I’ll wait and see how Tester and Stabenow vote on the cave-in Iraq supplemental funding bill before criticizing them. But I’d like Reid to stop pretending he’s trying to stop the war right now. And I’d especially like him to stop pretending the bill he’s backing is some kind of victory for Democrats. Americans have already “spoken out” on the war. They oppose it. They elected Democrats to end it. Now the Associated Press reports Reid’s boast that the compromise legislation would be the first war-funding bill sent to Bush since the U.S. invasion of Iraq “where he won’t get a blank check.” The president is absolutely getting a blank check, Harry, and Democrats should be honest about it. As proposed, the benchmarks are toothless; they have no consequences, and Republicans are making sure Bush can waive them and continue spending when — note that I didn’t say “if” — Nouri al-Maliki’s government fails to meet them.
Sadly relevant cartoon from 2002 here. Plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose …