#1 Dems try to ban 'Global War on Terror' phrase
Posted: Wed Apr 04, 2007 4:28 pm
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By ANNE FLAHERTY, Associated Press Writer
1 hour, 5 minutes ago
WASHINGTON - Democrats and Republicans are at odds on whether to use President Bush's catchall phrase "global war on terrorism" when talking about the billions of dollars spent each year in Iraq and elsewhere.
A new internal memo by a senior Democratic staff member urged aides to drop the term from their legislative dictionaries because it was too broad. The directive quickly led to a linguistic dispute between the parties.
"The attempt by Democrats to erase the words 'global' and 'terror' from our current war is an absurd effort to deny the fact that America is battling terrorism on a global scale," said House Republican leader John Boehner (news, bio, voting record), R-Ohio. "How do Democrats expect America to fight and win a war they deny is even taking place?"
At the heart of the debate is whether efforts in Iraq should be linked to the U.S. fight against al-Qaida.
Bush used al-Qaida and the Sept. 11 attacks as leading justifications for the 2003 invasion of Iraq, although intelligence officials later disputed the connection.
U.S. officials say some members of al-Qaida have since joined the fight in Iraq against American forces, and Bush has said success in Iraq is critical to winning the fight against terrorism.
"I don't think the enemy makes the distinction" between the fights in Iraq and Afghanistan, said White House counselor Dan Bartlett. "I don't think we should."
Democrats, however, say they are tired of Bush's use of the blanket term "global war on terror" to justify individual military operations and their hefty budgets.
Erin Conaton, the Democratic staff director of the House Armed Services Committee, urged aides in a March 27 memo to "avoid using colloquialisms," such as the "war on terrorism" or the "long war," and not to use the term "global war on terrorism." In preparing the annual defense authorization bill, the staff is directed to be more specific, such as referring to operations in Iraq.
Rep. Ike Skelton (news, bio, voting record), the committee chairman and Conaton's boss, defended the memo.
"GOP objections to our efforts to clarify legislative language represent the typical Republican leadership attempt to tie together the misadventure in Iraq and the overall war against terrorists," Skelton, D-Mo., said in a statement Wednesday.
"The Iraq war is separate and distinct from the war against terrorists, who have their genesis in Afghanistan and who attacked us on 9/11, and the American people understand this," Skelton said.
The dispute also pointed out the tensions among lawmakers concerning the war debate. Congress adjourned last week for spring break after Democrats rammed through legislation that would fund the war in Iraq but order troops to begin coming home.
The House and Senate are expected by the end of the month to send Bush a compromise that will set some timetable on the war. Bush has promised to veto it; Republicans say they will support him.
In recent days, the two sides have struggled for the upper hand. Democrats contend they have public opinion on their side. Bush says majority Democrats are turning their backs on troops.
Stacey Farnen Bernards, spokeswoman for House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (news, bio, voting record), D-Md., said Republicans were playing "silly word games in an attempt to score political points" in the debate.