Let Dick Cheney rattle his saber on Iran. Harry Reid has just drawn his own saber and a line in the sand regarding a potential military intervention against Iran:
Much has been made about President Bush’s recent saber rattling toward Iran. This morning, I’d like to be clear: The President does not have the authority to launch military action in Iran without first seeking Congressional authorization- -the current use of force resolution for Iraq does not give him such authorization.
Let there be no doubt, the Iranian regime poses one of the great threats of the new century, but the Iranian people – 2/3rds of which are under the age of 30 – – present a great opportunity for progress. Regrettably, this Administration has no strategy for connecting with this generation of potential reformers.
We’ve been waiting six years for this. For a true voice of legislative opposition to the adventurist military strategy propounded by the Bush Administration. The loyal Opposition didn’t oppose. It merely acquiesced. Now, I hope the tables have turned. This is Harry Reid’s shot across Bush’s bow. His “we won’t go there” statement.
Knowing well the truculence of this president and his obliviousness to checks on executive power, the Bushites will see Reid’s statement as an obstacle to go around or run over rather than as a firm Stop sign. That’s unfortunate. But at least Reid has stopped pussy footing around and laid his cards on the table. From here on, if Bush wishes to pursue a war strategy he will do so with full knowledge that a Congressional majority in both Houses will oppose him.
Of course, given the milquetoast nature of past opposition to Bush policy, we’d be right to question how strong such Democratic opposition will remain, especially if put to the test by a bellicose war policy on Bush’s part. But whatever the future holds, Bush will not have a cakewalk or carte blanche to bomb Iran back to the Stone Age as he has had, for all practical purposes, in Iraq.
Senator Jay Rockefeller, new chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee shares Reid’s doubts about the soundness of U.S. policy toward Iran:
“I don’t think that policy makers in this administration particularly understand Iran,” he said.
The comments of Mr. Rockefeller reflect the mounting concerns being voiced by other influential Democrats, including the Senate majority leader, Harry Reid of Nevada, and Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware, about the Bush administration’s approach to Iran. The Democrats have warned that the administration is moving toward a confrontation with Iran when the United States has neither the military resources nor the support among American allies and members of Congress to carry out such a move.
Because Mr. Rockefeller is one of a handful of lawmakers with access to the most classified intelligence about the threat from Iran, his views carry particular weight. He has also historically been more tempered in his criticism of the White House on national security issues than some of his Democratic colleagues.
Mr. Rockefeller was biting in his criticism of how President Bush has dealt with the threat of Islamic radicalism since the Sept. 11 attacks, saying he believed that the campaign against international terrorism was “still a mystery” to the president.
“I don’t think he understands the world,” Mr. Rockefeller said. “I don’t think he’s particularly curious about the world. I don’t think he reads like he says he does.”
Hat tip to The Caucus.
Well that’s good news about Rep. Reid and Senators Rockefeller and Biden who are not buying into this inflated threat re. Iran. Also encouraging is that a few Republican senators share their concern; I featured a short vid of comments by Republican senator Ron Paul expressing his concern that a Gulf of Tonkin incident might turn things around and give BushCo the green light to attack Iran. I acknowledge that alarmism can be a problem in itself, but I also take seriously the possibility that all this might be more than just sabre-rattling, which in any case, is still incredibly dangerous and ill-considered policy.
Rockefeller’s observation about Bush’s inappropriate lack of worldly knowledge or even curiosity seems to incredibly extend to his Secretary of State Rice, at least with regard to the Middle East, according to an ex-staffer.
Aside from a Gulf of Tonkin type incident to legitimize these trigger-happy chappies, I’m also concerned that the constitutionally-enshrined Congressional breaks on executive folly are possibly being eroded, with the unilateral ‘surge’ in Iraq not receiving the requisite (additional) Congressional) approval — violating, according to at least one academic, the constitutional War Powers clause.
I think Ron Paul is a member of the House of Representatives & not a senator. I wish he were in the Senate. But there are a few Republican senators who’re seen as “traitors” to the cause & who’re opposed to “surge”: Olympia Snow & Chuck Hagel among them.
Bush can proclaim a surge, but Congress doesn’t need to go along since it has the power to defund the initiative as it did in Vietnam. I don’t think Bush’s surge is a done deal.
Of course … did I write Senator–silly me, must be wishful thinking on my part too.