While the rest of young, liberal New York was jamming Washington Square park for the Obama rally yesterday, the Senate approved tens of billions more dollars to continue war in Iraq.From the Nation:

The Senate agreed on Thursday to increase the federal debt limit by $850 billion — from $8.965 trillion to $9.815 trillion — and then proceeded to approve a stop-gap spending bill that gives the Bush White House at least $9 billion in new funding for its war in Iraq.

The telling quote is here, though:

Wisconsin Senator Russ Feingold, the maverick Democrat who has led the fight to end the war and bring U.S. troops home from Iraq, was on the losing end of the 94-1 vote. (The five senators who did not vote, all presidential candidates who are more involved in campaigning than governing, were Democrats Hillary Clinton, Barack Obama and Joe Biden and Republicans John McCain and Sam Brownback.)

The only reason I’m going to vote Democrat in the next election is because Democrats aren’t Republicans. They’ve been letting Republicans run this country in a tight circle at the bottom of the bowl for years now and squandered any legitimate leverage through total inactivity. The one thing Republicans do right is define themselves and take a stand — like the position or not, they at least DO something.

Most of my peers, young professional adults in my demographic are planning to vote for Obama in the next election. Those that don’t will vote for Hillary. We all want them in office so badly, but really we just want Bush out.

The last thing I want is same shit, different face. Which is why we, as a pack of liberals, have to ask some tougher questions — both metaphorically and literally.

Obama sings a sweet song, but I’d like to ask him one very hard, direct question. And since I missed his rally in Washington Square Park yesterday, I’ll have to harness the power of the Internet to ask him this one directly:

Mr. Obama, you were too busy campaigning to vote against continued war in Iraq. If elected, will you continue to put your own political interests ahead of representing the wishes of the American people?

I want to ask this same question of Clinton, Biden, McCain, and Brownback, too. I’d like to know why our potential Presidents skipped this particular opportunity to put their money where their mouths are.

Seriously. If you see this and happen to attend a rally for any of these folks, grab the mike and ASK it. And see what happens.

If you’re so inclined, pass this on, far and wide, until someone somewhere does ask this. I want Obama to be the sunshine superhero of American politics, but until someone takes him to task, we’ll never know if he can handle the job.