Yes, It’s Relevant

by digby

I am undoubtedly much more liberal than Jim Webb. But we are in agreement (and have been for years) about the ramifications of this war and the need for some accountability:

GS: Senator Allen seemed to say that you were part of the ‘I told you so’ caucus on Iraq.

JW: Well, I think there are a lot of people who don’t want to be reminded that they were warned. I think it’s relevant, when you talk about how you build national strategy, and how you use the military — to talk about how these decisions should be made. There should be some sort of accountability.

Is that so hard?

I would really like to see Democrats everywhere making that argument. If people see that Democrats are going to take over and examine where this country went wrong and that they are prepared to work to develop a real national security strategy, for the first time in many years I think people are ready to listen.

George Allen’s “I told you so caucus” line is whiny and weak. Dems have a good chance to challenge Rove’s persistant, schoolyard nonsense this time. I would love to see them do it.

Jim Webb is the perfect example of a Democrat who is taking it to the Republicans — and in the process proves that there is no ideological litmus test other than a fierce desire on the part of the rank and file to stop taking crap from the GOP on national security — particularly since their national security strategy is dangerous and immoral. They are as weak as they have ever been on that issue and it’s past time to make a move. Webb is one of those guys who’s willing to call them on their delusional nonsense.

I would remind you what he wrote back in 2004:

Bush arguably has committed the greatest strategic blunder in modern memory. To put it bluntly, he attacked the wrong target. While he boasts of removing Saddam Hussein from power, he did far more than that. He decapitated the government of a country that was not directly threatening the United States and, in so doing, bogged down a huge percentage of our military in a region that never has known peace. Our military is being forced to trade away its maneuverability in the wider war against terrorism while being placed on the defensive in a single country that never will fully accept its presence.

There is no historical precedent for taking such action when our country was not being directly threatened. The reckless course that Bush and his advisers have set will affect the economic and military energy of our nation for decades. It is only the tactical competence of our military that, to this point, has protected him from the harsh judgment that he deserves.

And that’s not holding up any longer.

This is big, important stuff and its worth fighting over. Rather than talk about how we need to resurrect the ghosts of George Kennan and Harry Truman and relive the glory days of 1949, maybe we could just live in the here and now and deal with what’s before us. The Republicans fucked up hugely. Somebody has to clean up the mess and it isn’t going to be them. They refuse to admit error. So let’s run on that.

I may not agree with Jim Webb’s every position on some issues I hold dear — he’s a Red State Dem, after all — and I’m sure there will be times when I will be arguing against him if he winds up in the senate. But I think he is a breath of fresh air in the Democratic party and I’m glad to have him. I know that cuts against the prefered narrative that says I’m purging all the good decent centrists in the party for my own personal gain, but it just ain’t so. I’m just looking for a few good men and women who aren’t afraid to take it to the Republicans. Jim Webb is my kind of fighting Dem.

Update: For a serious look at this concept of “judgment” vs “intelligence” see this post, and many others linked within, by Arthur Silber, particularly on the seeming inevitability of an attack on Iran. It will sober you up. This game ain’t over.

Unless there is accountability, unless there is a public assessment of the misjudgment that brought us Iraq (and potentially Iran) we will continue on this fumbling path where cheap political opportunists like Karl Rove can lead this nation around by the nose to fulfill the domestic political needs of his candidates and the coffers of his contributors. It has to stop.

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