Another Fight They'll Lose

That's essentially what this Washington Times article is about. Here's what's at issue:
Republican leaders in Congress said yesterday that they will draft legislation to grant the Bush administration the authority to try prisoner at Guantanamo Bay before a military tribunal, a move that sets up a contentious debate between Republicans and Democrats on a hot-potato national-security issue just four months before midterm elections.
Here's what Republicans are proposing:
"Following the July Fourth recess, I will introduce legislation, in consultation with the administration and my colleagues, that authorizes military commissions and appropriate due-process procedures for trials of terrorist combatants," Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist said yesterday after the court's decision.
Here's the Democrats' non-plan:
Democrats, meanwhile, staked out territory on the other side of the issue. Sen. Patrick J. Leahy, (D-VT), and ranking minority member of the Judiciary Committee, said the administration's handling of the Guantanamo detainees had eroded its ability to fight a vigorous war on terror. "For five years, the Bush-Cheney administration has violated fundamental American values, tarnished our standing in the world and hindered the partnerships we need with our allies," he said. "This arrogance and incompetence have delayed and weakened the handling of the war on terror, not because of any coherent strategic view it had, but because of its stubborn unilateralism and dangerous theory of unfettered power."
It seems to me that this decision should trigger a no-brainer solution: Congress should pass a law that grants the President the proper authority. That's precisely what Bill Frist and Lindsey Graham intend to do.

Furthermore, I'd laugh at Sen. Leahy's statement that "This arrogance and incompetence have delayed and weakened the handling of the war on terror..." Ask Zarqawi if "this arrogance" has weakened the handling of the GWOT. That is, if they can raise him at their next seance.

If Democrats want to fight Frist's and Graham's legislation, then expect them to lose more seats this November. That's a fight they can't win.



Posted Thursday, June 29, 2006 11:39 PM

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