Webloggin » Democrats Cut (Money) and Run

I mentioned on my radio program and have written before that the only power Congress has over the military is the power of the purse. They have no authority to move troops or to have those troops engage in battle but they do have the power to stop paying for the troops. Dennis Kucinich has now proposed this very act. It should come as no surprise that the Democrats would cut funding for the troops. They claim to support the troops but by cutting the money they are showing a lack of support.

“I want to say that there’s one solution here, and it’s not to engage in a debate with the President, who has taken us down a path of disaster in Iraq, but it’s for Congress to assume the full power that it has under the Constitution to cut off funds. We don’t need to keep indulging in this debate about what to do, because as long as we keep temporizing, the situation gets worse in Iraq.

“We have to determine that the time has come to cut off funds. There’s enough money in the pipeline to achieve the orderly withdrawal that Senator McGovern is talking about. But cut off funds, we must. That’s the ultimate power of the Congress, the power of the purse. That’s how we’ll end this war, and that’s the only way we’re going to end this war. Kucinich website

Kucinich does not believe it is time to engage in debate. What he is saying is “We are in charge now so do what we tell you.” Fortunately, the President has the veto pen and can veto any budget that does not provide for the troops. The President can also veto budgetary items for many things that are not war related so the Democrats should be careful about not engaging in debate. There will be no debate if the President vetoes anything because the Democrats do not have enough power to override any veto.

This all comes as Senator Carl Levin, the man slated to take over the Armed Services Committee, stated that it was time to tell Iraqis that we were pulling out and that they needed to fend for themselves. That should surprise no one given that pulling out is a Democratic delight (If Bill Clinton had not “pulled out” he might have never been caught). The Democrats are always in favor of an act but when it gets tough they want to cut and run. Now, Kucinich wants to cut money and Levin wants to run. If they slap our troops in the face now like they did to the men and women who served in Vietnam, there will be another period of poor recruitment and low morale just as their was after that war. At this time in history a weakened and dispirited military is the last thing we need.

Others: Wizbang