MSM/DNC Questions That Weren't Supposed To Be Asked

[Annie]

http://corner.nationalreview.com/05_11_13_corner-archive.asp#082673

EJ & TROOP MORALE [Jonah Goldberg]

The thing I honestly don't understand from folks like EJ Dionne (Ramesh links below) is when they write things like this:

Bush was not subtle. He said that anyone accusing his administration of having "manipulated the intelligence and misled the American people" was giving aid and comfort to the enemy. "These baseless attacks send the wrong signal to our troops and to an enemy that is questioning America's will," Bush declared last week. "As our troops fight a ruthless enemy determined to destroy our way of life, they deserve to know that their elected leaders who voted to send them to war continue to stand behind them."

I can understand that liberals don't like to be told their arguments make the troops' job harder. Who would want to hear they're undermining the war effort?

But what EJ and so many others almost always fail to do is answer whether they think it's actually true. Does EJ think Bush is lying when he says that showing a lack of resolve is harmful to troop morale and/or encouraging to our enemies? Or does EJ think it is true but nobody should say it?

I mean that seems like an important part of the equation, doesn't it?

Moreover, this seems like exactly the sort of thing military bloggers should address in a serious and thoughtful way. There's an inherent conflict for the Mainstream Media to address precisely this sort of question because the media knows that their -- often necessary -- coverage of the war has a negative impact on the war effort. It is the unnecessary coverage that annoys me, by the way. But therein lies another debate.

Still, from the email I get from troops in Iraq and Afghanistan, I get the sense that some of the Democrats' efforts are decidedly unhelpful though these readers are generally more dismissive than outraged. But there are some obvious problems here. For example, I get email from soldiers and marines generally sympathetic to my politics. So it would make sense they'd be peeved at the Dems.

Anyway, I think this is a really interesting and overlooked topic. And simply because liberals whine when it's raised doesn't mean it's not true or worth discussing.