Redstate

In the hopes that "cut and run" will smell as sweet by another name.

By AcademicElephant Posted in Democrats — Comments (6) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »

Democratic House leadership is poised to unveil their "new" plan for Iraq to their caucus today. On the one hand, I'm encouraged that they've actually bothered to craft a plan of their own. But on the other, this "plan" is suspiciously like all their other suggestions, just watered down and qualified. The basic premise is withdrawing the troops--either by the end of 2007 or by fall 2008. You see there's a schedule, a timetable if you will, that has not yet been revealed in its full specifics, but that will set benchmarks that the Iraqi government must meet if they wish to have an American military presence in their country. If the Iraqis adhere to the rules laid out by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), the troops will start coming home in spring 2008 with the pull-out of combat troops complete by October. If the Iraqis misbehave, then there will be a congressionally-mandated precipitous withdrawal by December 2007. And the bill will require the Department of Defense to adhere to certain standards of training, equipping and rotating the troops, but there is a "waiver" attached that allows the President to circumvent these restrictions--if he explains himself to Ms. Pelosi's satisfaction. She admits this provision is designed not so much to shape policy as it is to "embarrass" Mr. Bush into following her rules (mental flash to a crowded restaurant and a misbehaving child. His mother whispers, "Stop that, George, you're embarrassing me.")

In addition, Democrats have added money for the war in Afghanistan and for veterans' care, and, for kicks and giggles, also appended a fresh new entitlement in the form of a new health-care initiative for low-income children, the relevance of which to this bill eludes me. Oh, and there's more money for Katrina relief too.

Read on...

All in all, this bill appears to be an attempt to take "cut and run" and call it by another name in an effort to attract the moderate democrats who were uncomfortable with Jack Murtha's (D-PA) more forthright "slow bleed" strategy. At least Mr. Murtha had the honesty to call his "plan" by its proper name. Ms. Pelosi has gone through a rather extraordinary series of contortions to make this bill palatable to Democrats who worry that their actions will actually have ramifications beyond the next election cycle. But she then faces another dilemma, as more radical anti-war democrats are hostile to a bill that does not take immediate action to end the war. While this group is still in "negotiations" with Ms. Pelosi, no deal has been struck.

It will be an interesting morning for the new congressional majority and its leader. Will Ms. Pelosi emerge triumphant from this caucus meeting, her version of "cut and run" intact and set to pass the House next week? Or will she be derailed by a combination of her party's moderates and extremists, neither of whom is satisfied by her gyrations? She's called a press conference for later today, so I guess we'll know soon enough.