Senator Retreat from Wisconsin gave a rousing argument in favor of al queda and attempting to demoralize our troops while on a visit to Iraq, supposedly to encourage the leaders to more quickly form a civilian coalition government. The increasingly rancorous public debate in the United States over the war spilled into Iraq during a news conference Saturday with two visiting lawmakers who are outspoken in their opposing stands on the issue.Ed Morrisey continues the coverage:
Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.), a longtime supporter of the Bush administration's Iraq policy, and Russell Feingold (D-Wis.), who voted against the invasion and has spoken out against the war ever since, said they had come not to air their divergent views but to urge Iraqi politicians to speed up the process of forming a government. But during questions from reporters, they argued -- cordially and pointedly -- over such issues as the timing of any withdrawal of U.S. troops and whether their continued presence is doing more harm than good.
Feingold said he believed "a large troop presence has a tendency to fuel the insurgency because they can make the incorrect and unfair claim that the U.S. is here to occupy the country."
"I think that it's very possible that the sectarian differences are inflamed by the fact that U.S. troops are here," he continued, adding that their long-term presence "may well be destabilizing, not stabilizing."
John McCain declined to get any further into the argument, telling reporters that the debate belonged on the Senate floor. It certainly didn't belong in Baghdad, where our troops have put their lives at risk to make their mission a success, and where the terrorists could find encouragement in his repetition of their own propaganda. Even Rep. Tom Udall, Feingold's Democratic colleague from New Mexico and a member of the delegation in Baghdad, noted that Feingold had broken the tradition of avoiding disagreements abroad, especially in a war zone
Ed is right. Wisconsin voters should be ashamed of this a**hat who gives aid and comfort to the enemy by demoralizing and defaming our troops while on a visit to the warzone. This reeks of Hanoi Jane in the 1970s. Maybe we should call this clown Fallujah Feingold (of course, I don't know if the trip included Fallujah). Ed calls for censure. I call for impeachment of this clown. Feingold has demeaned the troops, encouraged more action against our troops by his comments IN THE WARZONE, and he has slandered the commander-in-chief with his screeds about Bush being able to "order the killing of Americans."
This man is not worthy to be dogcatcher in Janesville, much less a US Senator.
