Sen. Jim Webb, D-Va., fends off a filibuster with his famed evil eye. Note: the video link doesn’t work. Sorry, I am not worthy of your readership. But what else is new?
Watching the Sunday morning TV talk shows isn’t normally a big past time of mine. But yesterday I did manage to catch a smack-down on “Meet the Press” as Virginia Democratic Sen. Jim Webb clearly got the goat of Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina during a debate on the Iraq War. I must clarify that by saying Webb got Graham’s goat shouldn’t be construed to mean that he stole or otherwise appropriated a goat that belonged to Graham because I don’t know if Graham actually owns any goats. For if Webb stole a goat, he might very well end up in jail and emerge as a now-forgotten country-western singer.
Graham, who became nationally prominent as a manager in the Clinton impeachment case, was taking the current Bush-ite stance on Iraq during the Sunday NBC program. Webb noted that some of the military personnel he had spoken to on Iraq said things were going to hell in handbasket. Graham then tried to bait Webb into an argument as to whether Webb had actually traveled to Iraq and the Virginia senator admitted that he hadn’t. Graham said that he had gone to Iraq as a reservist, adding “Nyah, nyah, nyah, nyah, nyah.” Afterwards, the debate promptly turned into a hellish miasma of unintelligible sounds until Tim Russert promptly knocked both senators out of their seats with a fire hose.
Now it sounds as if Graham clearly had the high ground since the senator had traveled to Iraq as a member of the military, although some distinctions need to be pointed out here.
Graham may have been to Iraq as a reservist, as he serves in the Air Force Reserves. But its not exactly like he goes out on non-stop missions as a gunner on an up-armored Humvee since he is an Air Force lawyer.
Webb, on the other hand, may not have yet been to Iraq but his Marine son has. Perhaps one might recall Webb’s little exchange with Gee Dubya about that subject. Webb also has seen war up close and perconal (that’s like personal on Percodan). Before serving as Secretary of the Navy under that mighty Republican Messiah Ronald Reagan, Webb led a Marine infantry platoon in Vietnam where he was awarded the Navy Cross, Silver Star and Bronze Star.
To be perfectly fair, however, Graham did receive a commendation medal during the first Gulf War when he served as staff judge advocate at McEntire Air National Guard Base in South Carolina, according to his official Senate biography.
So when you hear a debate about war between a Marine who won the Navy’s second-highest medal for valor and an Air Force Reserve lawyer who got kudos for drawing up wills during the Gulf War from his dangerous post in South Carolina, who would you choose to believe? You choose the lawyer naturally because attorneys stand for truth, justice and the American way, right? Right. Now step with me into the back room as I want to show you some magic beans for sale.