Reply #36: Pomeroy to Howard Dean:Shut up

[Matthewhoye]

http://www.bismarcktribune.com/articles/2005/12/09/news/state/106702.prt



Pomeroy to Howard Dean:Shut up

By MARY CLARE JALONICK
Associated Press Writer
WASHINGTON - North Dakota Rep. Earl Pomeroy is accusing Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean of overstepping his bounds, saying the former presidential candidate should not give up on the war in Iraq.

On Monday, Dean likened the war in Iraq to Vietnam and said, "The idea that the United States is going to win the war in Iraq is just plain wrong."

"My words to Howard Dean are simple - shut up," Pomeroy told WDAY Radio in North Dakota on Thursday.

Pomeroy later told the Associated Press that he is tired "of the overblown rhetoric on both sides."

"We have young men and women with their lives on the line," he added. "The debate has fallen far short of what they deserve."

Pomeroy said Dean wasn't representing Democrats like him when he discussed the war.

"He is not hired to make major policy announcements on behalf of all the Democrats," Pomeroy said. "As our party chairman I believe he needs to focus on the nuts and bolts of winning elections."

Dean backtracked on his statements somewhat Thursday, saying his assertion that the United States cannot win the war was reported "a little out of context," and that Democrats believe a new U.S. strategy is needed to succeed there.

A spokesman for the Democratic National Committee declined to comment on Pomeroy's remarks.

Pomeroy said he also is frustrated with Republicans who have politicized the war and a recent House debate on Iraq that became heated and angry. During that debate, Ohio Republican Rep. Jean Schmidt implied that Democratic Rep. John Murtha, D-Pa., was a "coward" because he called for troops to pull out of Iraq. Schmidt later said her remark about Murtha was a mistake.

"I thought the debate on the House floor was shameful," Pomeroy said. "It was loud, strident and partisan."

Pomeroy, who has visited Iraq three times, said he believes the United States must stay in the country for now to achieve progress on national security, the creation of a stable government and the establishment of a functioning economy.

In 2002, Pomeroy joined 215 Republicans and 80 other Democrats in voting to authorize force in Iraq.