In making the case for the president, Podhoretz connects the dots all the way back to Harry Truman. In 1947 it was Truman who said that ?it must be the policy of the United States to support free peoples who are resisting attempted subjugation by armed minorities or outside pressure.? In 2004 it was Bush who said that ?America has always been less secure when freedom is in retreat; America is always more secure when freedom is on the march.?
Just as Truman instituted the policy of containment to fight Soviet Communism -- the policy structure within which WWIII was fought -- Bush launched his own war doctrine of regime change, preemption, and the spread of freedom. This is the new policy structure of WWIV.
Radical Islamists, Podhoretz argues, are descended from the major totalitarian movements of the 20th century -- Hitlerian Nazism, Mussolini fascism, and Stalinist communism -- the last of which we battled through WWIII. The U.S. is now fighting to preserve its freedom and liberty against the latest ?ism.? In doing so, Podhoretz firmly believes that the United States has answered ?history?s call,? and that we must not swerve.
Which brings us to November, 2004. Podhoretz hopes that the Democrats, if elected, will not abandon Bush?s war policy. Eisenhower, of course, did not abandon Truman?s, even though he campaigned forcefully against it. But the current crop of Democrats -- a group whose most public voices hail from the hard-left of Ted Kennedy, Michael Moore, and Howard Dean -- does not inspire Podhoretz with great hope.
The Democratic pseudo-vision certainly contrasts darkly with the president?s words at the Republican convention. With the world watching, Bush said, ?This young century will be liberty?s century. By promoting liberty abroad, we will build a safer world. By encouraging liberty at home, we will build a more hopeful America. Like generations before us, we have a calling from beyond the stars to stand for freedom . . . Now we go forward -- grateful for our freedom, faithful to our cause, and confident in the future of the greatest nation on earth.?
Indeed, this World War IV is the most important conflict of our generation. Re-electing Bush may not guarantee a victory, but a Democratic party that still hangs to its ?negative faith in America the ugly? would make defeat a virtual certainty.
*Sam Munson is a research associate with Kudlow & Co., LLC and co-authored this piece.