Global War on Terror is Term Error

Republicans are attacking Ike Skelton for attempted to use more concise langauage in drafting National Defense Authorization Act. Skelton explains the reason why the term "global war on terror" is not being used.

Each year, the members and staff of the House Armed Services Committee work to prepare the best possible defense authorization bill. When writing legislation, the words we choose are important, and we make every effort to be as precise and specific as possible so that Congressional intent may be understood.

GOP objections to our efforts to clarify legislative language represent the typical Republican leadership attempt to tie together the misadventure in Iraq and the overall war against terrorists. The Iraq War is separate and distinct from the war against terrorists, who have their genesis in Afghanistan and who attacked us on 9/11, and the American people understand this.

Providing our service members with the tools they need to protect the American people is a very serious responsibility. I’m saddened that some of our GOP colleagues have chosen to create this distraction, which is a tempest in a teapot as far as I’m concerned.

That is reasonable. Talking points don't belong in legislation. The Republicans are free to use it all they want on the Sunday talk shows and campaign trail.

The second reason is all military and global problems do not all fall into the same neat little box. The Irish Republican Army and Hezbollah are terrorist organizations, but not direction threats to the United States. Launching military assaults on either organization isn't going to bring peace to Iraq. To say so is a simplification of a complex problem.

Iraq is wrought with sectarian violence. To think that the different factions can live in peace together in foolish. The reason the Kurds has not experienced the same level of sectarian violence is because they have been split from the rest of the country since the no-fly zone was put in place and they were split from Saddam Hussein's control. Kurdistan is split from the larger Shi‘ite and Sunni population. The same must happen to the Shi‘ites and Sunnis.