Rep. Jim Moran, Then and Now

By Michael Goldfarb
Published February 28, 2007 9:21pm ET
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Here’s Rep. Jim Moran blogging at HuffPo yesterday (which is creepy enough given the HuffPo community’s shameful response to the attempt on Cheney’s life, eloquently described by Dean Barnett as a “paroxysm of joy diminished only by the fact that Cheney did not die“). Moran is writing about Murtha’s “slow-bleed” strategy:

They suggest that efforts such as giving our troops 1) mandatory home base time with their families between deployments — 365 days for the Army and 270 days for the Marines 2) sufficient training and equipment and 3) mandatory face to face physical, mental and emotional health evaluations upon their return from combat — a standard practice before this Administration came to power — will demoralize our soldiers and turn the Middle East into a cauldron of blood and chaos.

Actually, Murtha’s strategy, as described by Politico.com, isn’t about improving readiness, but hamstringing our military commanders in Iraq:

Top House Democrats, working in concert with anti-war groups, have decided against using congressional power to force a quick end to U.S. involvement in Iraq, and instead will pursue a slow-bleed strategy designed to gradually limit the administration’s options. . . . It would restrict the deployment of troops to Iraq unless they meet certain levels of adequate manpower, equipment and training to succeed in combat. That’s a standard Murtha believes few of the units Bush intends to use for the surge would be able to meet.

And then there’s this little tidbit, a statement from Moran on the floor of the House in the early days of the American-led NATO campaign to oust Milosevic. A resolution had been put forward that would have required Clinton to seek Congressional authorization for the use of ground troops should the bombing campaign fail in its objectives. Said Moran,

Mr . Speaker, I rise in strong opposition to this resolution, which would prohibit funding for ground forces unless deployment is specifically authorized. The only narrow exception provided in this measure is for rescuing US service personnel.

This resolution would undermine our ability to achieve NATO objectives in Kosovo and, more importantly, would send the wrong signal to President Milosevic about our resolve in the Balkans.

I encourage my colleagues to consider the ramifications of this resolution, which limits our country’s military leaders. If we are to ensure a stable Europe and stop the atrocities, then we must destroy Milosevic’s ability to wage his campaigns of ethnic cleansing.

I know, I know, when Democrats go to war it’s different. But take that last line, replace “Europe” with “Iraq” and “Milosevic” with “al Qaeda,” and you get the picture. Doesn’t Murtha’s plan “send the wrong signal” about our resolve to ensure a stable Iraq and stop the atrocities? Not for Moran, who wants only to see “our troops coming home and an end to this Administration’s ill-fated, misguided military adventure.” Why not just cut off funds entirely then? Because, call it what you will, this is a “slow-bleed” strategy.

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