Theater

In his latest article, Cal Thomas takes a look at the Senate Shut down and finds that the Democrats are ridiculous. But then that's pretty predictable. He also urges Congress not to pull the plug on this war too early; after all we have to give President Bush's new strategy a chance to succeed.

Since the American Revolution, there have always been naysayers, doubters, fellow travelers and willing or duped enablers of America's enemies. There have been politicians, academics, clergy and journalists who claimed that U.S. foreign policy, whether promoted by a Democratic or Republican president, was the wrong policy and a different one should be tried.

. . . There will be plenty of time for debate in September when the report on the effectiveness of the surge comes from Gen. David Petraeus. Do Democrats fear it will be a positive report and so they are doing their best to undermine it now? Has our politics become so cynical that some would prefer defeat for political advantage than victory because it might aid the "other side," meaning Republicans?

It is to laugh. Congress feels a need to reign in the Bush war machine, and they feel that need because that seems to be what the American People want. President Bush has made it clear that he will oppose any move towards ending the war; so Reid put on a little show, reminding the American people who wants the violence in Iraq to continue and who wants it to end. It was theater; the ending was known before the event started. But it was a positive theatre in that it reminded the American people this congress (the Democratic part, anyway), has heard their complaints.