It's Not Physics

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld said during his now infamous exchange with Tennessee National Guard Specialist Thomas Wilson Wednesday:

"It's essentially a matter of physics," Mr. Rumsfeld said. "It isn't a matter of money. It isn't a matter on the part of the Army of desire. It's a matter of production and capability of doing it."

According to an NPR report this morning, it's not. A producer of armored humvees says they could produce another 50-100 vehicles a month. A producer of ceramic armor kits for the humvee can double its current level of production to 600 kits a month. Both said they were only waiting for the Pentagon to ask them to make more.

Which, according to tomorrow's New York Times, they will do.

So, if it wasn't "physics", money or desire, what was the problem? Could it be incomptence? Bush and Rumsfeld sent the troops into battle under-manned and under-equipped. Two years later they're still scrambling to make things right.

If this had happened during a Democratic Administration, Republicans would be screaming bloody murder about how Democrats didn't "support the troops". During the campaign, the GOP warned of the dire consequences for our troops if Kerry was elected because he voted aginst the $87 billion appropriation. Well the bill passed, Kerry lost (for now), so what's their excuse? My guess is they'll try and blame it on Clinton. Four years after he left office.

Are these guys ever responsible for anything?