Tiahrt tries his hand (actually foot-in-mouth) at war comments

It was inevitable that Tiahrt would try and make a statement on the war. His only real expertise is avoiding campaign finance laws. But he just had to give this a try. I, of course, had to respond.

“REP. TODD TIAHRT: RESOLVE TO WIN IN IRAQ”
The Wichita Eagle, Dec. 11, 2005
“The Eagle editorial board has recently opined about both the debate regarding troop withdrawal in Iraq and whether America is safer since the horrific terrorist attacks in September 2001. Though they were written about separately, these two topics are unavoidably intertwined.”

Todd, how many of your family members are over there fighting? None? Oh… so you favor the rest of us sending our children over to finish the job.

“By rooting out the terrorists and making Iraq the central battleground in the global war on terrorism rather than the United States, we are indeed making America safer. However, we must support our military and allow it to finish the job it has started to ensure our country's future security.”

Do you have any idea how cowardly that makes us look? So kill lots of people in Iraq, even our own sons and daughters, as long as the rest of us feel safe and cozy.

“Tremendous progress has been made in Iraq since Saddam Hussein was removed from power. Thousands of terrorists have been killed or captured. Coalition forces have trained and equipped more than 200,000 Iraqi security forces, with more than 36 Iraqi battalions now capable of leading operations. An Iraqi constitution has been democratically approved, and basic freedoms are spreading across the country.”

We can see the progress, with constant suicide bombings and a continuing death toll on Americans. The death toll on Iraquis is so high, no one really keeps count.

“Under Saddam's rule, there was no freedom of speech or of the press. Today, Iraq has 44 commercial television stations, 72 commercial radio stations, and more than 100 independent newspapers.”

And as we recently found out, US officials were paying those papers to plant phony stories about how well things are going. Now that press freedom US style.

“Iraq is paramount in the terrorist strategy to destroy Western civilization. A July 9 letter from Ayman al-Zawahiri to Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, two senior al-Qaida members, clearly articulated the terrorists' goals.
First, the terrorists will force American and coalition troops out of Iraq. Second, they will destabilize the democratically elected Iraqi government and replace the region's moderate Muslim governments with Islamic jihadists, creating a Pan-Islamic state. Third, they will use Iraq to launch attacks against the West, including the United States. The terrorists also call on using the media to forward these goals.”

The democracy in Iraq is a sham. There are not “moderate” Arab states. That’s why we have terrorists.

“The terrorists will not stop if we leave Iraq. The terrorists will not stop until they are destroyed.”

How are we going to know when the last terrorists are dead? You don’t answer this. It leaves us with open ended permanent war.