Still Needs To Be "Schoen" The Door

And as we discuss the Petraeus/Crocker testimony once more from last week, why, who should appear wagging his finger at those naughty, non-conciliatory Dems again but none other than Doug Schoen.

Schoen and his ilk are Exhibit A when it comes to evidence of Democratic legislative palsy about not just setting Iraq funding to a withdrawal timeline, but caving on FISA legislation (and I would add keeping impeachment “off the table” also, per Nancy Pelosi). And of course, I’m sure Schoen was just tickled to see Dems totally throw Moveon under the bus and remain silent in the face of bullying from Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, Duncan Hunter, John Cornyn, and other congressional Repugs during testimony on the war (the subject of Schoen’s latest nonsense here).

This excerpt is typical...

But the Democratic Party is also vulnerable on Iraq, where the lead over the Republicans dropped 10 percent in August to a narrow four percent margin. Rather than harp on the withdrawal, the Democrats should continue to strike a bipartisan tone and refocus the debate to other international and domestic issues. This will help them carry the day in November 2008.

Assuming he really believes this, it's frightening to consider the universe Schoen must live in.

There is no other issue that takes precedence over the war. Period.

And speaking of funding for Iraq, Schoen treated us to this piece of literary cowardice last April that appeared in the Boston Globe, in particular the following…

This time, if Democrats insist on their policy and public sentiment rallies behind them, the GOP collapse on national security issues will be complete.

Yeah, well, that sounds good, but then he spends a few paragraphs on his “but on the other hand” vacillating that is his trademark.

He then goes on to give an example of Clinton standing up to congressional Repugs in 1995 over what loomed as a government shut down over the budget, and this was aided by polling that indicated that the voters would blame the Repugs instead of Clinton (which is what happened).

However, a few paragraphs later, Schoen gave us this (again, this article was written last April)…

Democrats should not be misled by polls showing that most Americans support the idea of cutting off funding for the war unless benchmarks of success are reached. Of course they do, in the abstract. But Bush's counterargument -- that Democrats are prepared to undermine troops in the field -- will be a powerful one, in part because it is far more concrete than Democrats' complex, poll-tested plan.

So…the Dems should have caved because Dubya’s “powerful argument” would win out over a plan that had been approved by the vast majority of this country according to polling data?

I think the reason why our congressional “leadership” can’t get its collective act together is that they’ve been listening to people like Schoen preach conciliation forever (or, as the great Jim Hightower said in a quote from a HuffPo commenter, “there ain't nothin' in the middle of the road 'cept yellow lines and dead armadillos”).

We know that the majority of this country hates Bush and hates the war, and that should be the starting point for any discussion on Iraq. And when people like Schoen do their “chicken little” acts like this, part of the problem is that they end up conferring a legitimacy on Dubya that he will never deserve.

Oh, and by the way, did I note that Schoen is paid by Faux TV (and as you can imagine, he’s no fan of Moveon…the feeling is quite mutual, I’m sure).

Even more than the most rabid Repugs, I will forever detest cowardly Dems like Schoen who, regardless of the cost, seek to appease Repugs who want nothing for Dems except their extinction.

And I’m definitely not talking “in the abstract.”