The Clintons are good at "Strawman"

Pouncing on "War Czar" Lute's comments over the weekend regarding a draft being "on the table," Hillary Clinton sends a "concerned" letter to Bush.

In a letter to Bush dated Monday, Clinton writes, "While our forces, in particular the Army and Marine Corps, are under strain, re-establishing a draft is not the answer. The seeds of many of the problems that continue to plague our mission in Iraq were planted in the failure to adequately plan for the conflict and properly equip our men and women in uniform."

"In previous years, when asked about a draft, your Administration has stated that it is the Administration’s policy to oppose a military draft and support the all-volunteer force," the presidential frontrunner added. "Given Lieutenant General Lute’s comments last week, I ask that you clarify whether there has been a change in your Administration’s opposition to reinstituting a draft."

Of all the Dems we've seen over the last decade, the Clinton camp is by far the best at ginning up these non-existant arguments where they hold the strong position. This tactic has been used very effectively over the years by former (too soon?) White House political advisor Karl Rove.

The idea is simple. Take some statement that can be miscolored out of context and amplify it. Then, ask the target to defend it or cave in.

They've done it to Obama a couple of times, most recently over the "nukes in Pakistan" comment. Obama gave a great sweeping speech, but it was totally lost in the ginned up argument. And then there was the Edelman fracas.

This one was effective enough to force a loud and massive Pentagon denial that appears in big red letters on Drudge.

It's ugly, but it's good politics. It makes the attacker look strong and mainstream and makes the defender look weak and diminished.