can agree that Bush owns this war- he is the commander in chief..

So you would agree that Congress is attempting to control something outside of its control by dictating what would be how the war is managed- timelines, non binding resolutions etc.,,?

The army says it has money for now- but when we are talking at a scale of Billions of dollars- the money has to be in the pipeline or at least expected to be in the pipe line in order to make decisions... just like me - I make decsions about buying things based on my confidence in the paychecks not stopping.

The hate bush line- is definetly overused - but is the reality. It is still a big driver behind many peoples opinions about his policies. If it were'nt for his stand on the war on terror and his tax cuts - I would not be a fan of this guy- immigration, spending, his impact on the midterms are my issues with him

"So you would agree that Congress is attempting to control something outside of its control by dictating what would be how the war is managed- timelines, non binding resolutions etc.,,?"

Posted by: heartburn | Apr 10, 2007 11:50:37 AM

Can you agree that Republics are hypocrites? I don't remember hearing Republics or you complain that we shouldn't have 535 Commanders-In-Chief back in 1993.

Sen. John McCain 10/19/1993:

"What is the criteria and what should be the criteria is our immediate, orderly withdrawal from Somalia. And if we do not do that and other Americans die, other Americans are wounded, other Americans are captured because we stay too long--longer than necessary--then I would say that the responsibilities for that lie with the Congress of the United States who did not exercise their authority under the Constitution of the United States and mandate that they be brought home quickly and safely as possible. . . .

I know that this debate is going to go on this afternoon and I have a lot more to say, but the argument that somehow the United States would suffer a loss to our prestige and our viability, as far as the No. 1 superpower in the world, I think is baloney. The fact is, we won the cold war. The fact is, we won the Persian Gulf conflict. And the fact is that the United States is still the only major world superpower.

I can tell you what will erode our prestige. I can tell you what will hurt our viability as the world's superpower, and that is if we enmesh ourselves in a drawn-out situation which entails the loss of American lives, more debacles like the one we saw with the failed mission to capture Aideed's lieutenants, using American forces, and that then will be what hurts our prestige.

We suffered a terrible tragedy in Beirut, Mr. President; 240 young marines lost their lives, but we got out. Now is the time for us to get out of Somalia as rapidly and as promptly and as safely as possible.

I, along with many others, will have an amendment that says exactly that..."

http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/D?r103:24:./temp/~r103M2Udtl::

you won't hear me standing up for amy politicians ability to be honest or non hypocritical.. it comes with the job.

Did blogs exist in 1993?

But I will take your wordy example of a similiar isuee as agreement with me - to use your words - a congress full of commanders in chief..it was then- it is now.

Thanks