Well...no, I didn't see any of the gaffes Obama made on...
Posted By: sam on 2008-08-13
In Reply to: I disagree - How true
Fox or Rush Limbaugh so you are "sure" wrong about that. Actually, on CNN...HARDLY a conservative outlet.
Some of Obama's "misstatements:"
Obama Gaffes on Iraq and Afghanistan
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Share May 13, 2008 8:27 PM
ABC News' David Wright and Sunlen Miller Report: Sporting a shiny new American flag pin at an appearance in Rush Limbaugh's hometown, Sen. Barack Obama came up with some novel reasons why the U.S. may be struggling in the war in Afghanistan.
"We don't have enough capacity right now to deal with it -- and it's not just the troops," Obama, D-Ill., told a crowd in Cape Girardeau, Missouri.
Obama posited -- incorrectly -- that Arabic translators deployed in Iraq are needed in Afghanistan -- forgetting, momentarily, that Afghans don't speak Arabic.
"We only have a certain number of them and if they are all in Iraq, then its harder for us to use them in Afghanistan," Obama said.
The vast majority of military translators in both war zones are drawn from the local population.
Naturally they speak the local language. In Iraq, that's Arabic or Kurdish. In Afghanistan, it's any of a half dozen other languages -- including Pashtu, Dari, and Farsi.
No sooner did Obama realize his mistake -- and correct himself -- but he immediately made another.
"We need agricultural specialists in Afghanistan, people who can help them develop other crops than heroin poppies, because the drug trade in Afghanistan is what is driving and financing these terrorist networks. So we need agricultural specialists," he said.
So far, so good.
"But if we are sending them to Baghdad, they're not in Afghanistan," Obama said.
Iraq has many problems, but encouraging farmers to grow food instead of opium poppies isn't one of them. In Iraq, oil fields not poppy fields are a major source of U.S. technical assistance.
My comment: Ahem. Different countries mixed up did you say about McCain? Looks like Mr. Obama has that same problem.
In June 2008, Obama Misstated The Name Of Brownsville, TX:
Obama: "So if you've got a wall that's cutting the campus of the University of Texas in Brownville in half…" (Sen. Barack Obama, Remarks At The NALEO Conference, Washington, DC, 6/28/08)
In June 2008, Obama Falsely Claimed His Father Served In World War II:
Obama: "My father served in World War II, and when he came home, he got the services that he needed." (Sen. Barack Obama, Remarks At The NALEO Conference, Washington, DC, 6/28/08)
On May 23, Obama Mistakenly Says He's In "Sunshine" At Rally In Sunrise, Florida
Obama: "How's it going Sunshine? Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you everybody. It's good to be in Sunshine!" (Barack Obama, Campaign Rally, Sunrise, FL, 5/23/08)
South Florida Sun-Sentinel: "It Wasn't Clear If Barack Obama Knew Exactly Where He Was Friday Afternoon …" "It wasn't clear if Barack Obama knew exactly where he was Friday afternoon when he spoke at his mass rally at the BankAtlantic Center. He repeatedly used the term 'Sunshine' as a place name rather than 'Sunrise,' the city where the arena is located, including, 'How's it going Sunshine? Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you everybody. It's good to be in Sunshine.'" ("Did Obama Know Where He Was For Sunrise Rally?" South Florida Sun-Sentinel Blog, 5/24/08)
On May 16, Obama Mistakenly Says He's In Sioux City At Sioux Falls, SD Rally. Obama: "Illinois Sen. Barack Obama started his speech tonight with a gaffe. 'Thank you Sioux City,' he said, before realizing his mistake." ("Obama Starts Speech With Gaffe," Sioux Falls Argus Leader, 5/16/08)
My Comment: If you are correct and what you say reflects your intellect, then one would think Obama doesn't even know where he is half the time....?
