A September 21 Washington Times article reported that House Minority Leader John Boehner (R-OH) was demanding that House Democrats take up a nonbinding resolution condemning an ad MoveOn.org placed in the September 10 edition of The New York Times, stating that Boehner “urged House Democratic leaders 'to immediately schedule a vote ... to condemn the despicable attacks launched against this honorable man by a radical left-wing political organization.' ” However, the Times did not note that Boehner declared earlier this year that a “nonbinding resolution is nothing more than political theater.”

As Media Matters for America noted, during a February 8 press conference, Boehner -- referring to a then-pending nonbinding resolution sponsored by Democrats opposing President Bush's proposal to send more U.S. troops to Iraq -- asserted that “a nonbinding resolution is nothing more than political theater that means nothing. And I believe that it demoralizes our troops in the field.” At the time, Media Matters noted that in June 2006, House Republican leaders had forced the House to debate a nonbinding resolution that established the war in Iraq as “part of the Global War on Terror” and asserted that “it is not in the interest of the United States to set an arbitrary date for withdrawal or redeployment of United States Armed Forces from Iraq.” During the debate on that resolution, Boehner stated that it was “important” for the country that the House was having the debate because "[t]he American public deserves to hear how their elected leaders will respond to international terrorism and those enemies who seek to destroy our American way of life."

Additionally, on February 9, the Los Angeles Times noted that in December 1995, Boehner -- and 220 other Republicans -- "backed a nonbinding resolution opposing President Clinton's plans to send 20,000 U.S. forces to Bosnia to enforce the peace there."

From the September 21 edition of The Washington Times:

The furor over the ad (download pdf), which Republicans up to and including President Bush have denounced, has not subsided since it ran last week. It again placed Democrats on the defensive yesterday, and both House Minority Whip Roy Blunt of Missouri and House Minority Leader John A. Boehner of Ohio yesterday called for a similar resolution in the lower chamber.

“Denouncing this unconscionable assault on Gen. David Petraeus' integrity in a bipartisan manner would signal to the American people that these tactics have no place in our political discourse,” Mr. Blunt said.

Mr. Boehner also urged House Democratic leaders “to immediately schedule a vote ... to condemn the despicable attacks launched against this honorable man by a radical left-wing political organization.”

From Boehner's February 8 press conference:

The second part of this is that we have not seen their resolution yet, but everything that's been written about it thus far indicates that it's a nonbinding resolution opposing the president's new plan.

Now a nonbinding resolution is nothing more than political theater that means nothing. And I believe that it demoralizes our troops in the field. And if they're really serious about their intent to bring troops home, why not bring a real resolution to the floor and have a debate about whether, in fact, they should cut funding or not.

I think the American people deserve a plan from the other side. If they don't like what the president's plan is to reinforce what's going on in Iraq, to reinforce the Iraqi troops in Baghdad, then what is their plan?