CITIZEN ALERT v1.64TRANSPARENCY

After watching Woodward's interview on 60 Minutes this weekend along with interviews with Bush administration officials on Meet the Press, I've really gotten tired of all this timetable talk on Iraq. The press needs to start asking the next question to get to the real agenda behind both parties. Let's spell it out right here.

DEMOCRATS - They want a timetable - they need a timetable in order to bring the war to a close before the 2008 elections. When you hear DEMS speak of a timetable, if they do speak of it, they usually mention it in 1 and 2 year terms. That's before they think they'll be taking over. It is in their party's best interest to have the war concluded before they take over so they can blame it all on the Republicans.

REPUBLICANS - Do not want a timetable because as President Bush has said in speeches before, the future of Iraq will be determined by future Presidents. The Republicans need the war to continue past 2008. If they lose the Whitehouse, dumping the war on the Democrats is their Plan B to take back control. Doesn't matter if they caused the war in Iraq, doesn't matter if they screwed up the war in Iraq; as long as they can pass the buck in 2008, the Democrats will be blamed for the conclusion of the war in Iraq.

What do we get out of this from either side? NO PLAN! With the exception of Biden on the DEMS side, neither party is pushing a real strategy on Iraq, they are only positioning their parties for the future election by positioning the future blame.