The Next Phase of Congress and Iraq

I think there's time for the Congress to work their way back to respectability if they challenge Bush on the war, but they have to fight this one smarter than the last time.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said each of the proposals likely would receive separate floor votes during debate on the defense bill just before the Independence Day recess. Reid acknowledged the dismay among Democratic base voters after Congress acceded last month to an Iraq spending bill without binding conditions on President Bush’s war policy.

“We raised the bar too high,” Reid told reporters. “They thought we could continue to send the bill back to the president — with 49 [guaranteed] votes, we couldn’t do that.”

The first amendment, crafted chiefly by Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.), mandates the start of a troop withdrawal from Iraq within 120 days of passage. The second amendment, crafted chiefly by Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.), would set strong troop readiness standards and ensure a minimum period between Iraq deployments.

The third amendment, a hotly sought goal of Reid’s that was crafted chiefly by Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), would block spending on a future military presence in Iraq after April 2008, save for troops on counter-terrorism and training missions.

Congress right now has their lowest poll ratings in a decade because the Democratic base is completely disillusioned by the capitulation on Iraq. Taking it in pieces may be a way to turn that around. Certainly, Reid is right that they raised the bar too high, although the real problem was buying the argument that they would be "cutting funding for the troops" instead of hitting back against that narrative hard. While Congress flounders, yet another report suggests that this is a progressive country, where large majorities agree with the progressive positions on health care, energy, the economy, and the role of government. So obviously there's some daylight here.

Unfortunately, our instant-grafitication culture demands quick action, not remembering that, historically, it takes forever for Congress to stop a war. If anything, the American people and the Congress are equally to blame for allowing the office of the President to grow so powerful. But it's always going to be that way, and it's asking too much of Congress to engage in a paradigm shift. So you have to work with the culture you have. If the people want instant action, give it to them. And make sure that everyone knows who's blocking that action. The end of the occupation of Iraq can only be done through a death by a thousand cuts, unfortunately. So each small victory has to be presented as a major victory, to play to the instant-gratification crowd. And don't forget this domestic agenda that the nation agrees with us on, too.