"I think that DOMA, the Defense Against Marriage Act, was, was a (sic) unnecessary imposition on what had been the traditional rules governing marriage and how states interact on the issues of marriage." – Barack Obama, referring to the Defense Of Marriage Act (DOMA), 7/1/08
Obama Called Rapid City Grand Rapids. Obama: "We were in Grand Rapids with a—or Grand? – Rapid City. See I've been talking to long." (Sen. Barack Obama, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Aberdeen, SC, 5/31/08)
On May 9, Obama Claimed To Have Visited 57 States. Obama: "Because, you know, it is just wonderful to be back in Oregon, and over the last 15 months we've traveled to every corner of the United States. I've now been in 57 states, I think, one left to go. One left to go, Alaska and Hawaii I was not allowed to go to even though I really wanted to visit, but my staff would not justify it." (Sen. Barack Obama, Remarks At A Campaign Event, Beaverton, OR, 5/9/08)
On May 5, Obama Called Matt Lauer "Tim" Three Times In One Interview, Had To Be Corrected By Lauer. Obama: "Well, I think what it is, Tim, is, you know, that no person is defined by a few snippets taken over the course of a number of years …Well, Tim, I think that all of us have people in our lives who may have done some good things, and then we also see them doing some things that are disappointing. … Well, Tim, first of all, it's not me who's criticized these proposals." … NBC's Matt Lauer: "I just want to say, I know you've had a very long week, and so have I. You're saying Tim. I know, it's Matt Lauer. But believe me, I completely understand." Obama: "Matt, I'm sorry." Lauer: "We've both had a long week, Senator, believe me." (NBC's "Today," 5/5/08)
My final comment: These are not all the gaffes. There are many more. Just like you could post a bunch McCain has made and every other politician who ever ran...again, it has nothing to do with their minds. People misspeak, especially people who are called upon to speak as much as Presidential candidates. But if you can manage to be fair about this...if you think McCain is weak-minded because he misspeaks, then you should say the same thing about Obama...because he misspeaks just as often. And, no offense, if people would get away from the hard left (or right) blogs and quoting hard left (or right) media and look up things for themselves...they would see that most of the things said about EITHER candidate can usually be found about the other one as well with a little research. But, of course, you have to want to know the TRUTH, whatever it is...to research BOTH sides....and, bottom line...when people misspeak, it does not indicate they have a "mind" problem...but if it DID, Obama seems to be similarly "afflicted."
And a little tidbit about Fox News....they have as many dem Fox New contributors as Repub...Howard Wolfson, Bob Beckel to name two...and many more whose names I can't remember. When they have a Repub pundit, they always have a Dem pundit with him/her. That is more than I can say for most media outlets. And for the record, I am neither Dem nor Repub...Independent.
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I didn't say lying made him a Muslim.......... sm
I said a person who lies about one thing will generally lie about other things as well.
Guess you didn't read the post I made from a few days ago.
Sorry, but I haven't been able to post lately due to some problems, but the FOIA report I posted and said to pay attention to certain pages....Clinton KNEW there were WMD's in Irag in 1996! Did he do anything? Nope. He left the country he was visiting right before a bombing; i.e., he knew it was going to happen. The jist I got of the report was that he knew and did nothing.
Did you read that report? Don't want to dredge up old presidents but you seem to do it every chance you get, so I just have to respond to that. Bush also knew but did nothing because the CIA,DOJ, FBI and whatever other departments were to keep him informed but never worked together on anything so he got conflicting reports all the time. Was he a mind reader? Doubt it or 911 would not have happened.
Sorry, but this post does not hold water IMHO.
Looks as if Obama made it worse.
If Obama is the hero for rescuing the Captain, what will happen now if pirates get a hold of more US ships?
(CNN) -- Two pirates in Somalia vowed revenge Monday, after the U.S. military killed three pirates and freed a U.S. ship captain who had been held hostage for several days.
Crew members of the Maersk Alabama celebrate after hearing the Navy had rescued their captain from pirates.
Crew members of the Maersk Alabama celebrate after hearing the Navy had rescued their captain from pirates.
The pirates told a Somali journalist that they were angered by the U.S. action, as well as a French raid Friday that killed two pirates and one hostage and freed four hostages.
"We have decided to kill U.S. and French sailors if they happen to be among our future hostages," said Abdullahi Ahmed, a member of a pirate group based at Harardhere, a coastal town in central Somalia.
Members of the U.S. Navy shot and killed three pirates who had been holding Capt. Richard Phillips hostage in a lifeboat on Sunday evening, a military official said. The pirates seized Phillips after a failed attempt to hijack his ship, the Maersk Alabama.
For five days the pirates held Phillips in the lifeboat as U.S. Navy ships closed in and lingered nearby.
On Sunday, U.S. Navy snipers opened fire on the lifeboat after seeing one pirate point an AK-47 at the captain's back, the U.S. military said. The shootings occurred as one pirate was aboard the USS Bainbridge negotiating over Phillips' fate. Video Watch how SEALs shot three pirates »
Three pirates in the lifeboat were killed. Phillips was not hurt. He was taken to another U.S. Navy vessel, the U.S. military said, where he received a medical checkup and spoke by phone with his wife in the United States. Video Watch admiral tell how rescue went down »
Don't Miss
* Navy snipers kill pirates
* Captain's friends, relatives express relief
* Sailors tell of battling pirates
* TIME.com: Europe has led anti-piracy effort
Pirates in Somalia identified the slain men as Mohamed Ahmed Adawe, Nur Dalabey and Khalif Guled. Two of them -- Dalabey and Guled -- were among the "most experienced men" in a group that has hijacked seagoing vessels for money, Ahmed said.
