HART ON HILLARY: Former Colorado Senator Gary Hart's mad at Hillary for being too much of a hawk, which surprises me but then again not really. I grew to admire Hart during the 1980s when he seemed committed to educating himself on America's need for a smart, strong, lean national defense. Though I don't have his voting record at hand, I seem to remember that he wasn't to be found in the same corner as the knee-jerk "peace through surrender" types like Ted Kennedy and John Kerry on key defense and intelligence votes. Plus, he ran as a centrist alternative to the exhausted New Deal politics of Walter Mondale. So in one sense I'm surprised that he's now lining up with the cut-and-run maniacs of his party's left wing. But let's recall precisely how Gary Hart burst on the political scene in the first place — namely as campaign manager for a presidential candidate named George McGovern. Hart of course became a laughing stock thanks to a photo associated with the memorable phrase Monkey Business, and now he's returned to the comedy circuit with this rip-roaring shtick:

"The Democrats have failed to come up with a party position on Iraq...Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi have to get these people into line."

Democratic disunity? Nonsense. Democrats in Congress seem remarkably clear on their Iraq policy. Nutshell: "We shouldn't have gone into Iraq, even though at the time we unambiguously agreed with Clinton and Bush 43 that Saddam was a global menace. We should leave Iraq as soon as possible, but if the issue comes up in Congress we'll vote against leaving Iraq yet we'll continue our opposition to American presence in Iraq." Pathetic? Heavens no. The accurate word is: "progressive." (Pardon me while I wretch.)