Wednesday, November 30, 2005
Nancy Pelosi, John Murtha in Anti-war Scheme
News reports say that House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi "reversed course" yesterday by endorsing Rep. John Murtha's call for an "immediate redeployment" of U.S. forces out of Iraq.
"We should follow the lead of Congressman John Murtha, who has put forth a plan to make American safer, to make our military stronger and to make Iraq more stable," Pelosi said. "That is what the American people and our troops deserve."
However, the San Francisco Democrat's "reversal" was really nothing of the kind. In fact, Pelosi and Murtha began scheming to put President Bush on the defensive over the Iraq war at least three weeks ago.
Most of the press painted Murtha's Nov. 17 call for a pullout as a spontaneous burst of conscience, a perception that helped gin-up pressure on the White House.
But according to Newsweek's Howard Fineman, the entire episode had been cooked up by Pelosi and her longtime Pennsylvania pal.
"[Pelosi] was anxious to open a second axis of attack on Iraq - and was aware of [Murtha's] growing antagonism toward the war," he reported.
"The two met and agreed that he would make his case in private to the party conference. After that, on his own, he would introduce a resolution calling for withdrawal of troops from Iraq 'at the earliest practicable date.'"
The scheme, Fineman said, called for "Pelosi and the other liberals [to] keep their distance, while their own Marine charged up the Hill. Framed by long rows of American flags at a press conference, [Murtha] denounced the Iraq war as a 'flawed policy wrapped in an illusion.'"
After Murtha rolled out Act One of their plot, Pelosi played dumb - just as the plan called for.
Asked whether she backed his call for a withdrawal, she told reporters: "Mr. Murtha speaks for himself."
The Washington Post noted: "At her afternoon news conference, Pelosi was meticulous in avoiding any agreement with Murtha's 'very provocative' statement."
"But do you agree with the call for immediate withdrawal?" a reporter asked.
Pelosi replied: "As I said, that was Mr. Murtha's statement."
In fact, Pelosi and Murtha are close allies in the House - so much so that the Pennsylvania Democrat actually managed her campaign to become House Minority Leader.
And it looks like the two of them have been spinning their anti-war schemes for some time now.
When Murtha called the Iraq war "unwinnable" at a May 2004 press conference, Pelosi was standing by his side.
Moments before, she had introduced Murtha to reporters as "one of the most recognized experts on defense in the country."
Before he spoke, the San Francisco Democrat seemed to know exactly what Murtha was going to say, announcing that her defense expert would be delivering a "wake up call for the administration."
News reports say that House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi "reversed course" yesterday by endorsing Rep. John Murtha's call for an "immediate redeployment" of U.S. forces out of Iraq.
"We should follow the lead of Congressman John Murtha, who has put forth a plan to make American safer, to make our military stronger and to make Iraq more stable," Pelosi said. "That is what the American people and our troops deserve."
However, the San Francisco Democrat's "reversal" was really nothing of the kind. In fact, Pelosi and Murtha began scheming to put President Bush on the defensive over the Iraq war at least three weeks ago.
Most of the press painted Murtha's Nov. 17 call for a pullout as a spontaneous burst of conscience, a perception that helped gin-up pressure on the White House.
But according to Newsweek's Howard Fineman, the entire episode had been cooked up by Pelosi and her longtime Pennsylvania pal.
"[Pelosi] was anxious to open a second axis of attack on Iraq - and was aware of [Murtha's] growing antagonism toward the war," he reported.
"The two met and agreed that he would make his case in private to the party conference. After that, on his own, he would introduce a resolution calling for withdrawal of troops from Iraq 'at the earliest practicable date.'"
The scheme, Fineman said, called for "Pelosi and the other liberals [to] keep their distance, while their own Marine charged up the Hill. Framed by long rows of American flags at a press conference, [Murtha] denounced the Iraq war as a 'flawed policy wrapped in an illusion.'"
After Murtha rolled out Act One of their plot, Pelosi played dumb - just as the plan called for.
Asked whether she backed his call for a withdrawal, she told reporters: "Mr. Murtha speaks for himself."
The Washington Post noted: "At her afternoon news conference, Pelosi was meticulous in avoiding any agreement with Murtha's 'very provocative' statement."
"But do you agree with the call for immediate withdrawal?" a reporter asked.
Pelosi replied: "As I said, that was Mr. Murtha's statement."
In fact, Pelosi and Murtha are close allies in the House - so much so that the Pennsylvania Democrat actually managed her campaign to become House Minority Leader.
And it looks like the two of them have been spinning their anti-war schemes for some time now.
When Murtha called the Iraq war "unwinnable" at a May 2004 press conference, Pelosi was standing by his side.
Moments before, she had introduced Murtha to reporters as "one of the most recognized experts on defense in the country."
Before he spoke, the San Francisco Democrat seemed to know exactly what Murtha was going to say, announcing that her defense expert would be delivering a "wake up call for the administration."
