Washington Democrats view [the Iraq war] as a political opportunity; Republicans view it as a political burden...It should be neither.

- John McCain, April 12, 2007

There really is only one moral justification for supporting the withdrawal of troops from Iraq, and only one moral justification for supporting the recent surge in troop activity. Rest assured that our politicians understand the arguments on both sides. Unfortunately, both parties have failed to make their cases in a clear cut manner, and consequently failed their duty to both the troops and the American public.

Exiting from Iraq because "Bush lied, people died" or because "the war is lost" is not a serious argument for withdrawal any longer. Both assertions ignore the reality in Iraq today. While it is true that the current administration vastly underestimated the insurgency, and failed to plan for an occupation with adequate force, it has been shown time and time again that George Bush did not lie us into this war. Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid know this to be true. If leaders of the majority truly feel that the President of the United States lied to start a war in Iraq, it is their obligation to begin proceedings calling for is impeachment. But they don't, because they understand that the President believed what everyone else believed- from Bill Clinton and John Kerry to George Tennant and Colin Powell - that Saddam Hussein posed a threat to the U.S.A.

Nor have we lost the war, as Senator Reid suggests. We won the war- Saddam was overthrown and his weapon-making capability was destroyed with him. We may be losing the occupation, the struggle against the insurgency, but we won the war we set out to fight.

The war in Iraq is a much different struggle than anyone expected. The overthrowing and execution of Saddam left a void that thousands of militant Muslims want to fill. They now see Iraq as the central front in the war against America and the West. We can't change or deny that fact. It should not matter how we got to this point. What matters most is how we will deal with this new threat. Yes, George Bush created this mess. But it is a mess that we must take care of, one way or the other.

The only moral justification for supporting a troop withdrawal at this point in the war, is because you believe that doing so will force the fragile, scattered Iraqi government to stand on its own and be responsible for its own country. If you truly feel that the Iraqi government is ready to stand on its own and defend its citizens, and you are willing to take your share of the responsibility should the country descend into a chaotic bloodbath, then you have a moral cause for supporting the current withdrawal proposed by congress. Such an accomplishment would mean a victory for the U.S. in Iraq and against al-Qaeda.

But why do the Democrats continually neglect to explain the reasoning for the proposed withdrawal? Instead of describing what will happen upon our departure, both leaders of the Senate and the House continue to insist that the voters gave them a mandate to end this war. That is not an explanation worthy of a leader. Exiting Iraq because the people who voted for you want it, regardless of consequences, is purely a political move. If Nancy Pelosi truly believed in her mandate, she would be championing all the other issues that Americans overwhelmingly support, such as a ban on partial birth abortion, defining marriage as a strictly heterosexual union, and stemming the tide of illegal aliens into our country. By placing the onus of this withdrawal on the voters, Reid and Pelosi are creating a cover for themselves. If all hell breaks loose, as many have predicted, they can simply say "the voters wanted it! We fulfilled our obligation."

Clearly, Americans want a new course in Iraq. I have to assume that the course they would chose, overwhelmingly, is victory. Victory at this point could also be achieved if U.S. forces were able to stem the violence long enough for the Iraqi government to become a stable cohesive entity, and could take over all aspects of governing the country, including defending itself against its enemies. That is the only moral justification for supporting the recent "surge".

Yet Republicans continually deflect any explanation as to what the troop surge is supposed to accomplish. Instead, the Bush administration continually warns us of what will happen if we withdraw. They tell us of the bloodshed that will be unleashed. They tell us that Iran and Syria will become emboldened and move into the void we leave behind. They remind us that by leaving Iraq we would show our enemies that we are weak. All of these assertions are valid. But none of them attempt to explain what a victory in Iraq would or should look like.

Our leaders are not moral. Nor do they truly support our troops. Both sides have failed to provide us with a viable strategy based on a realistic goal. They understand the consequences of their actions. George Bush knows that a victory in Iraq is vital to our national security. He also understands that it will cost more American lives, and more American tax dollars. But he won't say it. Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid both understand that a withdrawal from Iraq may come at a high price. It might cost many thousand Iraq lives and make the region far more unstable than it is now. But they are not compelled to take responsibility when they have the American voters to hide behind.