Quite a powerful line. Pretty much sums up how most of this country is thinking - why the heck is our majority party (elected to take stop this war) now thinking of compromising with this president and the GOP?
I took that line from Richardson -
"The time for deal-making is long past. We need real leadership in Washington to end this war and bring all of our troops home. The American people elected this Congress to create change and get us out of Iraq, and yet it still has not happened.
"Small concessions and Beltway brokered deals will only allow the bloodshed to continue. As Senators compromise, soldiers die.
"The longer our troops remain in Iraq, the longer we remain an excuse for the different groups in Iraq to avoid finding a political and diplomatic solution to the war.
"Our brave military has accomplished its mission. There is nothing more for them to do but to serve as targets for insurgents.
"I am the only major candidate who believes we should leave no residual forces in Iraq- zero. My opponents would leave behind an indeterminate number of residual forces.
"Only with a complete U.S. troop withdrawal -- supported by an all-Muslim U.N. peacekeeping force, aggressive regional diplomacy, and an Iraqi Reconciliation Conference to bring the different factions together -- can Iraq begin down the road toward security and stability."
Pay attention, netroots. There is a Governor in the race, who, among countless domestic and foreign accomplishments may be one of the best grassroots campaigners this party has seen. (I'll cite the Guinness Book of World Records for that). He also happens to be the most clearly in line with the American people on this war. While Clinton and Obama wrestle endlessly with their Senate votes and Chris Dodd parlays his low-second tier status into positioning (and by the way -I AM NOT TRYING TO ELECT ANOTHER NORTHEASTERN LIBERAL AS PRESIDENT...so sorry Dodd lovers).
Richardson is there. He has the experience. He makes jokes (sometimes bad ones, but more often funny) and is a real human being who has done great things for his home state. I know I'm pretty biased, but damn. It's pretty clear.
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