Wis. Dem. Rep. Dave Obey: "The American public sent [a signal] to this town in the last election. They wanted a change in Iraqi policy..."
And they got it. It's called the Petraeus Doctrine. And it's a policy of victory, not retreat and defeat.
***
Md. Dem. Sen. Ben Cardin: "I think the new Iraq bill is an opportunity for us to try to change the mission, and I hope that we take advantage of it. Whether we’ll succeed is unlikely — because we don’t have the votes to override a veto, and perhaps we might not even have 60 votes to move it in the Senate — but I think we have to try."
In other words, "We're so committed to defeat, we're willing to accept defeat in trying to legislate defeat."
***
"Some of them [Democratic lawmakers] have told us privately that their leaders botched a chance earlier this year — before the surge appeared to have some success — to work with Republicans on modest restrictions on the war."
An admission we're winning, which, for Reid, Pelosi and Murtha, is a bad thing.
Informed the Iraq civil war is dead, Reid exclaimed, "long live the Iraq civil war."
***
House Democratic Leader Steny Hoyer: "We will and we must pay for whatever cost to protect the American people. But tragically, unfortunately, incredibly, the war is not making us safer."
The hundreds of jihadis who've blown themselves up in Iraq or been killed or captured by US and Iraqi forces? Not important.
