The jockeying for position

that politician/statesmen do as an election approaches is always interesting,

and now maybe a little more so in the wake of Sept. 11.

Democrats are faced with a

dilemma, because the president is riding high on a wave of public support

because of his handling of that crisis and the ensuing military action.

They have to criticize the president, because his popularity might have

coat tails that Republicans could ride in November, and the possibility

of the GOP controlling both the legislative and executive branches is

a real one.

But they have to be careful

how they criticize, lest they be portrayed as unpatriotic, as not supporting

the president and the troops during a very popular war.

All was quiet on the political

front for awhile, but now Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle has, perhaps

somewhat timidly but also carefully and deliberately, begun doing his

job in recent weeks, airing the criticisms and taking the heat.

He has chosen one tried and

true avenue, calling the president's economic stimulus package foolhardy,

and complaining that the tax cuts it contains favor those who actually

pay taxes (of course, he doesn't put it that way).

On another front, in a way

I admire Daschle's courage. He is trying to plant in the voters' minds

the idea that Bush's war in Afghanistan will have been a failure if we

can't produce the corpuses dilecti of both Osama bin Laden and Mullah

Omar.

There is real risk of backlash

here, and I'm sure Mr. Daschle knows it. And there is also the possibility

that those who accuse Daschle of the basest sort of political gamesmanship

giving aid and comfort to the enemy for the sake of his own power lust

are correct.

But I prefer not to try and

read his mind and guess his motives. He has stated several times his belief

that it's the job of the loyal opposition to criticize when it's appropriate,

and that he believes what he is saying, and I take those statements at

face value.

We have to be careful in this

country. We could easily get so wrapped up in our patriotic fervor that

we forget the freedoms we're fighting for in the first place.

Republicans, in a way, have

an equally difficult task, and they have been equally wary as they parried

Daschle's thrusts.

They can't be seen as calling

into question Democrats' patriotism as a political ploy. That would be

just as base and would invite just as damaging a backlash.

Some have done so anyway. There

have been statements and memos to that effect. When you pin down party

leaders, though, they run away from the question.

They are wise to do so. Instead

of playing the patriotism card, I would greatly prefer that they state

the obvious that Mr. Daschle's assertions are preposterous and moronic.

If Hitler had escaped to some

hideaway somewhere, would WWII have been a failure? Of course not.

But they don't say that either.

The leadership are also afraid to call Daschle an obstructionist, though

that's exactly what he is. He has put himself in the way of almost every

piece of good legislation to come down the pipeline this year.

He can call that "the

politics of personal destruction" all he wants to. It doesn't change

the truth. He would be better off admitting he has been an obstructionist

and arguing that he did the right thing, that the legislation was all

bad.

He also has insisted on provisions

in the campaign finance bill that are clearly unconstitutional, and the

president should veto that legislation and succinctly state why.

As election time draws nearer,

both sides will take off the gloves a little bit, but for the Republicans

timing is crucial. If they begin making their case too late, it looks

like they're just desperately reacting to polls.

They need to make a strong

case now that having Democrats in control of the Senate is keeping a lot

of good things from happening in America.

And yes, I think if they simply

try to ride the war wave, the polls will start to go against the Republicans.

If the economy shows rapid improvement, though, that's a wave they can

ride without saying a whole lot.

In either case, I think the

voters are better served by an open and honest debate on both sides.

Mr. Daschle, go ahead and criticize.

It's your right and your duty.

Republicans, answer with arguments

and bold statements. Don't be afraid to publicly marvel at the stupidity

of the "must get bin Laden" argument, and don't be afraid to

call an obstructionist an obstructionist.

Come on. Let's not let Sept.

11 turn us into a bunch of political wusses.