Coleman Just Doesn't Get It

This week Senator Norm Coleman was asked "Based on what you know now, was your support for the war then wrong?” In other words: has the Iraq War been worth the cost? Well, to answer this, let's look at what the cost has been:

4102 American deaths since the war began on 1/19/03

30,333 American wounded
85,141 Iraqi casualties
530,598,000,000 Dollars spent on military action in Iraq

Iranian influence in Middle East strengthened

Thousands of Iraqi refugees have flooded into bordering countries creating instability

Al-Qaeda/Taliban given renewed strength in Afghanistan because forces have been diverted to Iraq

World opinion of America tarnished

What have we achieved from the war?

Saddam Hussein is gone
Stability has been restored because of the surge, but there has been no political progress
The question was NOT whether we should stay in Iraq until we achieve victory or whether we should withdraw immediately. That is a different question. The question was whether the war has been worth the cost and whether it was a mistake. Even when many other Republican Senators have said the war was a mistake, Norm Coleman still believes the war has been worth the cost. Whether Norm Coleman said this out of stupidity or something else, his statement shows a massive failure in judgment and shows a lack of courage to stand up on principle.

Al Franken has said he would have voted for the war. Norm Coleman has said he made the right decision in supporting the war. Mike Ciresi had the judgment and courage to oppose this war from the start. Unlike Al Franken, who has been on both sides of this this issue, and unlike Norm Coleman, who has been consistently out of touch with Minnesotans, Mike Ciresi has been the candidate who has been against the war from the start and provided responsible plan for getting us out of Iraq.

Mike Ciresi cannot be criticized for flip-flopping on the war, but he can assail Norm Coleman for his support of President Bush and his war.