According to a Plain Dealer op-ed piece, Rosemary Palmer is going to run against Dennis Kucinich for his seat in Congress in the 2008 Democratic primary. Palmer's son died fighting in Iraq so one would think she was running to support her son against Kucinich's anti-war position, but she is running as an anti-war candidate. Why run as an anti-war candidate against one of the most anti-war members of Congress? The article lists three reasons, but none of them make sense.
Reason 1: Kucinich's Presidential Run
I've written previously about people in Cleveland being upset about Kucinich's presidential run so I won't write about it again. The article doesn't state why Palmer is upset about Kucinich's decision to run for President, but I can think of only reason why from an anti-war point of view. Instead of running for President, he should be working in Congress to end the war. Sounds reasonable, right?
The problem is there are only two ways to end the Iraq war: the President can withdraw troops or Congress can cut off funding for the war. The Democratic Congress has shown they are not going to cut off funding because they are afraid of being accused of hurting the troops. Because Congress won't cut off funding for the war, becoming President is the only way Kucinich can end the war.
Reason 2: Kucinich Wants to Immediately Withdraw from Iraq
Apparently the problem with Kucinich's anti-war stance is he wants to end the war too quickly. Why bring the troops home now when we can wait 6-12 months to do so? Forcing another 500-1000 families to suffer the pain Palmer has suffered because an immediate withdrawal is "unrealistic" sounds insane.
Reason 3: Kucinich Doesn't Get Along with Congressional Party Leaders
Kucinich doesn't cooperate with high-ranking congressional Democrats, keeping him from being assigned to important committees. A more flexible Representative could get better committee assignments. This argument could be valid for many things (assuming Palmer could gain enough seniority and the Democrats still held the House when she gained the seniority), but not for ending the war. How is cooperating with Democratic congressional leaders going to end the war?
The Democratic leaders have shown they are not going to cut off funding for the war, and they have no interest in doing so. Rahm Emmanuel is more interested in cutting off funding for Dick Cheney's office than in cutting off war funding. The Democratic leaders want the war to continue so they can use it as an issue in the 2008 election. They would prefer soldiers losing their lives to losing an election. Cooperation isn't going to bring the troops home.
Conclusion
I'm glad Rosemary Palmer is running for Congress. We need competitive primary and general elections to keep our representatives alert. But Palmer needs to better explain how she would end the Iraq war faster than Dennis Kucinich. Criticizing immediate withdrawal isn't going to cut it with anti-war voters.
