White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said at a Sept. 26 press briefing that Americans should “watch what they say.”
Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) and other politicians now questioning the progress and future of America’s war on terrorism must have forgotten that bit of advice.
Daschle ruffled some Republican feathers last week when he publicly supported Sen. Robert Byrd (D-W. Va.) and other Democrats who, the day before, raised questions about the war’s cost and direction.
“There may be support, in general, for the president’s request for defense, but somebody has got to ask tough questions,” Daschle said. “And I don’t think the success has been overstated, but the continued success, I think, is still somewhat in doubt.”
Without Mohammad Omar, Osama bin Laden, and other key al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders in custody or dead, Daschle said “the jury is still out about future success.”
That honest and needed view of the war was met harshly by Republicans who refuse to show even the slightest concern or doubt in President Bush’s campaign against terror.
Senate Minority Leader Trent Lott (R-Miss.) said, “How dare Senator Daschle criticize President Bush while we are fighting the war on terrorism?”
Other Republican politicians backed Lott’s stance, such as Majority Whip Tom DeLay (R-Texas.) calling Daschle’s remarks “disgusting.” Rep. Thomas Davis III (R-Va.) said Daschle’s “divisive comments have the effect of giving aid and comfort to our enemies by allowing them to exploit division in our country.”
It’s surprising they didn’t pull out President Abraham Lincoln’s famous Civil War quote, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”
“United we stand” can continue and be just as true as it was a few months ago even when people start questioning the war’s future.
If there’s ever a time to look critically at government policies, it’s during a time of war. Lives, foreign relations, U.S. money and resources are all at stake. Opposing views and critical questions are needed to make sure the country is doing the right things and has its military in the right places.
Lott had it partly right when he said Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” that Bush “needs us to work with him, and help him.” But he had to add, “and any sign that we are losing that unity, or crack in that support, will be, I think, used against us overseas.”
Properly working with the president and helping him with the war on terrorism hopefully would include comments of doubt or ideas differing from the Bush administration’s agenda.
In any problem-solving process, a variety of ideas and perspectives are needed to reach the best solution. Otherwise, it’s a dictatorship whose people following along with it are blinded by the fear of being seen as “unpatriotic” or “aiding the terrorists,” as we’ve heard often.
Here are some starter questions Daschle posed on “Meet the Press”: “How do you define success? How do you ensure that what it is we’re doing is ultimately going to lead to success? What will phase-two require and how many troops are going to be there? Will our allies be involved? How do we define success in the out years? How much is it going to cost? How long will they stay?”
These are questions that should be dealt with and answered so this country stays on the proper, democratic path towards making correct decisions now and after this war is declared over.
