Iraq

Sen Carl Levin said yesterday morning on Fox News that the Democrat's goal is to put pressure on the Iraqis to take over in the defense of their country. He said the Iraqis need to understand that the US's commitment is not open ended.

An excellent example of Democratic argument. They take a self evident point, rip it out of its context and blow it way out of proportion. Of course we need to make it plain that the Iraqis need to take over the defense of their own country. Does Levin really believe that the Bush administration and the Iraqis have not discussed that issue in great detail? Or that the Iraqis are so dumb that they don't know that? Or that they want the US to maintain its military presence forever? The Iraqis are hardly of the same sensibility as some of Levin's welfare recipients who are quite willing to stay on the US dole forever.

Once that obvious point is made however it is important to realize that there are other equally as important considerations. For instance there is the important goal of helping and protecting this new democracy as it attempts to mature into a stable society - under extremely difficult circumstances. Pushing the Iraqis to take over their own defense and helping them in that defense are in obvious tension; to overdo one is to fail at the other.

And this is where context is so important. To achieve both these goals is obviously a highly nuanced and subtle endeavor and one particularly unsuited to the hammer blow of Congressional resolutions and timetables. Legislative activity by its nature can only make demands, it cannot negotiate, facilitate, or mediate on the ground in Iraq. This is quintessentially executive activity and must be left to the executive branch. Only the President and his agents can know how much pressure can be put on the Iraqis to pick up their own security responsibilities. Only the President can both pressure and support the Iraqis at the same time.

Of course I say all of this as if Levin is seeking a constructive dialogue. He is not, nor are any of the Democrats. They simply want to obfuscate every issue and score political points.