A Modest Proposal for the GOP: A Sure-Fire Strategy For Victory in 2008 -- Lose!

As the death toll in Iraq nears the 3,000 mark and the fear and apprehension of further terrorist attacks remain alive both at home and abroad, one thing is clear: No one has a blueprint for peace in the Middle East and no one has an acceptable exit strategy to end the war in Iraq.

President Bush (Dubya to his friends) whose star rose as high as an AWAC in the days immediately after September 11, 2001, has seen his poll numbers drop like mega-ton smart bombs out of a desert sky. And in the days since he "landed" on an aircraft carrier, dripping with manufactured sweat and pride under the banner, "Mission Accomplished," he has been forced to look at the scoreboard and realize that tossing the Gatorade (R) on Dick "Halliburton Cheney's back was at best, premature.

Even as far back as 2004, staunch war supporter, Republican Representative Doug Bereuter of Nebraska, broke party ranks and faced reality.

"I've reached the conclusion, retrospectively, now that the inadequate intelligence and faulty conclusions are being revealed, that all things considered, it was a mistake to launch that military action," he said in a letter to his constituents. "Left unresolved is whether intelligence was intentionally misconstrued to justify military action..."

This from the Vice Chair of the House Intelligence Committee who has served 13 years in Congress.

Since then many have joined the choir, running for their political lives during mid-term elections. Many shun President Bush's appearances into their hood except for fund-raisers held by the devout party faithful.

Sen. John Warner of the Senate Arms Committee admitted publicly that maybe the cops had the wrong guy. Big Bad John distanced himself from the team as far as he could without changing lockerrooms.

Incredibly, the first hint of an exit strategy from military engagement in Iraq has come only recently. First Bush said: "We will no longer use the phrase, 'stay the course.'" Next, after summoning his top war generals to a White House crisis meeting, they decided to pass the buck to the Iraqi "army" to be ready, willing and able to take over the war effort in 12-18 months.

Brilliant!

Who knows what the human toll of death and misery will be by Election Day 2008? But it is a safe bet that you can't find a Las Vegas bookie to lay odds that the Iraqi army can be in control in 18 months.

There are many Americans who remember Vietnam. Many even, still affected by it. According to many New York City counselors who work the streets, more than 75% of the homeless population among Baby Boomer-age males is a Vietnam veteran. Only one of many signs of the veterans' ongoing problems.

The Iraq war may be different in many ways, but the language of some government officials is chillingly similar to the early days of Vietnam: "More troops are needed," "We will prevail." No doubt you will wake up one morning to hear General, President George W. Bush saying, "My fellow Americans, there is light at the end of the tunnel." Mission Accomplished, indeed.

But this Iraq War is in many ways scarier than Vietnam. For one, the Viet Cong and their allies the North Vietnamese, weren't going to blow up anything over here. Or in Britain, or in Africa, or anywhere outside of Vietnam. They had no highly financed international network of supporters, no discreet cells in foreign countries. They had no Internet. That has all changed. Americans and all who support or even appear to support the war throughout the globe are potential targets for terrorist attacks.

The terrorists know they can strike us almost at will. They know the US has wide open borders (despite that stupid fence!) and ports and easy access to virtually anyplace where people gather: malls, stadiums, theaters, college dorms, etc. That prospect is so frightening that most Americans will turn away and put their heads in the sand. And with filtered media coverage, no photos of flag-draped caskets and no draft, it is easy to follow Homeland Security's advice to, "go on with your lives."

And the further away we get from 9/11, the easier it is for Americans to say: "Why haven't they done it already if they could?"

But the war has taken an undeniably bad turn. And it appears there is no clear way out. So the Democrats, for the first time since the Lewinsky scandal, can smell victory in the air. The double whammy of Iraq and a host of Republican involved scandals, like Rep. Foley, are going to be too much for virtually any GOP candidate to bear.

The Democrats are relying on their tried and true strategy -- lie in wait for the Republicans to fall. So much for a message that resonates with citizens, so much for a clear vision of the future of the country -- and forget about a solution.

That is why I -- a lifelong Democrat -- offer the Republicans a sure fire way to win 2008: Lose.

GOP leaders should walk away from whomever the 2008 candidate is and let them go down in flames. Select a patsy to run -- maybe Jeannie Pirro if she hasn't landed a CNN commentary job by then.

In the meantime, get to work while the Democrats' champagne is still chilling. They haven't had an idea that resonated with the majority of Americans in over 30 years.

The last time even a flicker of a clear vision or message from the Democrats was in 2004, when Howard Dean was a contender for presidential candidate. He spoke with unflinching fire , although he made some missteps along the way. The "hooping" incident for one, where he kept chanting after winning a primary. The media ran that snippet more than they ran the Zapruder film of the JFK assassination. At least Dean didn't buck and run away. He did, however, get ganged up on by his Democratic colleagues at every debate, perhaps fearing he would outshine them all. In reality he had. His reward: Chairman of the DNC -- and a muzzle to go with it. Just ain't the same ol' Howard Dean.

But since then, instead of playing with the guts and fire of an NCAA Cinderella team in the Final Four, they started playing scared again.

The Democratic message, like the weapons of mass destruction, is no where to be found. What the Republicans should do in 2008 is hand them the hot potato of Iraq. In the four years of the Democratic administration, they should outflank them with the meanest most blowhard antagonists on one side to chastise and ridicule them. On the other side showcase their brightest, most articulate stars from Washington and state capitols across the country to weave the GOP message of "getting American back on track."

That's right, sit back and watch the Democrats fumble the ball: "Where is their Iraq exit strategy?" "Where are their answers to gas prices, health care, crime, taxes on the middle class?"

The only thing that could ruin this GOP rope-a-dope is John Kerry. His now-famous "study hard or get stuck in Iraq," statement makes him a contender to be the only candidate in history to lose two presidential elections while only running in one.

Democrats, beware: You just might win in 2008. Then where would you be?