Monday, August 14, 2006

Democrats and Iraq: Then & Now

John Edwards’s public statement calling for immediate withdrawal of 40,000 troops is another reminder of how far Democrats are running away from a war they once supported.

While this latest trend is good news for the party’s progressive base, it is still seems that the growing anti-war sentiment is largely a byproduct of political necessity, and not the resurgence of courage and principle in a party that had been unforgivably weak and compliant in the face of Bush’s foreign policy since 2002.

Why didn't more Democrats speak up sooner? It is a question that will haunt many of them as they try to run on anti-war positions in 2006 and 2008.

Here are examples of the changing tune of the Democratic party's 2004 presidential ticket.

John Edwards

"I think Iraq is the most serious and imminent threat to our country."
February 24, 2002

"We know that he [Saddam Hussein] has chemical and biological weapons today … each day he inches closer to his longtime goal of nuclear capability -- a capability that could be less than a year away."
September 12, 2002

"We should take 40,000 combat troops out now … There is no chance other countries in the world will help Iraq as long as we are an occupying force."
August 4, 2006

John Kerry

"By standing with the President [in giving Bush authority to use force against Iraq], Congress would demonstrate our Nation is united in its determination to take away that arsenal, and we are affirming the President's right and responsibility to keep the American people safe."
October 9, 2002

"We must stay in Iraq until the job is finished."
February 27, 2004

"Iraqi politicians should be told that they have until May 15 to put together an effective unity government or we will immediately withdraw our military."
April 5, 2006

Posted by Michael Corcoran at 09:26 AM

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