Iraq

The fiasco in Iraq is a direct consequence of catastrophic conservatism. There are four key factors that led to the conservative failure in Iraq.

• Conservatives undercut government. They rushed our troops to war, but skimped on the government planning, diplomacy and expertise needed to get the job done effectively.

• Conservatives displaced experts with zealots. Instead of sending experts on reconstruction, conservatives recruited ideologues who spurned allies, shut down "hearts and minds," and lost control of the country.

• Conservatives forced risky privatization. They outsourced core government functions to private contractors whose profit motives compromised troop security, eroded Iraqi trust, siphoned away taxpayer money, and failed to deliver results.

• Conservatives stifled accountability. They supported ideology over effectiveness, and repeatedly blocked efforts to investigate the pervasive waste, fraud, incompetence and abuse sabotaging the U.S. mission in Iraq.

Accountability, expertise, planning and good management are not partisan issues. But conservatives, blinded by their own ideological certitude, scorned even common sense.

That the Iraq war is a grave failure is inescapable. However, President Bush's lapdog conservatives in Congress have repeatedly chosen partisanship over patriotism, protecting the administration rather than the nation's security. The only question was how long conservatives could distract Americans from the consequences.