Seriously, since when has anyone given a damn about a newspaper ad? Or any advertisement at all? There wouldn't be this much attention for a Super Bowl commercial featuring Kevin Federline exposing Janet Jackson's boob at a dogfight.

The hysterical republican and media reaction to MoveOn's "Petraeus or Betray Us" ad truly illustrates how idiotic republicans want the discussion on Iraq to be. The fact that republicans had more to say about a newspaper ad — and that's all it was — than the content of the supposedly pivotal Petraeus testimony that was supposed to validate their failing, counter-productive surge/escalation "strategy" also illustrates how republicans have little interest in getting America out of the clusterfuck royale we call the Iraq war. It also cements the fact that republican hypocrisy is limitless, their priorities are whacked, and their only solution to the Iraq war is to stall and misdirect. They'd rather talk about a newspaper ad.

I have no problem with MoveOn's ad, though I think they could find much better ways to spend their money. And I think they did a good thing in trying to tell Americans not to trust Petraeus because it was already known that his testimony would be based on falsified numbers to create the illusion that the escalation is working. In fact, a poll conducted before the testimony showed that most of America shared this sentiment, with 53% believing that Petraeus would "exaggerate" (meaning LIE) about the effectiveness of the escalation. MoveOn wasn't representing the fringe — it was representing the majority, just like they represent the majority of Americans when they call for an end to this war. The only thing MoveOn should apologize for is not realizing the depth of republican desperation to shift attention away from their continuing support for the Iraq debacle and America's Worst President Ever.

By consciously misrepresenting the effectiveness of the escalation, the situation in Anbar province and the chances of replicating it, the reasons for drawing down troops to near pre-escalation levels, and the reasons why America should continue to support Bush's horrific occupation, Petraeus truly has betrayed his country and the soldiers he is supposed to represent and lead. I sincerely wish that wasn't true, but it is, just like it was when Colin Powell gave his speech to the UN detailing the "evidence" of Iraq's WMDs. If MoveOn had published an ad saying that Colin Powell was lying or using falsified information, the attacks on MoveOn would be exactly what we are witnessing today. Powell was also considered a man of great honesty, integrity, and morals. But MoveOn would still be right.

It has been embarrassing to watch democrat after democrat allow themselves to be cowed by republicans and the "liberal" media into running from the sentiments of MoveOn's ad. It's another horrible example of how the republicans use the "liberal" media to frame a debate, then let the media do their dirty work and watch democrats fail to stand up for themselves and their constituencies. Dems keep acting like losers, somehow failing to realize that Americans are desperate for their leadership, and the only reason their approval numbers are so low is because they are acting too much like republicans.

But neither democrats nor MoveOn need to apologize for or condemn anything. Not until republicans apologize for and condemn Ann Coulter, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity, Michelle Malkin, Bill O'Reilly, John Gibson, James Dobson, Pat Robertson, Jerry Falwell, etc. etc. But lets start with Coulter.

During FOX's coverage of the Petraeus hearing, Coulter said:

[Democrats] hate the troops. They think the troops are a bunch of illiterate, toothless rapists.

Let that sink in for a moment. But let's not stop there. Here are some more quotes:

I think the government should be spying on all Arabs, engaging in torture as a televised spectator sport, dropping daisy cutters wantonly throughout the Middle East and sending liberals to Guantanamo.

Bill Clinton "was a very good rapist"

Being nice to people is, in fact, one of the incidental tenets of Christianity (as opposed to other religions whose tenets are more along the lines of 'kill everyone who doesn't smell bad and doesn't answer to the name Mohammed').

There are a lot of bad Republicans; there are no good Democrats.

The Democrats are giving aid and comfort to the enemy for no purpose other than giving aid and comfort to the enemy.

In the history of the nation, there has never been a political party so ridiculous as today's Democrats. It's as if all the brain-damaged people in America got together and formed a voting bloc.

We need to execute people like John Walker in order to physically intimidate liberals, by making them realize that they can be killed, too.

Liberals are driven by Satan and lie constantly.

I think [women] should be armed but should not vote…women have no capacity to understand how money is earned.

Are any of these quotes comparable to what was printed in the MoveOn ad? Are any defensible or accurate on any level at all?

If republicans want to pretend they are out to defend the honor of respectable people, they can start by publicly denouncing Ann Coulter, as well as FOX for beaming her insane assaults into millions of American homes. After their full-throated howls at MoveOn for claiming something that was actually proven to be true, what reasons could they possibly have to justify their silence on Coulter's outlandishly venomous attacks on their colleagues?

While it's easy to write off Coulter's screeds as the fevered rantings of a self-hating, overcompensating transsexual/lesbian, we do that at our own peril. Just as MoveOn represents a significant amount of democrats' base, Coulter frighteningly represents a significant percentage of the republican base. Even though she's clearly crazier than a shithouse rat, her books are bought and read by millions of conservative republicans, who obviously like what she has to say. These are the same people who think that calling John Edwards a faggot is a funny joke.

If democrats were smart (and that's a big if), they should take this chance to call republicans out on their hypocrisy. Petraeus' testimony showed that not only were MoveOn's statements defensible, they were correct, and therefore helpful in informing Americans to be skeptical of the rosy picture Petraeus would paint. Coulter's statements are neither defensible nor correct, and the distorted caricatures they create are incredibly destructive and divisive. I challenge any republican to tell me what positive effect could possibly come from Coulter's absurd lies, and why they are considered “reasonable” while MoveOn’s ad is not.