Growing a backbone

And so, Congressional Democrats finally grow a backbone.

By forcing a closed session in the Senate Tuesday, the minority Party has at long last shown signs of demanding Administration and Congressional accountability for the bill of goods sold to the American people concerning Iraq. It's about damn time. Harry Reid was particularly fiery in his rationale for invoking the rarely-used Senate Rule 21. The Washington Post reported:

In a floor speech, Reid declared that "a cloud hangs over this Republican-controlled Congress for its unwillingness to hold the administration accountable" on a variety of issues.

He was particularly incensed about what he said was the refusal of the Senate Intelligence Committee under Sen. Pat Roberts (R-Kan.) to follow up on an investigation of the intelligence that led to the war in Iraq. A report was issued in July last year, but a "phase two" inquiry into how the Bush administration used that intelligence has not been held. Reid accused Roberts of breaking a promise to conduct that investigation in an effort to "provide political cover for this administration," which he said had "consistently and repeatedly manipulated the facts" in making its case to invade Iraq in 2003.

So, let's see if I understand this correctly. The Chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee (like the chairmen of all Senate committees, a Republican) promised almost a year and a half ago to issue a report on the misuse of intelligence by the Administration in its justification for war in Iraq. A year and a half later, that report is nowhere in sight. And,

- with U.S. military casualties continuing to increase daily, and anti-American sentiments and activities actually intensifying around the globe;

- with the events of last week pointing clearly to the fact that senior White House officials played an unethical game to misuse and misrepresent intelligence for their own ends, and to discredit those individuals who sought to expose them;

- with the fact that the minority Party in Congress has been powerless to initiate Intelligence Committee action (or any similar call for accountability from the ruling Party), primarily because of partisan, monolithic Republican resistance,

the Democratic leadership was finally forced to exercise a drastic, and legal, option to kick the foot-dragging committee Chairman in the ass.

Not like there was anything urgent or important in determining if the Congress and American people were knowingly given false information to force a military conflict with a nation that neither posed an imminent threat to us, nor had any part in the actual attack on our nation in September 2001. Surely, Senator Roberts, that kind of investigation could be set aside 'til... oh, after an election, let's say. Or 'til... oh, after the President bounces back from this ebb in popularity. Or 'til... maybe, never?

The invocation of Rule 21 allowed Progressives in the Senate to change the "political narrative" from the Alito nomination back to the subject of this unjustified, vain, counter-productive war, and the mounting evidence that it is a conflict based on manipulative lies. That topic, the way I see it, is one which should be of vital interest not only to Democrats, but to Republicans as well, if they truly represent "patriotism and family values" as they've relentlessly claimed.

Surely Conservatives must be interested to know if "evidence" fabricated by their President, Vice President, or White House staff misled them into actions responsible for the death and maiming of their constituents. Seems only logical, right?

So why are Senate Republicans so mad?

According to the Post,

Republicans complained that going into closed session interrupted important business.

Are we to understand by implication that the afore-mentioned investigation is somehow unimportant? That an apparent refusal by Senator Roberts to move forward with his Intelligence Committee obligations for over a year was not objectionable conduct, regardless of political stripe? Is there anything more important than determining whether our sons and daughters have been dying for the right reasons as a matter of last resort, or if they've been sent to the slaughter because of Administration whim and malfeasance?

The chief voice of the disingenuous was, of course, Bill Frist. Doctor Bill did his self-righteous best to make this Democratic move seem like it was somehow illegal and unpatriotic. WaPo noted:

Frist angrily denounced the move, charging that "the United States Senate has been hijacked by the Democratic leadership.

"This is an affront to me personally," he said. "It's an affront to our leadership. It's an affront to the United States of America. And it is wrong."

Strong words for a legal procedural maneuver under Senate rules. But "an affront to the United States of America"? Isn't this the same Bill Frist who is currently under SEC investigation for possible insider trading? Isn't this the same Bill Frist who helped to hijack the Senate with his ridiculous "video diagnosis" during the inexcusable Terry Schiavo affair?

You know what they say about people in glass houses, Bill...

The Senate Democrats should be commended by all Americans for their dramatic move Tuesday. And Conservative critics of the closed session should take care, lest they be asked why they are apparently defending stall tactics and obfuscation, and opposing a continued investigation of the truth about this Administration's shameful little war. It's high time that someone is held accountable for the thousands needlessly lost thanks to the Bush Administration's demonstrable folly in Iraq, while the real enemies of the West continue to roam free.

To do any less would be a true affront to America.