The Political Inquirer

He is the new face of the Anti-War Movement. His appearance is timely, coming at the dark hour that ushers in new NATO policies of nuclear first-strikes. His advent is heralded by plans to increase the size of our standing army. And the new face of the Anti-War movement greets the latest “signing statement” of President Bush, which claims for the executive the legal right to build and fortify permanent bases in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Hillary Clinton tried to hoist the banner of Peace after Tuesday’s Florida primary results, telling Wolf Blitzer last night (go to 6:00 minutes for the direct q&a) that she would have the US out of Iraq sixty days after taking office. But, didn’t she tell us back in New Hampshire that we would be staying “four more years?” As did Obama, so neither Democrat can truly put themself forward as The Peace Candidate and Face of the Movement.

The only civilian that ever made any headway in getting press coverage and credit for popular leadership had been Cindy Sheehan. Long gone from the public eye, she is now a mere footnote to George Bush’ Crawford vacations.

Ralph Nader has promised to run again, should Hillary gain the Democrat nod, but his beef with the Clintons is not over the war, rather with the quality and degree of their commitment to Socialism.

Justin Raimondo has kept the Anti-War Movement alive in cbyer-space, sometimes by sheer willpower. His web-site, jammed with reporting and commentary, has been the lamp shining in the darkness since we first involved ourselves on the Balkan Peninsula. Alas, a web-site alone cannot lead.

Back in Red State America, Merle Haggard presents us with America First. After crying in his beer over the broken bridges and highways, he suggests, “let’s get out of Iraq, and get back on track.” If you doubt the credibility of the Okie from Muskogee, he takes offense: “You think I’m blowin’ smoke? it ain’t no joke — I make twenty trips a year coast to coast.” And he’s been making those trips, and watching America’s decline, for decades.

Singing harmony and representing Woodstock Nation, Woody Guthrie’s son Arlo has endorsed Ron Paul as the only man running who would sign the Constitution. Arlo understands that this land was made for you and me.

America turned against the war in 2005. It has been a slow process, as if awakening from a deep slumber. America has now learned to distrust its leaders on both the left and right. In 2006 the nation voted for an Iraq exit by putting Democrats in charge of Congress, but instead of following the American people, the Congress conspired with President Bush to escalate the war.

Last night, Ron Paul told the front-running John McCain and Mitt Romney, “In 1952, we Republicans were elected to stop the war in Korea, In 1968 we were elected to stop the war in Vietnam.”

The GOP lost their mantle as the party of peace when Nixon hedged his bets and stayed on in south-east Asia. LBJ’s War became his own. And as history repeats itself, first as tragedy, then as farce, is there any doubt that Bush’s War will become Hillary’s War? Using her performance as First Lady and her attempt to “reform” Health Care as a guide, we can expect that Hillary Clinton’s White House will operate under a veil of secrecy that will make Dick Cheney’s office look like a model of transparency. With her famously thin skin and an adversarial relationship with the press, Hillary Clinton will quickly become the New Nixon.

The Anti-War Movement is a majority movement in the United States. It is the will of the people of these United States. It is the people Merle Haggard meets in roadhouses and truck stops. It is Bruce Springsteen’s New Jersey Everyman on his long walk home.

The Anti-War Movement needs to select an individual to represent them at the highest levels of government. One man is positioned to lead by winning the White House. He has been maligned, slandered, and mocked, but he is still standing. He has raised tens of millions of dollars from ordinary Americans that want a change in the nation’s foreign policy. His record is a testament to his loyalty to the cause. If you believe that our nation should withdraw from Iraq, the choice is clear.

As John Lennon sang, war is over. If you want it.

On Super Tuesday, vote to bring the troops home. Vote for Ron Paul.