GOP playing hardball

It looks like the Republican majority in the house is finally starting to flex some muscle. Despite the rhetoric about how we need to pull out of Iraq, when presented with a bill to do just that, only three Democrats voted in favor, and six abstained (total vote: 3-403-6).

Armed Services Committee Chairman Duncan Hunter (R-Calif.) wrote a resolution calling for an immediate withdrawal of troops from Iraq according to the comments of Rep. John P. Murtha (D-Pa.) which had attracted so much news recently. It's pretty clear this resolution was written to call the Democrats' bluff.

Though even many Democrats think Murtha's immediate withdrawal plan is impractical, it struck a chord in a party where frustration with the war and the Bush administration's open-ended commitment is mounting fast. Murtha galvanized the debate as few others could have. He is a 33-year House veteran and former Marine colonel who received medals for his wounds and valor in Vietnam, and he has traditionally been a leading Democratic hawk and advocate of military spending.
Murtha's resolution included language the Republicans wanted to avoid, such as "the American people have not been shown clear, measurable progress" toward stability in Iraq. It also said troops should be withdrawn "at the earliest practicable date," although Murtha said in statements and interviews Thursday that the drawdown should begin now.

For those keeping score, the three Democrats who went on record voting to leave Iraq are Jose E. Serrano (N.Y.), Robert Wexler (Fla.) and Cynthia McKinney (Ga.). If you have the opportunity to vote in these states, or influence those who do, make sure they know how they voted on this issue.

Along the way, a very junior Republican (Rep. Jean Schmidt (R-Ohio), elected only in August of this year) called a spade a spade and raised a few tempers on the other side of the aisle.

She told colleagues that "a few minutes ago I received a call from Colonel Danny Bubp," an Ohio legislator and Marine Corps Reserve officer. "He asked me to send Congress a message: Stay the course. He also asked me to send Congressman Murtha a message: that cowards cut and run, Marines never do."
Dozens of Democrats erupted at once, pointing angrily at Schmidt and shouting repeatedly, "Take her words down" -- the House term for retracting a statement. For a moment Schmidt tried to keep speaking, but the uproar continued and several GOP colleagues surrounded her as she sat down, looking slightly dazed. Presiding officer Mike Simpson (R-Idaho) gaveled in vain for order as Democrats continued shouting for Schmidt to take back her words. Rep. Martin T. Meehan (D-Mass.) yelled "You guys are pathetic!" from the far end of the Democratic section to the GOP side.

No, Rep. Meehan, what is pathetic is saying anything and everything to undermine the President and the effectiveness of our troops in time of war when you don't really mean it. When the chips were down all but nine Democrats — including you, Rep. Murtha — voted to stay in Iraq.

[from The Washington Post via Scrappleface]