MoveOn Ad

MoveOn.org is receiving a lot of criticism for the ad, "General Petraeus or General Betray Us?", it posted in today's New York Times. Subtitled "Cooking the Books for the White House," it charged "General Petraeus is a military man constantly at war with the facts."

Predictably, as ABC reports, White House spokesman Tony Snow called it a "boorish, childish, unworthy attack." CNN notes a letter distributed "among Senators" and sent to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid charging "the ad is distasteful and frankly, below the level of respect that America's commanding general in Iraq has earned." House Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio contended "Democratic leaders must make a choice today: either embrace the character assassination tactics MoveOn.org has leveled against the four-star general leading our troops against al Qaeda, or denounce it as disgraceful." (emphasis mine- without our knowledge, Petraeus apparently has been commanding American soldiers in the Khyber pass.) Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, according to Politico.com, intoned "these childish attacks are an insult to everyone fighting for our freedom in Iraq" (our freedom?). Never one to miss an opportunity for demagoguery, Senator Joseph Lieberman (I.-Ct.) urged Democratic leaders to "denounce MoveOn.org's attack on General Petraeus." Even Democratic Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts joined in with "I don't like any kind of characterizations in our politics that calls into question any active duty, distinguished general..."

So what is lacking in all the criticism? That would be any description, claim, or allegation that anything asserted in the ad is inaccurate. For good reason- MoveOn broke it down into nine different claims and cited reference(s) for each. The organization's critics, however, wisely adopted the characteristic style of this White House and avoided any uncomfortable association with the facts.