"The Right Angle"

Heidi Parent

September 11, 2001

Wasn't once enough?

by Heidi Parent
09/16/03

Two years after the September 11th attacks it is safe to say that our country is back to normal, which is to say politics rings eternal.

The day after the President's recent address to the nation, I found myself smack dab in the heartland of America - Moline, Illinois. Watching the local news coverage I was struck by the result of a local poll that asked the question: Do you support the President's request for $87 billion? The result was 67% no and 33% yes. 67% no?! How could any American who lived through the horror of 9/11 not think winning the War on Terror is worth $87 billion more?

But my headshaking had just begun. A local radio talk show spent the afternoon taking calls about the President's plan. The majority of callers who opposed the plan did so on the mistaken fact that domestic programs would suffer if $87 billion more was spent in Iraq. Wow. I checked my itinerary. Maybe I had taken a wrong turn and ended up in Berkeley. Nope, this was Moline.

Then it sunk in. As the old saying goes, all's fair in love, war and politics and much of this misinformation can be blamed on the Democrat strategy for the upcoming political season. So much for all that talk during the Clinton years about "politics stopping at the water's edge."

Known to seize every opportunity to grandstand, many Democrats are doing just that. Senator Robert Byrd said that he would not "rubber stamp" the President's request because "Congress is not an ATM." An unbelievable statement considering it came from a member of Congress, but an even more unbelievable statement when that member of Congress is the King of Pork himself. Compared to the many other programs on which government wastes money, the fact that we are even debating the President's request is quite laughable. Congress shouldn't be asking, "why?" They should be asking, "why only $87 billion?" And following it with, "We want to make sure we win, Mr. President, so how about $187 billion?"

Still others are placing a "yes, but…" contingency on their support. "Yes, I'll vote for spending the money to support our troops, but first the President must state an exit strategy." Anyone who makes that argument clearly doesn't understand the kind of war we are fighting. But if they insist, the exit strategy is this: we will leave Iraq when we have won and not a moment before. How long will that take? It will take as long as it takes. Only a fool would leave sooner.

But the most damaging aspect of their strategy is this. The very same Democrats who immediately after 9/11 pledged to "stand shoulder to shoulder with the President in the War on Terror" have made a conscious decision to intentionally mislead the American people by saying the war in Iraq is not part of the War on Terror. The result of their strategy is diminished support for the war in Iraq (as the above poll indicates), and consequently diminished support for the overall War on Terror. Both of which, quite frighteningly, leave our nation less secure. But most importantly, their decision to undermine both the President and the war effort begs the question: should we really be listening to, much less supporting or voting for, people who would intentionally risk the security of our nation in an effort to gain ground during a political campaign?

But if you're still not sure where you stand on the question of the $87 billion, consider two things.

First, just because there hasn't been a terrorist attack in this country in the two years since 9/11 does not mean we have won. Certainly we are winning, but we must continue to do all we can to ensure ultimate victory.

Secondly, September 11, 2001, is perhaps the most I'll-never-forget-where-I-was moment any of us will ever have. Every American will always remember where he was on that day, but two years on it seems many Americans have forgotten how they felt.

So if you're not sure where you stand, go back and watch the coverage of 9/11 again. Watch again with horror at the sight of the two planes hitting the World Trade Center. Relive the shock you felt as you watched fellow Americans jump from the burning towers. Recall the sickening feeling you had watching the smoldering ruins of the Pentagon. The disbelief you felt as the first and then second tower fell. The when-will-it-end feeling as you stared at the airplane shaped crater left in a Pennsylvania field by the fourth hijacked plane. The heart wrenching stories of those last phone calls to loved ones. The rage you felt watching the terrorists' supporters in the Middle East rejoice when they heard news of the attacks. The helpless feeling you had at the sight of the thousands of missing person posters plastering New York City. The gratitude and support you felt for the rescue workers who refused to give up hope in their desperate search for victims. Recall trying to comprehend the overwhelming number of innocent victims and the prayers that were sent by many of us for the widows, widowers, and children left behind.

After having done that, ask yourself again - is it worth spending $87 billion to prevent another 9/11?