Rove Plays Politics With 9/11, Again

The New York Times quotes Karl Rove as saying, "Conservatives saw the savagery of 9/11 in the attacks and prepared for war; liberals saw the savagery of the 9/11 attacks and wanted to prepare indictments and offer therapy and understanding for our attackers."

So much deceit is present in this single sentence.

The first part, regarding conservatives preparing for war, is technically true, but deceiving. Conservatives prepared for war not against the attackers, but instead took advantage of the attack to pursue their long term goals, such as the invasion of Iraq. This was the new Pearl Harbor which neoconservatives such as those in the Project For The New American Century had been waiting for, knowing such an event would be necessary to pursue their goals.

The second part regarding liberals is even more untrue. Yes, liberals wanted to prepare indictments, but supported a combination of criminal and military responses as appropriate. The line about offering therapy in nonsense. Liberals did acknowledge the need to understand the attackers in order to prevent further attacks, but that was not in place of military action.

The nation appeared to be standing together immediately post 9/11. Liberals were willing to back George Bush in any military response to the attacks. After all, it had been the Democrats who attempted to go after Bin Laden during the Clinton years despite opposition from the Republicans. It was the Clinton Administration which provided plans to deal with al Qaeda, which the Bush Administration ignored.

The difference was that liberals wanted to take action against the threat, while conservatives used 9/11 to further than political goals, resulting in a course which has increased our vulnerability to terrorist attacks. For that reason alone, the current crop of Republicans is unfit for national leadership.