Cracks, Part Four

The Hill is reporting that the cracks in the Democratic position on the Iraq war have reached a crisis point. The hard left is in shock after Nancy Pelosi suddenly reversed herself and will allow a floor vote on a bill they thought had been killed.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) reversed herself on Iraq strategy Wednesday, revealing a fight within the Democratic Caucus over how much Democrats should compromise to gain agreement with Republicans on the unpopular war.

Progressive Caucus leaders were fuming after they walked into a meeting with Pelosi to find out that she had decided to allow a vote Thursday on an Iraq bill they consider too mild.

Sponsored by Reps. Neil Abercrombie (D-Hawaii) and John Tanner (D-Tenn.), the bill would order President Bush to deliver within two months a plan on how to redeploy troops. It will be on the suspension calendar, meaning there will be no amendments, but it needs a two-thirds majority to pass.

That bill got 24 Republican votes in the Armed Services Committee last week, but it may lose votes from liberal Democrats who have pledged not to support Iraq redeployment measures that don’t include a “date certain.”

“It takes us backwards,” said Rep. Lynn Woolsey (D-Calif.), an Out of Iraq caucus leader. “If Democrats want to give Republicans votes to go home with when they’ve done nothing to redeploy our troops, that’s bad.”

Progressive leaders feel that such measures give cover to Republicans to go home for the August break and tell constituents they have voted for redeployment, without voting on strict measures that would order Bush to bring the troops home.

The cracks are now so wide you could drive a truck through them. The devastatingly bad poll results for Congress cut both ways, and the pols know it. House Dems from closely divided districts run a real chance of destroying their hopes for reelection by following the hard left on this. They know it, that's why things are beginning to shatter.