Democrats surrender to the Dark Side

Tony Phyrillas

"Fear is the path to the Dark Side."

— Yoda, Jedi Master

Imagine if today's liberal media, which dominates the flow of information, had been around during World War II. Suppose left-wing loons like Ted Kennedy, Babs Boxer, Madame Clinton and Daffy Dick Durban were in the Senate in the 1940s. What if a socialist billionaire like George Soros controlled the purse strings of a political party and could set up propaganda sites on the Internet, radio and television to spew anti-American drivel.

Imagine how the world would be different if a major political party had demanded the withdrawal of American forces from Europe on June 7, 1944, because a day earlier, the U.S. had suffered horrendous loses on the beaches of Normandy.

Let's talk casualties. Losing 2,000 soldiers in two years in Iraq (while tragic for every one of those families) is negligible compared to the 6,600 Americans lost in a single day on June 6, 1944, as allied forces began the liberation of Europe on D-Day. Did the Republican Party call for U.S. surrender to Nazi Germany because we sustained such heavy losses?

In the Pacific Theater, the U.S. lost 6,455 Marines and Navy personnel taking the island of Iwo Jima. U.S. casualties in the invasion of Okinawa totaled 7,272. Imagine all those lives lost to capture volcanic rock in the middle of nowhere. Did anyone demand we call off the war with Japan because we were losing too many Marines?

What exactly are Democrats doing calling for withdrawal from Iraq? Didn't they learn a lesson from Vietnam? What is the goal of the cut-and-run caucus? Why would political leaders who take an oath to defend this nation conspire with our enemies to break the will of the American government to win the war on terrorism?

Is the Democrats' lust for power so great that they would invite attacks on the United States to regain the White House? Is that their campaign strategy for 2006 and 2008? Can you imagine Screamin' Howard Dean saying, "Many American men, women and children will have to die, but at least we'll be back in power. Vote Democratic!"

If today’s "Blame America First" Democrats had been around in the 1940s, the U.S. would have withdrawn from the Pacific Theater after Pearl Harbor was bombed by the Japanese. The Democrats would have surmised that, like Sept. 11, 2001, the attack was a one-time deal. Our enemies would leave us alone if we gave into their demands.

That’s essentially the strategy John Kerry offered to voters last year when he said U.S. military action would have to pass a "global test." In other words, we'd have to go before the United Nations and ask countries run by dictators if we could have their permission to defend U.S. interests abroad.

Do Democrats think the American people are complete nincompoops? You can't win a war by retreating. Maybe John Kerry, Nancy Pelosi, Hillary Clinton or John Murtha don't remember where they were on Sept. 11, 2001, but every other American remembers that day.

They remember the horror of seeing buildings in our biggest city collapsing in flames. They can’t forget the terror of people jumping to their deaths from skyscrapers to avoid being burned alive. Nearly 3,000 Americans died that day because they went to work to feed their families. Is that what Democrats want? More 9/11s? That's exactly what will happen if we surrender to the terrorists.

It's easy to mouth off clichés into a TV camera, but I'd like to see one of these Democratic senators or House member calling for U.S. surrender to look a voter in the eye and tell them that 9/11 didn’t happen or that we can negotiate with terrorists. Now that members of Congress approved a nice fat pay raise for themselves and adjourned for a two-month vacation, you might be able to see a congressman around your district. Approach them and ask them to tell you exactly how we are going to be safer by showing Islamic fascists that Americans run in times of adversity.

The attacks on Sept. 11 happened because Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida tested the U.S. for 10 years with attacks on the World Trade Center, the Kohbar Towers, the U.S. embassies in Africa and the USS Cole. President Bill Clinton did not respond to any of those attacks. Sensing U.S. weakness, the terrorists upped the ante and launched the attacks of Sept. 11.

It's no coincidence that there has not been a terrorist attack on U.S. soil since President Bush ordered U.S. troops to Afghanistan and Iraq to fight the terrorists on their home turf. Fight them in Baghdad and Kabul or fight them in the streets of U.S. cities. That’s the only choice in the war on terror.

Democrats have proven they don’t have the stomach to defend this country. For the safety of our families and country, we must vote more of them out of Congress in 2006. We need to send a message to the terrorists — and their Democratic allies — that retreat is not an option. The United States will not stop until the war on terror is won.

E-mail Tony Phyrillas at tphyrillas@pottsmerc.com