Harry Reid - Red Shoed Bozo?

American Interests vs Party Pandering Power? What a conundrum that must have been for poor old Harry (Idjit - Nevada) Reid. On the one hand, to appear statesman-like in one's pronouncements, on the other a deep need to appear to be in charge and to garner the kind of ink that Nancy Pelosi did by acting as though she were the Secretary of State conferring with a thug like Assad. You'd think that old Harry would be a little bit more circumspect, but nooooooo, he has to act like the fool. In fact, the Review Journal, a Las Vegas, Nevada paper noted in its opinion column:

The Democratic strategy to use the ongoing violence in Iraq to their political advantage in the run-up to the 2008 elections requires some skill and nuance. But it's growing harder to believe Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid -- Nevada's own -- actually possesses those skills.

The Democratic strategy is anything but straightforward.

Sen. Reid and his colleagues know there is much political hay to be made by criticizing President Bush's planning and conduct of the post-war occupation. But they also know that while "cut our losses and pull out" plays well in Democratic caucuses, it failed in the Connecticut general election in 2006, when Sen. Joseph Lieberman and his anti-surrender stance handily defeated end-the-war candidate Ned Lamont -- even though Sen. Lieberman had to run as an independent to pull it off.

That's the kind of "poll" that really counts.

Thus, the Democrats' careful strategy requires them to appear to oppose Mr. Bush's ongoing occupation of Iraq (to please their pacifist base), without taking any concrete, "binding" actions to change the status quo.

Enter Sen. Reid, flopping around in big red shoes like Bozo the Clown."

What he actually meant to say is that Iraq is lost if we continue to follow President Bush's strategy, the Democratic leader explained -- while once more carefully resisting the temptation to put forward any better strategy.

Sen. Reid then attempted the old cushion shot -- "deny everything and make counter-accusations" -- as he sought to shift the blame to those who had criticized him the day before.

"The partisans who launched attacks on my comments are the same ones who continue to support a failed strategy that hurts our troops," Sen. Reid said.

Ah. But it doesn't "hurt our troops" to tell them -- and the enemy -- that our Marines and G.I.s are risking their lives in a lost cause before they even suit up and start their engines for this morning's patrol?