War Hero Attacked by Chickenhawks

War Hero John Murtha Under Attack From Chickenhawks


As the first of our Raunchy Rhetoric Report (from the Stupidity Factor Series), we present a recent case of abusive rhetoric by the White House. We call this technique "False Similitude."

This is when you find one feature of the "victim" that is similar or the same as someone who has already been demonized by previous abusive rhetoric, such as saying Ted Turner is an Adolph Hitler because he has a mustache.

From CNN REPORT (November 18th, 2006)
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The White House accused a senior House Democrat -- and a decorated Vietnam veteran -- who called for a swift withdrawal from Iraq of advocating surrender, comparing him to anti-war filmmaker Michael Moore.

In a broadside issued Thursday night, Bush spokesman Scott McClellan said that it is "baffling that [Pennsylvania Rep. John Murtha] is endorsing the policy positions of Michael Moore and the extreme liberal wing of the Democratic party."

McClellan called Murtha, a retired Marine colonel who earned a Bronze Star and two Purple Hearts for his service in Vietnam, "a respected veteran and politician who has a record of supporting America."

But McClellan added, "The eve of an historic democratic election in Iraq is not the time to surrender to the terrorists."

A senior Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee, Murtha had supported the resolution that authorized the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

But Thursday he called the Bush administration's management of the conflict "a flawed policy wrapped in illusion," and said the continued presence of U.S. troops in Iraq is "uniting the enemy against us." (Watch Murtha's take on 'flawed policy wrapped in illusion' -- 8:11)

"It's time to bring the troops home," he said, noting that a withdrawal would take about six months to complete. (Read more on his statement)

He also took a swipe at Vice President Dick Cheney and President Bush, who have accused Democratic critics of playing politics during a war.

"I like guys who've never been there who criticize us who've been there," Murtha said. "I like that. I like guys who got five deferments and never been there and sent people to war and then don't like to hear suggestions that what may need to be done."

Cheney avoided military service during the 1960's Vietnam era with a series of draft deferments, and Bush served stateside in the National Guard during Vietnam.

Murtha was wounded twice in Vietnam.

White House Counselor Dan Bartlett called Murtha's position "out of the mainstream of his own party," and said that "immediate withdrawal would be, as one general on the ground put it, a recipe for disaster."

Bartlett also called Murtha's reference to Cheney's draft deferments "unfair" and "beside the point," noting there is a long list of wartime presidents who served ably without military experience."

A response here would be, "Sir, first you make a false similitude between an award winning film maker you have demonized, and the senior house democrat, based on one opinion that they share, and in fact share with 54% of the American people, most of whom have never seen a Michael Moore movie. Ted Turner has a mustache, but that doesn't make him Hitler. Then you make a false similitude between Bush and several real presidents based on the common experience of not going to war. If you could provide that list, which is actually pretty short, you would see that the other presidents were actually elected to office and are dissimilar in countless ways. Their success and good judgment in war does not excuse Bush's incompetence. That's like saying "Me and Jesus both wear sandals, so I must be the Son of God." (The article continues..)

Not all Democrats are lining up behind Murtha.

Fellow veteran Sen. John Kerry, who also voted for the Iraq resolution, disagrees with Murtha's call for a swift withdrawal, arguing instead for a phased withdrawal linked "to the success of the election."

But Kerry, who lost to Bush in last year's election, blasted the administration, saying that it was engaging in scare tactics by equating criticism of the war to encouraging the insurgency. (Read interview)

Nearly 2,100 American troops have died in Iraq since the March 2003 invasion that toppled Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein -- a war that top U.S. officials said was needed to strip Iraq of illicit stockpiles of chemical and biological weapons and efforts to produce a nuclear bomb.

No such weapons have turned up since Hussein's government collapsed in April 2003.

(In fact one new biological weapon did show up in Iraq,a powder that causes Acute Hemmoraging Conjunctivitis, and is now being used against U.S. citizens who are considered dissident.)


Of Current Interest (from same article)

Divide over the war
Public support for the conflict has dropped sharply over the last few months. Only 35 percent of those surveyed in a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll published Monday supported the Bush administration's handling of the conflict, and 54 percent said the invasion was a mistake.

The poll also found that 19 percent of Americans want to see the troops come home now, and 33 percent said they wanted them home within a year. Only 38 percent said they should remain "as long as needed."

Republicans in the House said the United States was making progress in the conflict, with Iraqis voting in October to ratify a new constitution and elections for a permanent parliament scheduled in December.

CNN's Dana Bash and Deirdre Walsh contributed to this report.