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Pardon me for being so blunt, but this is the answer Democrats need when the "cut and run" phrase comes up, as it does daily. This was suggested by a writer at Daily Kos, so I am just furthering its usefulness here:
Cut the crap and tell us you do NOT plan to keep permanent military bases in Iraq.
No one pushes on this issue, not the Democrats in Congress or the cowardly members of the press. Yet, the American people, when asked, are not in favor of making Iraq a U.S. colony. Both houses of Congress recently passed separate amendments saying that we will not fund permanent bases in Iraq. That bill went to the Congressional Conference Committee to sort out differences. There were no differences on that amendment, yet, contrary to established rules, it was pulled, killed, without consultation with the authors, without discussion, except on a couple of blogs and in one article in the SF Chronicle.
When asked about permanent bases, administrative spokespersons invariably claim they have no plans to establish them. But they have already been established, so that question can be weaseled around, like crossing your fingers behind your back, which I'm sure Bush does when signing his now infamous signing statements. So the question needs to be turned into a statement to catch the lie: Tell us that you will not keep permanent bases in Iraq, under any circumstances. And then watch the weaseling.
Until someone explains how and why these amendments were quashed, "cut and run" is irrelevant. Well, it's irrelevant, anyway. Look who's saying it. Is Senator Frist encouraging his two service-age sons to enlist?
Cut the Crap.
