Dubya has squandered one of the last strengths of the GOP - the perception that they are the party to trust with national security and military endeavors. Kiss that one goodbye.
Rebuilding the GOP’s image isn’t going to be fast and easy, troops.
Things are definitely bleak now. Both politically for conservatives/gop and for American in a broader sense.
To me it is just fundamentally close to impossible to fight an enemy who is willing to blow themselves up and without caring who gets in the way just to kill an American soldier. Who cares if there is mother with her kids standing next to the American. There seems to be an unending supply of these jihadist/terrorists there.
As for next years election, i’m assuming things will be different in Iraq by then but it will be hard to distance yourself from this administration.
An all around depressing situation.
Setup a safe military base in Iraq.... pull back from the local cities and towns. Le the so-called Iraqi police and soldiers do the job of flushing out terrorists. Massive bomb when necessary. Put some of the US forces on the borders with Iran and Syria. Shut off or severly curtail ALL flow of travel from these 2 snakepit countries. When we find Iran is interfering and supplying arms blast them accordingly and screw DEMS, MSM, UN and other traitors.
This war is what put Nancy Pelosi in power. It's unpopular and it's always going to be viewed as the republicans' war. I don't want to lose, but I really hope the day the Iraq war is over comes very soon.
“Rebuilding the GOP’s image isn’t going to be fast and easy, troops.”
At this point I am more concerned about winning in Iraq than rebuilding the GOP’s image.
You hit the nail on the head. The violence in Iraq is the number one reason why Bush’s poll numbers are way down. While Illegal immigration is the top priority to FReepers, it is a bottom priority for non-idealogical voters - the types that determine elections.