Bruin Dems Don't Take Summers Off

Since Aria apparently has nothing left to say, I'm going to pick up where he left off. That's right, this blog is not defunct. To quote Jay-Z, we're "back up in this b!%ch like whoa."

Inspired by Senate Democrats, I decided to write a late night post about their recent all-nighter.

Since it was all just political theater, I'm going to write about it as such. In terms of putting the spotlight on Republican Senators' opposition to changing course in Iraq, I give it two thumbs up. Nonetheless, in spite of the Senate actually going to the matresses, it was no Godfather.

The script Congressional Democrats are reading from is missing something: a Plan B. While I certainly concur that it's time for the United States to pull out of Iraq, the willingness of many of my fellow liberals to turn a blind-eye to the potentially devestating consequences of a hasty withdrawal is haunting.

Sure, real power over foreign policy lays in the executive branch, but Congressional Democrats need to take control of the debate by showing some thoughtfulness.

Instead, Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Petaluma) fed this thoughtless comment to the LA Times: "I believe, if we leave, the region will pull together. It's important to them that Iraq stabilize." Woolsey's laughable prediction is comparable to Paul Wolfowitz's forecast that Iraqis would welcome the United States to their country with roses.

U.S. withdrawal from Iraq is not comedy. The Bush Administration has shown America what happens when decision makers fail to plan adequately in regards to Iraq. In other words, Democrats should not only pressure the president on when to withdraw troops, but also how to withdraw troops.

Maybe it really is hopeless. Maybe Rep. David Obey (D-Wisconsin) is right. "There will be no good outcome. Sometimes when you make a horrendous mistake, everybody pays the consequences. And that's what we all are doing now."

But does the outcome have to be as horrendous as potentially genocidal ethnic violence?