Bring Them Home Now a fraud - honest dissent absent on the left

The political left lost the debate over going to war with Iraq and the United States achieved one of the greatest military victories in history despite their vocal opposition.  Days after the statue of Saddam Hussein was brought down by celebrating Iraqis who were experiencing freedom for the first time the political left bemoaned the fact that some Iraqis were looting symbols of the repressive regime.  Within weeks of major combat operations ending liberals were lamenting that U.S. troops had not discovered stock piles of chemical weapons or captured Saddam and his evil sons. 

American reporters began doing stories about Iraqi protests that had twenty participants and the fact that some electricity had not been restored in the country.  It didn’t matter that the vast majority of Iraqis were not protesting or that electricity was being distributed at levels that exceeded distribution prior to the war.  It seemed that the press and the political left were looking for a scandal, but kept coming up short of anything that would move the American people.

During the State of the Union speech given by President Bush last year he told the American people that British Intelligence learned that Iraq was attempting to import nuclear related items from Africa.  As it turns out the 16 words Bush used to help remind the world the danger Saddam Hussein posed to America’s security was in dispute within American intelligence circles.  Democrats and the press rejoiced – the finally had a scandal that they thought would resonate with the American people.  They began an all out assault against the Bush administration with Democratic candidates and operatives alike using words like “deceived” and “liar” as part of their scripted attacks to paint President Bush as being dishonest with the American people.  The scandal seemed to have legs – until Prime Minister Tony Blair cut them out from under it.

At the height of the scandal about the nuclear materials from Africa, Prime Minister Blair visited the United States and reaffirmed British confidence in the intelligence that Bush described in the State of the Union.  Blair was certain that his intelligence sources were correct and in both a joint news conference carried live on every station and in a speech before a joint session of Congress he explained to the American people the circumstances surrounding it.  The one time full blown political scandal quickly became no more than a political burp despite attempts by both the media and the left to turn it into Watergate.  There seemed to be nothing the media could report or the left could spin that would turn America against her President.

Somewhere in the depths of liberal and leftist ideology lives the disgusting notion that when it comes to bringing down a Republican any method is an acceptable one.  It matters very little whether or not it includes the tasteless and disrespectful use of dead servicemen to further their political goal or enlisting military parents and spouses to spread rumor and anecdotes as fact.  The only thing that seems to matter to the left is that they win elections against Republicans and that President Bush be shown as a sloppy and inept leader.

In July President Bush came under fire for using the words, “Bring ‘em on” when speaking about the one and two man attacks taking place against U.S. soldiers in Iraq.  The press seized on the comment as irresponsible and arrogant given the seriousness of the situation, but U.S. military men and their leaders liked the tough talk.  Asked by Diane Sawyer some days after the comment if he agreed with the President, General Tommy Franks said, “Absolutely.”

The left and the media still haven’t caught on that men who serve in the military are tough and they can’t be bothered with the political correctness that the rest of us have to endure.  They like strength and confident talk and when the President makes comments that the left looks at as cavalier and pompous – the military eats it up.  The same can’t be said by an organization formed to use members of the military, both living and dead, to further their anti-war agenda.

Bring Them Home Now held a press conference on August 13^th that featured the grieving parents of a United States Marine killed during the war in Iraq as well as parents of men and women currently serving there.  Press releases and speakers for the organization said it was formed after President Bush’s “Bring ‘em on” remark angered so many parents and loved ones of servicemen and women.  Pictures of dead Marines and soldiers decorated the press area as their loved ones were held out as victims of the tyrannical President Bush and “his” war and occupation of Iraq.  The whole thing was a classless and despicable exploitation of people who were grieving for their loved ones who willingly sacrificed their lives so that the world would be more peaceful.

The organization seemed to be very well organized since they had websites, glossy photos, literature, and a panel of speakers as well as the families of American servicemen.  After the press conference I contacted the group and inquired of them how they were financed and who provided the expensive travel accommodations to bring in all of the families and speakers.  I was told that the information was not for public dissemination, but that they were an independent group formed because of a cowboy President who offended families. 

Realizing that organizing political organizations, unless you’re in California, takes some time and effort along with considerable expense I checked out the group’s website.  Other than anti-war messages and the same material they gave out at their press conference there was little new to be had.  What was there was the reaffirmation that they formed because of President Bush’s July 2003 remarks.  Fair enough, but then I began to surf the site only to realize that I had seen much of the same pictures and documents before – this seemed to be just another anti-war website that was changed to reflect the fact that the war actually happened.

As it turns out Bring Them Home Now was not formed in July 2003 as a result of remarks made by President Bush as organizers contend, but in February 2003 – before the war even began.  The group’s website was created by Andrew Boyd of Brooklyn, New York who is also an adjunct professor at NYU (he can be reached at ab131@nyu.edu) and a leftist ideologue who authored The Activist Cookbook and other left leaning pieces.  Boyd has been involved in liberal causes for years and boasts his experience as an organizer against President Bush on his resume. 

The whole thing is a fraud that uses the memory of dead Marines and the grief of their families to draw attention to their failed anti-war agenda.  Instead of protesting honestly against the presence of troops in Iraq, no matter how misguided that position, Boyd and his liberal cronies exploit the death of American heroes.  The group knows that they will be ignored if they continue to beat the anti-war drum because the vast majority of Americas believe in the President and his policy to protect this country, but nobody can ignore a mother clutching the picture of her dead son.  The whole thing is disgusting.

Protests are an important part of the political process, but to do what Andrew Boyd of Brooklyn has done is not protest – it is simply political deceit.  The group should at least be honest with what they stand for and when and why they were formed.  Doing anything else besmirches the memory of the men who are being used to further a goal – despite the fact that they cannot be here to refuse them.  I wonder if Boyd or the families of these dead Marines and soldiers ever considered that the people whose pictures they are using to defeat President Bush might actually be proud of their service and their sacrifice.

I suppose we’ll never know.