The Bushies are all over John Murtha. Instapundit says Murtha’s been saying “basically the same thing” for over a year. That depends on what the meaning of the word “basically” is. Murtha’s own statement contains the sentences:
For two and a half years I have been concerned about the U.S. policy and the plan in Iraq. I have addressed my concerns with the Administration and the Pentagon and have spoken out in public about my concerns.
The difference – and surely it’s a relevant one – is that Murtha is now calling for withdrawal of troops the same week the Senate went wobbly. It seems to me it would be more helpful if Republicans and conservatives offered positive arguments for how to do better instead of attacking every critic as a wuss, unpatriotic, inconsistent, or worse. Murtha spent 37 years in the Marines. He voted for the war. But, unlike some, he kept his eyes open and he’s reflecting genuine, real, patriotic worries about the war among many Americans. If he’s worried, we all should be. It doesn’t speak very well of the pro-Bush right that their first instinct is to ignore him and their second to dismiss him. But it’s no big surprise by now, is it?
AFTER WOMEN, GAYS: The Dutch heroine of the battle against Islamo-fascism, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, is making a new film. Her first one – the one that forced her into hiding and police protection – was about the brutalization of women in Islamic societies. Her new one will be about the Islamic fundamentalist world’s loathing and persecution of homosexuals. She sees the connection. I wish more American conservatives did.
CAN BUSH RECOVER? Lefty blogger Chris Bowers says he can’t. He has some evidence to back him up. My own view is that most people have made up their minds about Bush; and they don’t think he knows how to run a war. Here’s some more data.
BORAT’S COME-UPPANCE: This is hilarious.
The Dish 