I’m aghast at the disgraceful performance of Democratic Congressmen Jim McDermott and David Bonior, who have actually traveled to Baghdad to issue statements like this:

Two Democratic congressmen, speaking from Baghdad, said Iraqi officials have assured them that they will allow weapons inspectors unfettered access. The lawmakers accused Bush of wrongly pushing the United States toward war.

“They said they would allow us to go look anywhere we wanted,” said Rep. Jim McDermott, D-Wash., on ABC’s “This Week.”

“Let the U.N. inspectors do their job,” added Rep. David Bonior, D-Mich. He said that Iraqi officials told them that they would allow “unrestricted, unfettered” access, though they do want “their sovereignty respected.” …

On a fact-finding trip to Baghdad, Bonior and McDermott said there is no reason to consider military action until Iraq fails to live up to its word. For now, McDermott said, there is no need for resolutions by Congress or the U.N. Security Council authorizing force.

“You don’t start out by putting the gun to their head and saying we’re going to shoot you if you blink,” McDermott said.

Asked about Iraq’s history of denying access to inspectors, Bonior said the United States should not “play the blame game.”

Bonior said they he and his colleagues met with Iraqi ministers, who assured them that weapons inspectors could “come any time you want, anywhere you want.”

“They want their sovereignty respected,” Bonior added. “They don’t want to be having knocked on the door during prayer and say, `Open up this building in five minutes.’ They want to be treated with some dignity and respect. But basically they’re suggesting that everything will be open.”

What in the name of God are Bonior and McDermott doing? Can they really be this naïve?