A creative listener to the Laura Ingraham Show came up with an appropriate term for the new Republicans we are seeing emerge in 2007 –RATS. RATS stands for Republicans Agreeing To Surrender. This came about as certain Republicans voiced displeasure with the President’s Iraq “surge” policy last week. They are convinced the democrats took control of congress because of Iraq. But the acronym is brilliant because it is becoming apparent the GOP is caving on numerous fronts.

    We can debate the effect of Iraq on the 2006 results. But while I was sending a blistering e-mail to my representative, Steve Latourette, regarding his criticism of the President on Iraq, he was busy casting three unrelated important votes last week with Dennis Kucinich. Rather than voting for Latourette in 2008, maybe I’ll move twenty miles west and vote against Kucinich. Again, what difference will it make?

    On the same note, my irate call to Voinovich’s office this week will probably count for as much. Voinovich joined with about six other Republicans in the senate to dis the President. I told his staffer that Voinovich’s statement sounded like a democrat. He’d “pass that along” to the senator. Well, pass some kleenex, too, in case it offends him to the point of tears. We have seven Republicans in a race to get the Lincoln Chaffee memorial award. Sam Brownback, usually a staunch conservative, lost any slim chance he may have had to make noise in the GOP presidential field by becoming a member of the RATS. The others are the usual suspects that made the Republican senate in these last years an ineffective majority.

    Sources this week said the young buck GOP members in the House want to mix it up with the democrats. Unfortunately, that’s only about one third of the GOP. The rest want to let the democrats have their day, whatever that means. Maybe it means 100 hours. Maybe it means 100 days. If I were betting, I’d tag it closer to the roughly100 weeks this Congress will meet. That’s because I see no one going after the enemy. No, not Al-quada, the democrats.

    The GOP is clueless as to why they lost in 2006. Their base was frustrated with their feckless direction and lack of conviction concerning just about anything. Can anyone recall since 2003 any Republican senator attacking the democrats for attacking Bush? They should have put the democrats back on their heels, implying they were unpatriotic and treasonous for undermining our war effort. Criticism from the press? Let them have it, too. Make sure there’s an investigation into all treasonous leaks to the press. Don’t let up until there is. But Republicans wimped out at every turn, acting like the minority party. And now they are.

    Here’s a thought. Now act like the party that used to be in the minority. I want to see obstructionism in the finest Dashle/Reid tradition. Let the democrats propose, we oppose. No exceptions. Give us some reason to vote for you again. And Mitch McConnell, if you don’t get control of this caucus in the senate, Republicans around the country will not donate. Election 2006 will seem like fun compared to 2008. And it won’t matter what happens in Iraq. We have brave troops and “scared” Republicans.