[Alberta's Child]

I think you're wrong about that. I predict that most U.S. troops will be out of Iraq by the middle of next year.

Barnes is right in one key respect, and in this case there are TWO different underlying factors at work . . . 1) Democrats who never really supported the war in the first place, and 2) Republicans who are utterly p!ssed off at how poorly it has been managed.

The Bush administration is going to "cut & run" in Iraq because it will never accommodate Group #1 no matter what it does, and it simply doesn't have the will (or the resources) to execute the war in a manner that will satisfy Group #2.

Yesterday's election results made it eminently important for Iraq to be off the table completely by 2008, or the Republican Party will lose the 2008 presidential election in a historic landslide even if the Democrats nominate Osama bin Laden.

[codercpc]

I agree with your assessment. I lean libertarian on financial issues, conservative on social issues, and who ever offers the strongest military. For me, that meant a straight Republican ticket. But even I admit, I hate the way Iraq is being managed. That doesn't mean I want to cut and run, but change would be nice. Since reality to me means Republicans will do a better job than Dems, I am not sure the rest of the country feels that way. I think the message sent was Win but Change.

People not as politically astute as those that visit this site don't realize that the Dems were the worst choice, they still don't believe that the Dems actually want us to lose. Eyes will be opened in 2008, let's just hope we get there in one piece.

As for everything else, to tell the truth, having Republicans in power for the past 6 years hasn't changed a whole lot. Dems will be worse, but at least maybe President Bush will use his Veto Pen. We all have to remember that President Reagan governed under a Dem house and Senate, and IMO made him stronger. I am very disappointed, but we must all be honest and say this isn't unexpected. Remember 1 month ago, the media was saying a loss of 50 house seats, and a lose of the Senate. This was not as bad as it could have been. America wants change, nothing more, nothing less. Let's just hope we can live with the change.

[snowrip]

The Bush administration is going to "cut & run" in Iraq because it will never accommodate Group #1 no matter what it does, and it simply doesn't have the will (or the resources) to execute the war in a manner that will satisfy Group #2.

The Bush admin should stop trying to accomodate Group 1... it's what got them into trouble in the first place, and is the reason people think Bush doesn't have the will to prosecute this war like a war.

The reason the public doesn't like the war is because of the MSM's portrayal... If they were getting accurate reporting, the opinion of the general public would be vastly different.