Bush's War?

[Fritz]

On October 10, the House of Representatives voted 296-133 to authorize President Bush to use force against Iraq. Later that evening, the Senate joined the House in supporting the measure by a vote of 77-23.

http://www.vote.com/magazine/editorials/editorial51025491.phtml

[Ben E Lou]

No fair Fritz. You're using logic and hard figures. ;)

[Havok]

No fair Fritz. You're using logic and hard figures.

He must be a Republican then :)

[Fritz]

It was something Sen. Levin (D - Michigan) said on Larry King last night. I don't have the exact quote but is was something like

<i>Our armed forces are not just following the orders of the Commander in Chief, but they are executing the will of a democratically elected Congress.</i>

FWIW, Sen. Levin voted No to the Authorization of Force.

[Ben E Lou]

Originally posted by Fritz
It was something Sen. Levin (D - Michigan) said on Larry King last night. I don't have the exact quote but is was something like

<i>Our armed forces are not just following the orders of the Commander in Chief, but they are executing the will of a democratically elected Congress.</i>

FWIW, Sen. Levin voted No to the Authorization of Force. I'd like to find out more about that quote, and about Senator Levin. Sounds like a guy I wouldn't agree with, but would respect on this issue.

[CamEdwards]

As opposed to Sen. Daschle, who needs to not only be removed from his leadership position, but needs to resign from the Senate for his comments.

[Fritz]

Skydog - He said this on Larry King last night. He was a guest along with Sen. John Warner (R - Virginia). Can you get King transcripts on the web?

[Fritz]

Originally posted by CamEdwards
As opposed to Sen. Daschle, who needs to not only be removed from his leadership position, but needs to resign from the Senate for his comments.

I almost said something about him last night. What an ass he was.

[Ben E Lou]

Originally posted by Fritz
Can you get King transcripts on the web? I'll go and check, but you probably have to pay for 'em, like you do CNN's videos now. :rolleyes:

[Fritz]

Perhaps our Media-man Cam can get a comp copy.

[Ben E Lou]

I got it: SEN. CARL LEVIN (D-MI), ARMED SERVICES COMMITTEE: I offered an alternative in October which I thought was preferable and still do which was if the president did not achieve the Security Council approval, which he obviously has sought to achieve, that he then would come back to Congress before he proceeded without that Security Council approval.

The president has tried hard to get those nine votes. He has not succeeded. He now minimizes the importance of that. But I think we would be far, far better off if the world community acting through the Security Council gave us the explicit authority which the president has sought to achieve so hard in the last few weeks.

The risks are a lot greater and proceeding without that explicit authority. And now the president has decided end the diplomatic approach to set down this ultimatum. I hope Saddam Hussein complies with that ultimatum, of course. But if he doesn't, and it's unlikely that he will, it then, as it seems to me now, for those of us who have disagreed with the president's approach, ongoing without the Security Council authority with the second resolution, it's now, I believe, up to us to rally behind our troops.

<u>That, they deserve, the men and women who we put in harm's way are there because of a democratic decision, whether I agree with it or not.</u>

[Hammer755]

Originally posted by Fritz
Perhaps our Media-man Cam can get a comp copy.

"Official Research"

[Ben E Lou]

Here's the link to the entire transcript: http://www.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0303/17/lkl.00.html

[Fritz]

Originally posted by SkyDog
I got it:

There was more than that though. Sen Levin reiterated the point I posted above a few times, and his point was clear.

[Fritz]

LEVIN: Well, I think -- I hope so. The men and women of our military are not just following orders of the commander in chief if they go to war. They are now implementing a decision of a democratically elected Congress. I did not agree with that decision to proceed unilaterally. I thought the president should come back to Congress if he did not this key U.N. resolution that he has sought.

But I was outvoted. And the majority, the majority spoke in both houses. And now the men and women in our military are not just implementing an order of a commander in chief. They are actually carrying out the democratic will of the Congress, whether we agree with it or in the majority or not.

[GrantDawg]

Good man there.

[Fritz]

This may be why Cam (and others) are irked at Daschle


March 17, 2003

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. TOM DASCHLE (D-SD), MINORITY LEADER: I'm going the White House this afternoon. And I have a pretty good understanding, a pretty good idea of what I'm going to hear.

And I'm saddened. Saddened that this president failed so miserably at diplomacy that we're now forced to war. Saddened that we have to give up one life because this president couldn't create the kind of diplomatic effort that was so critical for our country. But we will work. We will do all that we can to get through this crisis like we have gotten through so many.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KING: What did you make of that Senator Warner?

WARNER: Well, Larry, I didn't see him at the meeting with the president.

KING: He didn't come?

WARNER: Not to my knowledge. I didn't see him in the room.


while he has said before


October 11, 2002

Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle, D-S.D., who had objected to what he said was giving the president overly broad authority, announced he was supporting the resolution.

"I believe it is important for America to speak with one voice," said Daschle. "It is neither a Democratic resolution nor a Republican resolution. It is now a statement of American resolve and values."

[Ben E Lou]

How 'bout THIS one, also from Daschle: Feb. 11, 1998

Look, we have exhausted virtually all our diplomatic effort to get the Iraqis to comply with their own agreements and with international law. Given that, what other option is there but to force them to do so? ... The answer is, we don't have another option. We have got to force them to comply, and we are doing so militarily.

Oh yeah, he said that when Clinton was President... I guess he was wrong and we hadn't REALLY "exhausted virtually all our diplomatic effort," huh??? :rolleyes:

[Hammer755]

Fritz and SD,

Do you guys have sources for those quotes you could link?

[Fritz]

all of my Levin, and the latest Daschle is linked above in the King transcript.

the october quote can be found: http://abcnews.go.com/sections/us/DailyNews/iraq021011.html

[Hammer755]

Originally posted by Fritz
all of my Levin, and the latest Daschle is linked above in the King transcript.

the october quote can be found: http://abcnews.go.com/sections/us/DailyNews/iraq021011.html

Great, thanks.

[Ben E Lou]

The '98 Daschle quote is all over the place. Just copy and paste it into Google. It is on SO many sites, that either part of the "vast-right-wing-conspiracy" (:rolleyes:) or the truth. One of the most reputable sites would be that of Arizona Senator John Kyl: http://kyl.senate.gov/c091302.htm

I serously doubt that a Senator would intentionally mis-quote another Senator on a web site.

[QuikSand]

Senator Levin generally ranks pretty highly on the integrity scale, no matter your opinions of his policy positions.

[Craptacular]

Levin looked like an idiot on Nightline's "town hall" meeting a couple of weeks ago.

[astralhaze]

Wait, Tom Daschle is a flip-flopper only concerned with his own skin? Nawwwwwwwww.