First Door on the Left

There are still a few among us who want to believe that George W. Bush and his cronies did what they did with good intentions. John Kelly has a word or two for those folks:

Which brings me to Iraq and President Bush. Let’s give the president and his advisors the benefit of the doubt. Let’s assume that everything they did and are doing–quickly moving the fight-against-terrorism battlefield from Afghanistan to Iraq, misunderstanding the WMD intelligence, not having an adequate post-invasion plan in place, authorizing interrogation methods that border on torture, instituting domestic eavesdropping–they did for the most honorable of reasons: to protect Americans. But the best of intentions can’t alter the reality. And the reality is that by any yardstick, they’ve made a total botch of the war. The plan was poorly conceived, poorly executed, and for three years Americans and Iraqis have been living, and dying, with the consequences.

Just as I’m sure Officer Bullock did not intend to kill Sal Culosi, so I’m sure President Bush didn’t intend to mire us in a tragic war. I feel sorry for him, just as I feel sorry for Bullock. So, what now? A censure at the hands of Congress? That probably won’t help much. An apology? That doesn’t seem very likely. I think the only thing we can hope for is that the American people, when given the chance, will not support those politicians who refuse to see that even if a crime wasn’t committed, an accident happened. Now it’s time for the punishment.

If you want to understand the reference to Officer Bullock and Sal Culosi, you’ll have to read his entire post.

If you have been reading this weblog for the past several years, as I know you have, you are well aware that I am not among those willing to give Mr. Bush and his fellow felons the benefit of the doubt. I believe they knowingly did what they did and went into it with eyes wide open. They all need to be tried, convicted and jailed for crimes committed against the United States of America.

Whichever side of the fence you happen to fall on, you need to make a pledge right now: You will not ever vote for a politician who refuses to admit that vital errors have been made in the “war against terror.” You could even carry it a step further and pledge to never vote for anybody who will not admit that the invasion of Iraq was a mistake. That is my pledge.

Now it’s time for the punishment.