Are Some On The Right Guilty Of The Same President Bashing That Occurred From The Left With Bush?

It was not that long ago that we all had to sit and listen to Bush bashing from the left and make no mistake about it, it is still going on today. There was nothing that President Bush could do or say but what the left whined, bitched, moaned, complained and just plain bashed. So blatant this was that much of what was being said were lies and yes, things said taken out of context.

Those on the right have engaged in their own levels of attacks on President Obama, myself included. However, I have never had and will never have a problem with anyone attacking issues. But we all know that it goes beyond just issues and can get very nasty.

The other night I watched President Obama’s speech from West Point about his intentions for our military in Afghanistan. I have to confess that this is the first speech I have listened to of Obama and I’ll tell you why. I believe that when it comes to military operations and decisions such as those we as a nation face, politics should not play a role. My interest in listening to the speech was because of my concern and support of our soldiers that are protecting this nation. The reason this was my first is that I refuse to listen to Obama’s speeches because they are just meaningless words used in order to make people feel good and contain virtually no truth at all. I don’t need pep talks from rally speeches. It’s not my bag.

I was relating to my son the other day that back when President Clinton was in office, he laid out his plans to go into Bosnia with air strikes only. There was a lot of discussion, bantering, posturing and negotiating but in the end, a decision was made and for the most part the republicans shut their mouths and showed their full support to win the war there – as it should have been.

This was not the case after 9/11. It was initially, but when the democrats saw an opportunity to try to destroy George W. Bush and the Republican Party, they seized on every opportunity to do so, regardless of the effects of those efforts on our fighting men and women. Personally, I thought it disgusting. Playing politics with the lives of our soldiers is about as low as humanity can go.

Bush is gone! Obama is in and it is his war now. He knew full well when running for the highest office in the land, that should he win, he would inherit everything, including the War of Terror. He dithered for far longer than I think he should have in his Afghanistan decision. Over 140 soldiers were killed in Afghanistan while he put off making any decision.

At West Point he unenthusiastically laid out his strategy for Afghanistan which included what many are saying is a time line to begin withdrawing troops from the region, when we have no idea what the circumstances will be come July 2011.

For me, once the dickering and posturing and all the other stuff is complete and our troops have made their way to the war front, the time of dumping on President Barack Obama about the details of the surge is over. Our full support must go toward our troops to insure victory and we pray for as few casualties as God will give us.

So, the debating goes on with little support at this point from those on the right, at least concerning the time table issue. We have heard some support from Sen. John McCain and former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich. They support the surge and are interested in negotiating some of the finer points of the details, including the withdrawal time line.

I have seen from several media organizations and individuals something that I take issue with. I will not name names but will just say it is out there and it needs to stop. It is my opinion that they are taking remarks President Obama said about the withdrawal time line in an incomplete fashion and as much as I hate the expression, out of context. It comes across as Obama bashing or Obama derangement syndrome as many of the same ones like to call the left’s effort, Bush Derangement Syndrome.

Here is the actual text of President Obama’s speech from West Point.

But taken together, these additional American and international troops will allow us to accelerate handing over responsibility to Afghan forces, and allow us to begin the transfer of our forces out of Afghanistan in July of 2011. Just as we have done in Iraq, we will execute this transition responsibly, taking into account conditions on the ground. We’ll continue to advise and assist Afghanistan’s security forces to ensure that they can succeed over the long haul. But it will be clear to the Afghan government — and, more importantly, to the Afghan people — that they will ultimately be responsible for their own country. (emphasis added is mine)

I have repeatedly heard politicians, news media, television and radio talk show hosts from both sides state only the very first part of the paragraph ending with “July of 2011″

I have to admit that when listening to the speech, I didn’t think the President put much emphasis at all on “taking into account conditions on the ground” but he did state it. From this entire paragraph, whether I agree with the strategy or not about any kind of time line, the impression some are trying to make is that President Obama is planning to begin bringing home troops, all of them, in July of 2011 regardless. I just don’t see that as factual.

As much as I dislike this President’s policies, it’s very easy to jump on the same wagon but I refuse when it comes to military issues. I have to believe that Obama gathered his people together and hashed out a plan with his military leaders. I am hopeful that once the final decisions are made with this surge, that the right doesn’t become guilty of what they so adamantly complained about with the left and President Bush. Our support needs to shift to the war effort and complete support for our troops in order that we can achieve victory.

Tom Remington

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