Democratic Leaders Take Cue From Woodward and Generals on Bush Denial

[bigtree]

Democrats Demand Republicans End State of Denial on Iraq

9/29/2006 2:44:00 PM

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=73484

Contact: Jim Manley or Rebecca Kirszner, 202-224-2939, both of the Office of Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid

WASHINGTON, Sept. 29 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Amidst a storm of revelations of the scope of Bush Administrations failures in Iraq and the damage they have done to America's security, Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid, Assistant Democratic Leader Dick Durbin, Senate Armed Services Committee Ranking Member Carl Levin and Democratic Senators Charles Schumer and Jack Reed today demanded a change. Iraq is in civil war, the reconstruction is a disaster and the Bush Administration and its Do Nothing Republican Congress are in a state of denial about the damage being done to our nation's security. It is time for a change.

On Monday, three retired top military officers who served in Iraq detailed the abject failure of the Bush Administration's strategies for the war. On Tuesday, the Bush Administration declassified three pages of a National Intelligence Estimate on terrorism which show that America's intelligence community has concluded the Bush Administration's failed policies have made terrorism worse. On Thursday, Americans learned the corruption and mismanagement in the Iraqi reconstruction left fecal matter dripping from the ceiling of what should have been a $75 million academy to train the next generation of Iraqi police. Today, advance reports of a new book by Bob Woodward make clear the Bush Administration, Donald Rumsfeld and the Republican Congress are in a state of denial about the scope of the problem.

"America must succeed in Iraq and we must win the war on terror, but this President and this Republican Congress are the wrong people for the job," said Reid. "They stubbornly refuse to change course from their failed policies -- even when it's clear their course is making America less safe. It's time for the misleading, mistakes and misconduct to come to an end. This Congress should demand the administration produce the Iraq NIE, get the truth about what's happening on the ground and implement new policies that will chart a new direction in Iraq and refocus our country in the war on terror. It is time for a new direction."

Whether ignoring military requests for more troops in Iraq and Afghanistan or hiding the true state of the civil war in Iraq, Bush Republicans are committed to a "stay the course" strategy in Iraq that is endangering the security of America and undermining success in the war on terror. The time for tough talk is over. With Iraq in civil war and Afghanistan headed into chaos, the time has come for tough and smart policies to ensure the American people have the real security they deserve. Democrats are fighting to take America in a new direction and have offered the Real Security Act, comprehensive national security legislation to change course in Iraq, secure America and finally win the war on terror.

http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=73484

[Parisle]

1. Now, It's Denial With A Purpose

---- Bush and Cheney weren't the only ones who knew they were lying to get the war going,.. and the corporate sub-contractor rip-off has touched even more national figures. They are playing to save their skins from punishable offenses ranging from malfeasance, to violation of the public trust,.. to treason.

[razors edge]

2. how can we require all representatives

to avail themselves of public information, they obviously do not wish to avail themselves to any secret information they alone are entitled to, or any they are not forced through embarrassment to acknowledge.

I would ask whats wrong with this picture but all paintings from our leadership look like a collection of warhol rejects.

[madfloridian]

3. Howard Dean talked about Woodward's book on CNN today.

"DEAN: Well, I think certainly a good thing to bring President Karzai and President Musharraf together. But it's a bad thing that we don't have enough troops in Afghanistan to do the job that needs to be done.

And, as Bob Woodward pointed out in his book that just came out this week, apparently the commanders in Iraq asked for more troops a long time ago and the president ignored them. You can't fight a war if you ignore the military. And the president has never listened to the military.

Right from the beginning the military said you can't do this in Iraq without the proper number of troops, and we need more. They ignored it. And one general, General Shinseki, was essentially fired for saying it.

This administration has built our defense policy on things that are not true. And if you don't care what the facts are you can't run the defense policy."

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0609/29/cnr.02.html