September 04, 2007
While You Were In Nantucket...
Welcome back, Beltway! Summer in the swamp is officially over, and the 2008 campaign season is, well, still under way, it having gone official months ago. It's less than 15 months until Election Day, a little longer than that before President Bush U-Hauls himself back to Texas. There's a lot of work ahead and a fast-diminishing amount of time to get it done. Let's take a quick look at what you missed over the long Labor Day weekend, and what to watch for in the weeks ahead.
Don't be gay, or get out of the way. The Republican Party dispensed with problem senator Larry Craig like so much used Kleenex. On Saturday, the Idaho legislator announced he would step down on Sept. 30. Craig conceded defeat just days after vehemently denying he had solicited sex in a men's bathroom and that he was gay.
The GOP knows that its brand is in trouble, and the last thing it needs is another Mark Foley-type scandal -- lack of evidence notwithstanding. The ever-judicious Arlen Specter is one of the few, if not only, fellow Republicans to point out that there's no proof beyond anonymous accounts that Craig's wide-stance toe-tapping was definitely a come-hither invite to the undercover officer in the stall next door.
The rest of Craig's fellow Republicans never bothered to get his version of events. There's little doubt this has less to do with the crime than with alleged homosexuality. Republican David Vitter has all but admitted to soliciting prostitutes. Democrat Patrick Kennedy pleaded guilty to driving under the influence -- something a little more serious and actually dangerous than "disorderly conduct" -- and he was welcomed back to the fold with sympathy. Former New Jersey Governor Jim McGreevey was rather politic about it in this op-ed, but he's not the only gay American to suspect Craig was abandoned by the GOP for maybe, possibly being gay.
Turning the corner on conventional wisdom. Many of you were out by the barbecue when the president addressed U.S. troops in Anbar yesterday, but there was one telling moment in that speech (fast-forward to 5:45). "I want to tell you this about the decision -- about my decision about troop levels. Those decisions will be based on a calm assessment by our military commanders on the conditions on the ground -- not a nervous reaction by Washington politicians to poll results in the media," Bush said. The troops, respectfully quiet for the bulk of his speech, erupted with the signature "Hoo-ah!" in response.
Anyone who's talked to soldiers serving in Iraq, and this Gater has, knows that they're upset about the longer deployment schedules and repeat tours. One soldier, serving with the 2nd Brigade of the 101st Airborne Division, said of his upcoming third deployment to Iraq, simply, "It sucks." Quite a few of them, as seen in a recent, rare op-ed (subscription), believe they are merely stoppers in a dam that's about to break. But they don't base their assessments on what the Washington Post or Harry Reid have to say about the war. Sorry, pundits -- the troops this Gater talks to are far too busy fighting insurgents, training Iraqis and just trying to stay alive to pay attention to anything you have to say about this war.
That said, the mixed picture in Iraq will probably temper calls for a withdrawal date or timeline. Which is just as well, because this president has made it clear that the war will be run on his terms, not Congress'. There are some hopeful headlines today, but pay close attention: Bush said that troops could be drawn down if Iraq reached a certain level of stability. That's happened in Anbar province, but mostly because there are so few Shiites there. Baghdad continues to be wracked by violence, Iranians are lobbing missiles at Kurds in the north and southern Iraq seems to be reverting to its former lawless state in the wake of British troop reductions. Stability in those regions still remains a far-off idea.
So long, Senator Warner. This being Washington, the first thing talking heads seized on after Republican Sen. John Warner's retirement announcement on Friday was the very real possibility the state would turn blue upon his departure. Let's hope that the Senator from Central Casting gets a proper farewell amid the election craziness that's about to descend in full force. Polls show Americans think Congress is the pits. But one needn't be a partisan to recognize that Warner has one of the most distinguished records in the Senate. CQPolitics' Craig Crawford writes that the senator's old-school manner of "shunn[ing] the politics of personal destruction and partisan warfare" is in short supply on the Hill. Something to keep in mind during the coming season of Macaca Moments and assorted other mayhem.
Posted at 1:11 PM
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Bush Administration, Campaigns, Congress, Iraq, Larry Craig, Middle East, President Bush, Senate
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