It’s really sad to see children try to pretend they can keep up with adults in the arena of ideas. Take the ever talkative Larkin from Wizbang Blue who tries to put in his two cents about the “General Betray Us” ad. It seems in Larkin’s world view, the General brought it on himself.
Such attacks were predictable given the General’s apparent acquiescence in becoming the chief spokesman for the White House in what should be an entirely political debate (i.e., no generals invited) centered on the the question of the continued involvement of US forces in Iraq.
After all, in America, it’s rule by the people, not the generals. And the people’s representatives, the 435 members of the House, the 100 members of the Senate, and the President should be the ones to decide how many troops we will keep in Iraq and for how long. The input of the generals is of course informative and essential, but it should be funneled through the proper channels, namely the civilian leader of America’s impressive war-making machine, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates.
Gates should have been the one to deliver testimony on the state of our mission in Iraq on Capitol Hill last week, not Petraeus.
Heavy Sigh…. Larkin, meet Public Law 110-28. It was written Rep. David Obey a Democrat. It was passed overwhelmingly by the Democrats. From Public Law 110-28, written by Democrats:
(3) TESTIMONY BEFORE CONGRESS- Prior to the submission of the President’s second report on September 15, 2007, and at a time to be agreed upon by the leadership of the Congress and the Administration, the United States Ambassador to Iraq and the Commander, Multi-National Forces Iraq will be made available to testify in open and closed sessions before the relevant committees of the Congress.
General Petraeus testified before Congress not because Bush asked him to but because the Democrats passed a law saying he had to or they would cut off funds for the troops. Larkin continues:
I have the utmost of respect and admiration for General Petraeus as a warrior. I have little respect or admiration for him as a politician. Surely he must understand how he is being used by the Bush White House to promote the continuation of a war…
But somewhere along the line, Petraeus agreed to take on the unwelcome task of becoming the public face for the Bush administration’s policy in Iraq
Um, Larkin, that “somewhere along the line” happened when your Democrats passed a law saying he had to testify. And the stupidity continues…
He’s a capable military man who may have found himself star-crossed by the double-talkers in this administration who coerced him into a political battle where he himself knows he should not be.
It was George Bush’s fault!
But my absolute favorite part of the post is when Larkin, who is babbling in complete ignorance, gives a Ph.D, 4 star General some advice…
So my message to the General is this: please reconsider your position in our democracy as it is described in the Constitution and under our rule of law. Raise questions the next time that anyone asks you to carry their water in an essentially political debate over the necessity and wisdom of our nation’s continuing involvement in any war, and please politely defer to the civilian leadership that by law instructs you on how to carry out the will of the people as it is expressed through our elected representatives in Congress and the Executive Branch.
I’m sure the General will be consulting Larkin next time he does something.
UPDATE Larkin the dumbass answered in his comments….
The fact that the Democrats fell for it doesn’t invalidate my post. They should have realized how the administration planned to use Petraeus.
The old “Don’t Blame The Democrats, Because They are Stupid defense… They keep saying Bush is dumb but he keeps managing to singlehandedly outwit the entire Democrat party time and again. OK Larkin, you’re right dude… The Democrats in Congress are all stupid. You said it, not me.
