Sununu, Gregg, Refuse Even to Debate the Iraq War

Could it be (4.00 / 1)

that Sununu is more worried about the fringe of his base than about the will of the people?  From the always unpleasant Bill Kristol (h/t reader shoeempress,):

Some seven GOP senators are said to be wavering between the Democratic resolution and the McCain Graham-Lieberman alternative supporting Gen. Petraeus and the troops. They are Lamar Alexander of Tennessee, Sam Brownback of Kansas, Norm Coleman of Minnesota, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, Arlen Specter of Pennsylvania, John Sununu of New Hampshire, and George Voinovich of Ohio. Alexander, Coleman, and Sununu are up for reelection in 2008. Some or all of the seven may still choose to stand with the president and the troops, and to give Petraeus a chance. This would leave the Democratic resolution short of the 60 votes needed to end debate. Perhaps the four ignominious ones could even reconsider and sign on with McCain, Graham, and Lieberman (whose resolution of support includes, incidentally, "benchmarks" of performance that the Iraqi government is expected to meet).

In any case, Republican senators up for reelection in 2008 might remember this: The American political system has primaries as well as general elections. In 1978 and 1980, as Reagan conservatives took over the party from détente-establishment types, Reaganite challengers ousted incumbent GOP senators in New Jersey and New York. Surely there are victory-oriented Republicans who might step forward today in Nebraska, Virginia, Oregon, and Maine--and, if necessary, in Tennessee, Minnesota, and New Hampshire--to seek t o vindicate the honor, and brighten the future, of the party of Reagan.

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by: Dean Barker @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 19:29:41 PM CST

Kristol Pure (4.00 / 2)

The idea of someone credible running to Sununu's right in the primary is deliciously absurd. Fun, yes; Bob Smith would buy the popcorn. But it ain't gonna happen.

The nomination isn't worth fighting for. It's like hoping for a bidding war to break out on a condemned property.

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by: elwood @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 19:40:01 PM CST

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Whatever the reason.... (4.00 / 2)

Sununu is totally out of step with NH voters, he can't bring himself to break with Bush. We need a strong candidate, it would be a crime to re-elect him.

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by: Frodo @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 19:44:20 PM CST

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Well, of course (4.00 / 2)

It was a crime to elect him in the first place, as Alan Raymond, Chuck McGee and James Tobin can attest.

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by: elwood @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 19:50:15 PM CST

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this is great (0.00 / 0)

hahahahah you think a 1 term republican senator from new england would become more left to appeal to his constituents (AKA the ARNOLD approach.)  If mark foley was a democrat and ran for senate he would have a better chance of getting elected then Sununu

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by: Bassett @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 19:54:39 PM CST

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New campaign slogan? (4.00 / 4)

Don't be a repeat offender!

Vote for Gottesman Hirshberg Marchand Swett

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by: Dean Barker @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 20:03:31 PM CST

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LOL (0.00 / 0)

O love that select thingey...

I forget how to do it, could you put it in the FAQ?

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by: Nicholas Gunn @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 20:32:46 PM CST

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Just added it (4.00 / 2)

to Getting Started

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by: Dean Barker @ Tue Feb 06, 2007 at 21:39:01 PM CST

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Kristol (0.00 / 0)

Kristol is a moron. He'll never let the facts get in the way of his commitment to truthiness.

He described suggestions that the Sunni and Shiia were adversarial as "pop psychology." He characterizes an escalating civil war and insurgency as a sign of success of Bush's strategy.

What a tool.

Not as smart as I think I am, but not as dumb as I look.

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by: epm @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 20:30:40 PM CST

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Oy! (4.00 / 2)

So Sununu (and Gregg) not only voted to blindly follow Bush, they also voted to put their hands over their ears and chant, "Nyah, nyah, nyah... I can't hear you" when pressed to actually debate the issue.

Does a Yankee proud.

Not as smart as I think I am, but not as dumb as I look.

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by: epm @ Mon Feb 05, 2007 at 20:18:29 PM CST

It's clear-- (4.00 / 2)

these guys have embraced failure.  You might think that strange, but just as the creative destructionists are persuaded that they just have to destroy for the creative spirit to make something new, since success often follows failure, there are those who believe that if they embrace failure, success will follow automatically.
Of course, nobody's prepared to predict HOW MANY failures they need to embrace before success is reached.

When Bush is prompted to say that "failure is not an option" he speaks true.  Failure is a given.

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by: hannah @ Tue Feb 06, 2007 at 15:01:57 PM CST

'Failure is not an option... (4.00 / 2)

...it's standard equipment, included in the base price of the BushCo 2000!'

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by: elwood @ Tue Feb 06, 2007 at 15:08:19 PM CST

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Senator Gregg is a disgrace to NH voters (4.00 / 2)

I sent our good senator a letter today, decrying his cynical gimmick (the non-binding resolution designed to give him and his fellow lock-step Republican'ts room to support The Decider). 

With apologies for too long a citation, here's part of my letter:

___________________________________

I'm a 53-year-old constituent of yours, writing from New Hampshire's North Country.  I am writing to condemn, in the strongest possible terms, your recent non-binding resolution concerning funding for the troops in Iraq.

To call this a cynical gimmick is, I fear, much too mild a statement.

I noted, in a recent Baltimore Sun article (15 January 2007, "Iraq war's price tag close to Vietnam's,") that you were alarmed about the Administration's spending policies in Iraq:

  "Even so loyal a Republican as Sen. Judd Gregg of New Hampshire criticized the  administration's approach to war costs, calling it "without any discipline as to how  much is going to be spent."

  "They're gaming the system," said Gregg, who was chairman of the Senate  Budget Committee in the 109th Congress."

Yet, when push came to shove, when a vigorous, seriously required discussion about the Iraq war was about to begin, you advanced your non-binding spending resolution in an effort (and, to this point, a successful one) to stifle and cease debate.  It seems to me (and the many other New Hampshire residents I've spoken with) that this non-binding resolution was specifically and hypocritically designed to prevent debate and, thus, the potential embarrassment of the Bush Administration's misguided Iraq policy.

So, which is it, Senator Gregg?  Do you feel that the Administration is `gaming the system', as you were quoted?  Or are you incapable of putting principle ahead of party, as your recent action indicates?

______________________________

While I have zero respect for John "Sprinter" Sununu, my loathing for Gregg knows no bounds. 

Diane
Intervale  NH

This and no other is the root from which a tyrant springs; when he first appears he is a protector. PLATO

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by: Ninbus @ Wed Feb 07, 2007 at 11:05:39 AM CST

This is fantastic. (0.00 / 0)

I forgot about Judd's earlier cranky statements about war spending, but they are the perfect foil to his bogus resolution here.

Thanks for coming to BH, and it's especially nice to have another North Country voice here.

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by: Dean Barker @ Wed Feb 07, 2007 at 11:22:17 AM CST

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