Sen. Intel Chair Roberts (R-Kan) breaks ranks, questions democracy in Iraq

[scottxyz]

Iraqi insurgents are likely to continue attacks after elections, Senate Intelligence Committee Chairman Pat Roberts (R-Kansas) said Friday. He also questioned whether American intervention can create democracy there.

"I don't think you can lay down democracy in a country in rocky soil like so much Astroturf," Roberts said.

"If we are not successful, what kind of message does that send to the insurgents? What kind of message does that send to al-Qaida?"

http://www.kctv5.com/Global/story.asp?S=2873380

Republicans are all about follow-the-leader and staying-on-message - so when a senior Republican breaks ranks like this, it means they're really crumbling.

[rodeodance]

1. they are held together with superglue. Roberts is just a crumb.

[merbex]

2. I t would be nice if he were responding to pressure

from his constituents - namely that this is a QUAGMIRE and we need to get out

[Lizzie Borden]

3. Nope. I think this indicates...

a break in the repulican ranks which could be quite serious for Bush. It's been a long time coming but I don't think these Senators want to be caught on the losing side, and the fact that they can see it, and are jumping ship, is significant.}(

[burn the bush]

4. we should keep track of the ship jumpers to include them in email

campaigns.

[scottxyz]

9. Good idea - track the ship jumpers

Josh Marshall at www.talkingpointsmemo.com is doing something similar for the Social Security phase-out - keeping track of the "Faint-hearted Faction" (Congresspeople who haven't come out against the phase-out) and the "Conscience Caucus" (Congresspeople who have stated that they OPPOSE the phase-out).

This kind of support is probably very important to encouraging our representatives to, uh... represent us. (For example, I think a lot of Barbara Boxer's courage these days is coming from the support she's getting from bloggers and other people on the web.)

It would be really good to have a widely-read and respected blog hammering away each day at the Congresspeople who continue to support the ongoing killing our troops, and congratulating the Congresspeople who are starting to call for an exit strategy.

[atommom]

5. This is significant ... Roberts has always been a "good conservative."

So I'm glad to hear him voicing doubts.

[atommom]

6. delete-dupe

[biscotti]

7. Well what do you know

He does still have some integrity. I had given up on him after the 9- 11 senate hearings.

[ktowntennesseedem]

8. "Stay the course" has been their only plan from the beginning.

They are so determined to succeed that they can't phathom having to alter their course when things don't go as planned or on schedule. Any deviation from the script, no matter how minor, is an admission of an error, something they just can't do. They never planned for any alternate scenarios, let alone plan for possible failure; that would be a sign of weakness and show lack of determination. So they keep on "staying the course" even when we are so off course we can't remember what the course was to begin with, all because they can't think of anything else to do.

It will be interesting to see Roberts' fate in the coming weeks and months, as the administraion has to deal yet again with one of their own who has betrayed them with independent thinking that tackles tough questions * & Co. are too afraid or stupid to ask.