Atrios takes a swipe at Congressional Democrats who voted for the Iraq war resolution last fall. Although I see the situation somewhat differently, Atrios' questions are reasonable ones to ask of elected officials. Of either party.
One thing that Atrios doesn't mention is that Congress had the option of simply saying, let's wait for a couple of months and see how the inspections go. A resolution in 2002 wasn't necessary. The War Powers Act gives the President full authority to respond to emergency military situations. There was no reason Congress couldn't have said to Bush, "We're not ready to authorize war. Come back to us in January or February. If war looks unavoidable, we'll take swift action on it then."
No matter how the politics of the thing eventually play out, Congress abdicated its responsibility last fall when it rushed through that resolution giving Bush general authority to go to war against Iraq. Especially without asking some hard questions about the (false) claims on "weapons of mass destruction," the (false) allegations about Iraqi ties to al-Qaeda and 9/11, the (grossly inadequate) plans for reconstruction, and diplomatic strategies for involving allies.
- Bruce Miller
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