Cindy Sheehan: Puppet
of the left

Were it not for the interview Cindy Sheehan gave to a local newspaper on June 24, her crusade near the president's ranch might be forgivable. With each new interview and TV commercial, however, it is increasingly clear that she has allowed herself to become the mouthpiece for the liberal left's anti-war, anti-Bush vitriol.

In June, shortly after her son's death in Iraq, Sheehan said she had reservations about the war. She was pleased that the president invited her and her husband, Patrick, to a face-to-face meeting. After the meeting, Patrick said, "We have a lot of respect for the office of the president, and I have a new respect for him because he was sincere and he didn't have to take the time to meet with us."

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Cindy added, "I now know he's sincere about wanting freedom for the Iraqis. I know he's sorry and feels some pain for our loss. And I know he's a man of faith."

Fast-forward to Aug. 8. Cindy arrives in Crawford, Texas, and sets up "Camp Casey," a few miles from the president's ranch. She is the featured attraction on Michael Moore's website and on MoveOn.org's website, as well as a dozen or more looney-left anti-war websites – all of which have a prominent "donate here" button.

Signs at her roadside sideshow proclaim "Bush lied, they died," and similar tripe offered by the get-Bush crowd.

Sympathy flows automatically to the parents and loved ones of the brave men and women who lost their lives fighting in the name of America, wherever they may have died. Despite the efforts of CNN and other media to cast her as a heroic symbol, Cindy has become a puppet of professional media handlers, dancing on strings pulled by organizations that represent values that are opposite of those for which her son died.

Cindy is demanding another face-to-face meeting with the president to tell him "... how much this hurts" and to ask, "How many more of our loved ones need to die in this senseless war?"

Cindy's goal is not to communicate with the president; it is to embarrass him.

Among her political advisers are Joe Trippi, who orchestrated Howard Dean's early victories in the 2004 primaries, and Fenton Communications, a Washington public-relations firm that has been behind many left-wing causes. Fenton Communications provided guidance for the National Religious Partnership for the Environment in the mid 1990s. They took a flawed, EPA-rejected study produced by the Natural Resources Defense Council and orchestrated the infamous 1989 CBS "60-Minutes" "expos?" of Alar, which nearly killed the apple industry.

Cindy has been overwhelmed by the media attention and by the Democrat strategists who are eager to use her access to the media to attack the president and further fan the flames of dissent and division about the war in Iraq.

The president, on the other hand, has publicly acknowledged Cindy's position and has defended her right, as an American, to protest. He has explained why he disagrees with her position, and, fortunately, it is the president's position that directs American foreign policy, rather than the cut-and-run Democrats whom Cindy now represents.

Responsible Democrats, who disagree with the president on most issues recognize that to arbitrarily withdraw troops from Iraq now – as Cindy is demanding – is the worst possible option for America and for the world. The stakes have never been higher in Iraq than they are at this critical moment in time.

The people of Iraq cannot create a representative government if American troops are not there to prevent the violent insurgents from taking control. Should the fanatics gain control of Iraq, the adverse consequences for the Middle East, for the U.S. and for the world are beyond comprehension.

If America can provide sufficient defense against the insurgents to allow the people to hammer their centuries-old differences into a constitution that creates a representative government, a new, historic beginning can emerge, and offer new and better alternatives for the people of Iraq.

Cindy has completely lost sight of her son's values and has become the chief spokesman for people who don't care about the future of Iraq or about defeating fanatic terrorists. She has become the primary weapon of the extreme left wing of the Democrat Party, which is obsessed with defeating George Bush and all Republicans, and gaining political control in Washington.

The war in Iraq is not "senseless," as Cindy now proclaims. Success in Iraq is the best hope the world has of beginning to end the growth of Islamic fanaticism, which is the real enemy of freedom.