The 1990s are widely viewed as a vacation from history. The terrorists staged some smaller, preview attacks-and we did nothing. It appears to me that some would like another holiday. Sometimes I wonder if that’s the “change” so many people want-a concentration on domestic issues and a looking away from the world. On the other hand, Fred Barnes notes that in the Democratic candidate debates, even good news from the world at large is eschewed:
“THERE’S A TRUTH THE Democratic presidential candidates can’t handle: the success of the ‘surge’ in Iraq. The addition of American troops and the adoption of a new strategy of protecting the civilian population has now dramatically reduced the level of violence in Baghdad and pacified other parts of Iraq as well. But the Democratic candidates insist on pretending otherwise.
“It isn’t clear whether they were uninformed, out of touch, mistaken, politically fearful, or knowingly dishonest when they were asked to comment on the surge during an ABC television debate Saturday night in New Hampshire. In any case, their refusal to acknowledge success in Iraq marked a low point in the Democratic campaign.”