Should MoveOn.org be dictating policy to the democratic candidates?

Question

It is obvious their character assassination attempt against General Petraus has backfired and yet the democratic candidates have not condemned the organization for their attacking the Generals report.

Also, this demonstrates how the democratic candidates waffle. First they agree to wait to hear his report months ago and now, since the surge is working (having a positive impact), they're silent when he is attacked by an extremist left wing organization. This shows that they have an agenda to ensure America's defeat. The good news for America is bad news for them. Why don't they want an American victory in Iraq? Probably because it would prove them wrong about President Bush and they hate him with a passion!

It just proves the Democrats put their party before America's best interest.

Answer 1

I have to agree with you. I heard a statement on the news today that is simple yet true, " They should of just said they were sorry and retracted the ad." The simple logic in it may make too much sense to those who are so absorbed that they have become blinded to the truth.

Answer 2

All of Bush's foreign policy decisions have been an unmitigated disaster for this country and the world. None of these horrible acts would have been done by any of the candidates. Whether is is putting bases and hobnobbing with dictators in the former Soviet Union, to abandoning the Geneva and Kyto and Anti-ballistic treaties to ignoring Bin Laden which led to 9-11, to the complete failure to any peaceful relations in the Middle East, the withdrawal of Syria from Lebanon, the selling of nuclear technology for Mangos in India, for doing nothing on trade with China. But by far, the murder of million Iraqis is certainly the greatest of Bush mistakes and one that marks him as one of the worst presidents in the history of our Country. All the candidates will pull out troops. Some candidates want to leave some troops in, but it would be a small force. Biden's approach for federalism is now looking like the only realistic solution. None of the Democrats will start a war with Iran. On the other hand, Bush is for invading Iran. He won't, because he realizes he is too inept and has lost all his political support. He has no military sense, no strategy, no diplomatic skills or understanding of the people or history of the region. He is an utter failure on his own terms, and the people of the Middle East hate him and would never allow him or his surrogates to rule.

Answer 3

Excuse me, but where were you when the Senate, including many Democrats, overwhelmingly passed a resolution deploring the MoveOn ad last week? And for your information, Petraeus did fudge the figures in his support of the surge, which has been pointed out for weeks in the news & the blogs. Our Cent Com commander has called him "chickenshit'. And the Betray-us slogan has been around for months among the troops in Iraq; they coined the term & MoveOn borrowed it..

I'm not a big fan of Move On because they are a little too left wing for my tastes. While I am also not a fan of that particular ad, I am sure we will all be remembering the phrase "Betray-us" right up until election day. Sounds like a success to me.

Answer 4

Dude, you are so far out there, it's hard to know where to start.

MoveOn is a grass roots organization that supports progressive causes. It is no different from the NRA which supports gun causes, Focus on the Family, the Moral Majority, etc., which support their own causes. It doesn't tell anyone what to say. If it has an impact, it is the same as these other organizations having an impact.

Furthermore, there are innumerable lobbying organizations that hold enormous power over politicians, such as the health care lobby, the oil lobby, the tobacco lobby, the Jewish lobby, the alcohol lobby, the gun lobby, the AMA, the Cuban lobby, etc. They have a far bigger impact on various politicians--and many on the Republican party as well--than any grass roots organization.

So until you want to get philosophically consistent (ha!) and condemn all these organizations and call for them to be disbanded, quit picking on the one you dislike because it disagrees with you.

Answer 5

No, Move-on shouldn't be dictating policy. Neither should the NRA or NARAL or any other interest group, but both major parties and candidates need to consider their views and agree or disagree as their conscience dictates.

I think too much was made of the Move-on ad, and too much was made of the failure of Democratic candidates to criticize it (I think Biden did BTW). Candidates need media attention to explain their proposals to voters. I can understand if they don't want to use what little attention some of them get responding to an ad by an interest group.

Sadly they missed a chance to improve the tone of the process by not speaking out against the ad, but they had no obligation to do so.

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/nonlethalalternatives/

Answer 6

What I can't believe is that the morons in congress wasted a day to vote on censoring the ad. Last time I heard, this country still has freedom of speech, and freedom of press. Did you hear how they were counting kills in Iraq? It only counted if the person was shot from the front, it didn't count if shot from the rear, nor did they count killing within the same faction.

I think the ad crossed the line, but I can also understand how anyone might think that a Bush puppet might be lying.

Answer 7

And did Bush or Boehner publically disavow Ann Coulter when she said that the 9/11 widows were "harpies who enjoyed their husband's deaths"? When are they going to disavow it? If they don't, it must mean they agree with her, right?

BTW, 80% of the American people agree with MoveOn, that we need to get out of Iraq asap, so I don't think there will be any lasting "backlash" at all really.

The Repubs are just desperately trying to use it as a distraction from the real debate.

BTW, I didn't see Boehner disavowing himself for saying that the deaths of close to 4000 of our soldiers in Iraq was "a small sacrifice". Talk about a disgrace. Bet Fox never covered it at all.

Answer 8

The Democrats talk about how they are against the rich controlling the country yet George Soros one of the richest men in the world controls the Democrat Party

Answer 9

Yes. It is destroying the party. I hope it continues. If only the Republicans can get their act together.

Note, Move On exists because of McCain/Finegold.

Answer 10

Actually, I will correct you. Recently the Senate voted in a symbolic vote to condemn the ad. It was basically the Senators say "Shame on you for running that". But, Clinton, Obama, and all the other Democrats running for President either voted against it or were to busy to show up and vote.