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Edited on Fri May-25-07 04:44 PM by OPERATIONMINDCRIME
Though there is no part of me dramatic enough to ever break to the point of claiming I'm now voting independent, green etc, and though I knew in time my anger would pass and I would support the Dems as I always have, I still have been pretty pissed internally these last few days at this bill/vote and I think I finally got a true handle as to why. I'm aware that many of you are angry for your own reasons and the following may likely not apply, but this is my take on my own personal emotions on the matter.
Why? Cause this was our chance to finally stand up firmly to the Administration and show we have the guts to square off in the ring. We looked great in round one, we laid down in round two. Problem is, it was a 10 round match.
See, I wanted this fight. I needed this fight. I wanted so badly to see the Dems send bill after bill to his desk for him to veto childishly. I wanted the battle. I wanted the headlines. I wanted the drama. I was all geared up for it and expected it to go on for weeks. It didn't. It was as anti-climactic as it could be.
Now just to lay my cards on the table a bit, I was never for a second under the illusion that we were going to stop the funding for the war. Not for a second did I think we were going to truly get our way. I knew that no matter what, in the end, we would send a bill with funding that probably wouldn't do a heck of a lot to slow or stop the war. But I also knew that based on projections we had weeks until the current funding would get to a point of affecting our troops. That gives us our own timeline in which to play the political game. Why did we cave so early? Why did we not stand and fight through each round, veto after veto, bill after bill? This is the part that pisses me off more than anything.
I guess what I had in my head, after we sent the first bill his way, was that we would continue to hold our ground and fight hard for our terms, each time knowing it would receive a veto but not caring. Each time we'd turn around and send something similar again, showing the public that we are capable to lead and hear their calls for a change of course to this war, but that we won't put our troops in harms way to do so because though we were providing terms, we were providing funding as well.
I had this vision in my head that we would go through that circular process holding firm to our convictions and stance, until the very last possible slate of time was left that would need to be used for putting a bill through that was not to be vetoed.
I figured right after he vetoed the second to last bill, right before the last possible opportunity we'd have to send another one in a late hour congress session dash, that the Dems would hold a press conference and just quite simply say the following:
"We have made it clear to the President time and time again that it is time for accountability with the war. We have made it clear that there needs to be oversight and benchmarks in order for that to happen. We have done everything we could as your majority in congress to push a bill through that protects our troops and manages the Iraq war in the ways best for them and our country, while holding firm to the expectations you, the public, had for us on election day. But as a majority we can only do so much. Unfortunately, due to a President who refuses to see what the overwhelming majority of this country can see, and due to republican enablers in Congress who dare not go against him, we have been blocked at every corner from putting through this monumentally important bill due to his vetoes and the lack of enough members from his side willing to help us override that veto. We said from the start that we would not put our troops at risk and that they would be funded. We held out as long as we could. We never thought that the President would truly put the lives and well being of our troops at risk for sake of his own pride, however we now are dismayed to have to accept that he would; based on this veto we just witnessed. Since he would rather risk our troops in the field than sign a bill that the overwhelming majority of this country supports, we are left with no choice but to send the following bill to his desk. If we didn't, our troops would suffer. He may put our troops at risk for politics and pride but we will not. We will still do whatever we can from here to make sure that this war doesn't continue on the same path it has. God bless our troops and God bless America".
That's what I wanted to see happen. That's what I thought could happen. That's how I think we could've humiliated the administration while showing the strength we needed to show.
Unfortunately, this didn't even come close to occurring. It was a ten round fight. Why did we lay down in round 2 when we knew we had the fight in us to last through round 10?
At the end of the day, that's what I'm pissed about. We came off typically weak when we could've been refreshingly strong. Maybe next time; I guess.
But like I said last night, I know in a few days time my anger will fade. At the end of the day these are still my Dems. But for now, I still can't help but fixate a bit on the if-onlys and feelings of "wait, for real? That was it?".
But alas, I'll get over it. Sighhhhhhh
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