GOPer Drake: Iraqi Parliament Has "Better Track Record" Than Dem Congress
GOP Rep. Thelma Drake of Virginia has just returned from a bipartisan trip to Iraq — and her first-hand view of the war has left her with an interesting perspective. Not only is the surge working, Drake says, but the Iraqi Parliament is doing a better job than the United States Congress.
Via Raising Kaine, from the Newport News Daily Press:
Iraqi lawmakers, she said, "have passed and signed into law more legislation than we have this year."While progress may be slow, Drake said, when compared to promises made by Democrats in Congress, "They probably have a better track record."
One of Drake's companions on the trip, Democratic Congresswoman Jan Schakowsky of Illinois, had a very different perspective on things. "I believe overall the surge is a failure," said Schakowsky. "What I came away with was that Iraq was a huge distraction from the real war on terror."
The Daily Press asked Drake how two members of Congress could walk away from the same trip with such different opinions. Drake's response: "Maybe people see what they want to see." Indeed.
Incidentally, Drake was narrowly re-elected in 2006 by the very tight margin of 51%-49%.
From the article:
Honestly, this is embarassing, no matter what one's position on the war is. 20 hours??!@#? Only in Baghdad? Doesn't that seem a pretty short amount of time in which to make an assessment on a complicated matter? And be taken seriously?
August 16, 2007 3:22 PM | Reply | Permalink
Well, we did destroy the Republican guard in Iraq.
Unfortunately we still have the obstructionists here still doing Dear Leader's bidding.
August 16, 2007 3:27 PM | Reply | Permalink
Could one conclude from this enlightening revelation that perhaps the reason why the Iraqi parliament has been so much more "successful" then our own congress might lay in the fact that they do not have any Republican's in it?
Oh and Gonzone - Yes we did indeed destroy the Republican guard in Iraq, but isn't it ironic that we now find ourselves guarding Republican's in Iraq? Oh those nifty whirlwind tours of the Green Zone can me so illuminating.
August 16, 2007 3:52 PM | Reply | Permalink
Did they at least ask her to name the significant pieces of legislation passed by both the Iraqi Parliament and American Congress?
No? Pity. Might be a good follow-up question.
August 16, 2007 3:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
Beat her to death with this comment!
August 16, 2007 3:54 PM | Reply | Permalink
LOL.
August 16, 2007 3:58 PM | Reply | Permalink
More than enough time to see a dozen or so mortar rounds land in the Green Zone, shit yer pants and get back in the helicopter.
August 16, 2007 4:08 PM | Reply | Permalink
well, in her own little world, Im sure she has quite the fan base.
You can visit that world here.
I thought this was satire, as I thought the Reps studied comments.
But no. Both are deadly serious.....
http://64.233.167.104/search?q=cache:cnnnSRimWmcJ:www.familysecuritymatters.org/index.php%3Fid%3D1208571+%22president+for+life+bush%22+site:familysecuritymatters.org&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=3&gl=us&client=firefox-a
August 16, 2007 4:09 PM | Reply | Permalink
No we didn't! Who the hell do you think the Sunni insurgents are?
August 16, 2007 4:12 PM | Reply | Permalink
Atleast she was truthful in respects to one of her interviewer's questions.
August 16, 2007 4:16 PM | Reply | Permalink
Oooh! ooh! I know one! In May the Iraqi parliament passed a bill reserving the right to ask the UN to give thumbs up or down on renewing their mandate for the occupation to parliament and parliament alone.
Seems last year they were all set to vote to ask the UN to tell us the jig's up and leave when Maliki took it upon himself to ask the UN to give our occupation their blassing for another year. The nationalists like Sadr and his Sunni allies were not amused. Maliki could in theory veto that bill but he hasn't yet and if he did...well...those people who say things can't get any worse in Iraq? They're wrong.
So I don't care what you say about the Iraqi parliament they are passing bills that matter to them.
August 16, 2007 4:39 PM | Reply | Permalink
Iraq was supposed to be the great neoliberal experiment - flat tax, no gun control, small government, privatized public services, privatized armies, no corporate tax etc etc... A Republican's dream.
So I think she should stay there - and not only should she stay there, but she should also take Grover Norquist, Tom DeLay, that punk Billy "the Pussy" Kristol, Wolfowitz and Doug "stupidest fucking guy on the face of the earth" Feith, and the whole neocon gang along with her. They should settle in a big fortified compound in the middle of the green zone, and gorge on taco bell chalupas served by phillipino and sri lankan contractors. Every once in a while they could take a stroll in the open air market, with their Marine company and chopper support squad. At night they could watch the shells drop, and listen to the muffled sound of explosions in the distance. And in the morning they could count the dismembered bodies showing up in the streets.
Chumps.
[CT]
One million page hits against Bush!!!
August 17, 2007 4:31 AM | Reply | Permalink