Democrats are flexing political muscles, forcing the President’s hand

Steady forward progress is being made by the Democrats in Congress with their
war spending plan. Some Republicans in Congress are starting to see the political light and are easing up on the firmness of their commitment to “No Artificial Timelines”. Bush is forced to threaten a veto of the bill if it reaches his desk with pullout language, and the steady intensity of his rhetoric dictates that he pretty much has to follow through with the threat. Instead of doing what he promised back in late November, Bush is not compromising and working with the Democratic Congress. Incidentally neither is Pelosi and her gang. However it is the Democrats who have done the work to get the plan to Bush. The President will no doubt try to place the blame on the Democrats if a spending bill is not passed in time for the troops, and the Democrats will do likewise.
The sticking point for Republicans is that there is a timeline and pullout date. The rhetoric from the Right (note John McCain's reference to Zarqawi, who is DEAD!) is designed to shame and scare the country into believing that we must stay and continue the fight and that setting a timeline advertises to the Enemy what are plans are. The truth about the Democratic Bill is that while it does set a timeline and a pullout date, these are NON-BINDING!(this link is a must read) and the criteria for the decision is left up to the executive branch. Also, Republicans claim that this is micromanaging the war and tying the hands of the troops and generals who are on the ground. Actually what it does is gives the first clear strategy of the war and let’s the Iraqi government know that we won’t be around to police their Civil War forever.
The argument is framed so that Iraq is the central front in the War On Terror. While it is true that we are fighting some elements of Al-Qaeda in Iraq, the struggle is not against America so much as it is a fight for control of this very unstable nation. Saddam ruled with an iron fist and suppressed this simmering ideological struggle between Sunni and Shiite. When Bush brashly and shortsightedly removed Saddam, he removed the lid and got sprayed in the face with the firestorm that ensued. If we really want to fight the War on Terror, we will go after the international terrorists in Southeast Asia, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, Egypt and North Africa. Personally, I am fully opposed to the false War on Terror that has been driven into our psyche by the fear mongering of this Administration, however for the sake of the political debate, I am taking a political position on where we are now.
For a point by point rebuttal of some of the Right’s main arguments against pulling out of Iraq, retired Lt. General William Odom wrote a concise article on why we should get the hell out and soon.