Amazing, the loose coalition formally known as the Republican Party is slowing corroding and falling into disrepair.  Formed of social conservatives, fiscal conservatives, and security conservatives the party previously owned and controlled by the social conservatives has been hijacked by the so called neo-conservatives.

The religious fringe of the Republican Party started out being tolerated by the rest of the party, then courted by them and now it seems they are demanding the affections of a party that has simply lost interest in them.

Dick Cheney, in 1994, made it clear that he was completely against going into Iraq for exactly all the reasons we are now stuck in the middle of the worst mistake this country has ever made.

The Republicans thought they knew Dick, but as it turns out … not so much.

What do you want to bet that the Republican candidates all made just a little bit of pee in their pants when they heard that ‘Lil George was going to be paying a visit to South Carolina to shore up support among Republicans?  With friends like George supporting your party who needs Democrats to trash talk it?  This is the same Bush that went around the country selling the same message just before the midterm elections and voters didn’t buy then either.

Every time Bush opens his mouth about Iraq, 70% of Americans scream at their TVs, “What part of YOU WERE WRONG does The President not get”?  He was wrong about WMD, he was wrong not to send enough troops to secure Iraq after the fall of Baghdad, he was wrong to disband the Iraqi army weapons in toe, he was wrong to order the army to drive right by munitions caches on their way to Baghdad, and right now - this very minute - George W. Bush is wrong when he says staying in Iraq will keep America safer.

Staying in Iraq is making America more exposed.  Our military is stretched to the breaking point, the troops are not rested and the President is oblivious to all of this.  With our troops out of Iraq we could concentrate on a three-point plan to make America in fact safer:

1. Implement real counter terrorism measures here at home.
2. Move more forces into Afghanistan and Pakistan and take off the head of al Qaeda – the real al Qaeda, not the one in Mesopotamia.
3. Bring our National Guard home with the equipment needed to help Americans in disasters and to help secure our southern boarder.

Instead, our troops are stuck in Donald Rumsfeld’s “long hard slog” going nowhere and accomplishing nothing.  Well, they are acting as great recruiting agents for al Qaeda, Hezbolah and Hamas.  Leaving Iraq to the Iraqis to sort out would make for a better Iraq and a safer America.

Leaving George W. Bush at home and out of South Carolina would make for easier campaigning for Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney and John McCain.

Has the President substituted one addiction for another?  Addicts frequently substitute sex, shopping, gambling or food when their drug of choice is denied them.  Has George Bush just changed his drug of choice to waging war?  He openly admits to abusing drugs and alcohol in his younger years.  Even if he didn’t the videos of him drunk combined with his DUI arrest would be enough to convince almost anyone he has an addictive personality.

Now, this post is not about unfounded gossip that Bush is drinking or using drugs; in fact there is no way to know that.  However, you can’t turn a pickle back into a cucumber and the President’s personality isn’t going to transform just because he has the will power to abstain from drugs and alcohol.

Twelve Step programs use the following 20 questions to “test” whether someone is an addict or alcoholic.  Depending on which Twelve Step program is giving the quiz, the questions will substitute the word “alcohol” for “cocaine” or “gambling”, etc.  The idea is the questions are universally able to tell if someone is addicted to an act or substance.  The following 20 questions are taken from Gamblers Anonymous’ website with the words “gambling” and “gamble” substituted with “waging war” and “wage war”.   According to Gamblers Anonymous http://www.gamblersanonymous.org/ answering yes to seven questions is an indication of a problem.

1. Did you ever lose time from work or school due to waging war?
2. Has waging war ever made your home life unhappy?
3. Did waging war affect your reputation?
4. Have you ever felt remorse after waging war?
5. Did you ever wage war to get money with which to pay debts or otherwise solve financial difficulties?
6. Did waging war cause a decrease in your ambition or efficiency?
7. After losing did you feel you must return as soon as possible and win back your losses?
8. After a win did you have a strong urge to return and win more?
9. Did you often wage war until your last dollar was gone?
10. Did you ever borrow to finance your waging war?
11. Have you ever sold anything to finance waging war?
12. Were you reluctant to use “waging war money” for normal expenditures?
13. Did waging war make you careless of the welfare of yourself or your family?
14. Did you ever wage war longer than you had planned?
15. Have you ever wage war to escape worry or trouble?
16. Have you ever committed, or considered committing, an illegal act to finance waging war?
17. Did waging war cause you to have difficulty in sleeping?
18. Do arguments, disappointments or frustrations create within you an urge to wage war?
19. Did you ever have an urge to celebrate any good fortune by a few hours of waging war?
20. Have you ever considered self destruction or suicide as a result of your waging war?
Now, some of those questions only Mr. Bush himself can answer; but clearly he scores a positive hit on at least 10 and most likely more of the questions.

When any addict’s behavior becomes out of control it is time for an intervention.  Normally a family member or the courts intervene and force the addict into treatment.  However, only the Congress has the authority to get involved in this case.  No other person and no other legal body has the authority to force the President to stop this addictive behavior.  It is time for the House of Representatives to do something, anything to make the addict in the White House stop.

George W. Bush’s addictive personality is responsible for his unwillingness to leave Iraq. He is convinced that victory is just around the corner. He believes that the next military raid will produce great results.  He sees great logic in that taking $400,000,000,000.00 and sending it to that sink hole known as Iraq to be followed by even more billions.  His behaves as a child told he couldn’t have his ice cream when the congress attempts to put even reasonable restrictions on his ability to wage war.

If George Bush is the addict, then the Republican Party is his enabler.  Having control of the congress for the first six years of his Presidency, the Republican leadership did nothing to temper Bush’s addictive conduct and now time is running short; and only the threat of impeachment or a trial on the house floor will get the Addict in Chief’s attention.