Machiavelli and the upcoming political battle over Iraq

The upcoming battle for the hearts and minds of the American people, and ultimately their vote for their Presidential candidates, is taking shape in the House of Representatives, not in the Senate and that difference is going to take its toll on these Senatorial Presidential candidates:

Senator Hillary Clinton
Senator John McCain
Senator Barack Obama
Senator Christopher Dodd
Senator Joe Biden
Senator Sam Brownback and
Senator Chuck Hagel

It will turn the voters away from Senatorial candidates and towards those not in Congress like:

Former Mayor Rudy Giulliani
Former Gov. Mitt Romney
Former VP. Al Gore

Because it is going to look like the Senate can't change anything with respect to this President's actions in Iraq and his threats to Iran.

Americans are going to be looking for candidates outside the Beltway as they are feeling frustrated at the impotence of the Senate and the lack of courage they are showing in this debate. Language is now being framed by Karl Rove and his minions to make this battle over direction in Iraq as one where Democrats are going to be characterized as "tying the hands of the President during war time" and "putting our troops in more danger and harms way," as reinforcements may need to be scaled back if funding is cut. It is classical Rove master manipulation of the guilty feelings for doing such and dividing the Democrats because they have been split as to what course of action they can support. So what to do, what to do?

If the Democrats allow themselves to be painted again in a corner by the rhetorical quips of the Rove machine, then they haven't learned a thing over the past 7 years. There is a reference Machiavelli used, in his book "The Prince", when faced with a decision, as to whether to strike back at an opponent. To paraphrase him: Never strike at an opponent unless you are willing to totally destroy them, their family and any offspring. The same is true here regarding facing up to Republican charges. The Democrats must now come together as one party and define the battle in terms that Americans can understand and support, so that in Nov. 2008, it's a slaughter of Republicans at the polls. It is better to stand up and lose the vote than to try to manipulate words in nuanced ways to garner limited support. The Congress was clear in the language in their Bill, which passed and gained 17 Republicans in support of the Bill.