They were killed two days after the French military freed four hostages, including a child, who had been held by pirates for nearly a week on a yacht off Somalia's coast. In that operation, a hostage and two pirates were killed, the French Defense Ministry said, while three pirates were captured. Video Watch how pirates roam a vast area of ocean »
The military actions angered Ali Nur, a pirate who is based in Gara'ad, a coastal village in the semi-autonomous region of Puntland, in northern Somalia.
"From now on, after the killings by the U.S. and France, we will add some harsher steps in our dealings with hostages, particularly American and French hostages," Nur told a journalist.
The U.S. military acknowledged Sunday that its actions to rescue Phillips could increase the risk of violence.
"This could escalate violence in this part of the world. No question about it," U.S. Navy Vice Adm. Bill Gortney told reporters.
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Nur issued a warning to the United States.
"The killing of our boys was aggression, and the U.S. will see what they get from their operation," he said.
Obama made the same statement long before
xx
Obama made it very clear to Joe the Plumber....
Were you listening? He explained it very clearly. He was going to tax Joe at a higher rate and give that money to people "below Joe" so "they would have a chance too." That is NOT American, that is socialism. Out of Obama's own mouth. The man is a socialist, and because you refuse to see it or see it and don't care, it does not make it less true.
To use your words...run and hide if you like.
And Michelle Obama has made it clear
that her children come first. From what I've personally seen, I can't imagine those parents allowing ANYTHING or ANYONE to harm their children and that all they want for their children are bright, healthy, prosperous futures -- just like all American parents do.
Yet, some people on this board even want to suggest that getting these girls a PUPPY is something evil with questionable motive. It's just unbelievable! 
All the promises made by President Obama.
President Barrack Obama has made a huge list of promises. As you can see, some promises he has already broken and we aren't even into his presidency a whole week yet.
Foreign Policy
Domestic Policy
Yes, that speech made Obama look like a robot.
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Well, Obama just made an obvious oops!!!
Obama says his tax cuts will help those in poverty get out of poverty........ how so? Those making "poverty" wages DON'T pay taxes.............. like so very many that put him in office. I'm so sick of listening to him give lip service, all the time knowing he's pulling good ones over on the more ignorant of our country!
For those buying homes, if they couldn't afford $8000.00 dollars in the first place, why in the heck are they even being given loans to buy a home with an $8K credit? And please, for those that think this is wonderful, don't even bother to try to glorify this. This is nothing more than giving people who shouldn't have homes in the first place ANOTHER avenue to get a home..... then when they can't pay the actual mortgage, the ones who do pay their mortages will be BAILING THEM OUT AGAIN!!
If you're needing that small amount of money (and yes it is a small amount considering the big picture), you shouldn't be buying a house because you should be able to have saved the down payment in the first place.......... Obama talks out of both sides of his mouth.
McCain was talking about how many trips Obama had made to...
Iraq...constantly talking about Iraq and what was going on there and never having been there, though many other senators had. Anyone paying attention knows that. Obama's little trip to Germany was part and parcel of his "I am a citizen of the world" hoohah. Had nothing to do with what McCain said. And yes, he finally DID go to Iraq, and well he SHOULD. And he knows that the surge worked, but he would die before he admitted it. That is what I HATE about politics. Politicians (none of them) ever say what they think or they feel...only what they think you want to hear. I hate the pandering and dishonesty, on both sides. It reeks.
Obama has never made an appointment to the supreme court
You need to be contacting your republican representatives.
Why? Obama obviously didn't, he's still on
Joe Biden didn't think Obama was up to the job of...
Presidency either...and you don't get any more Democrat than Joe Biden. Of course, that all changed when he got added to the ticket.
There are a few conservatives who don't like John McCain...that is no secret. He has stepped on a lot of toes in his career because he puts country first and party second. That makes as many enemies as it does friends.
And it makes him, in my opinion, just what we need. I am ready for a President who puts his country first.
As to Sarah P and her photo ops...no different than Barack and his trip to germany and Israel. He only took news outlets in the tank for him and they would not dare ask him a tough question. Let's at least be fair about this.
Obama didn't choose this man..
He had this man chosen for him and probably had to be kicked pulling and screaming to this VP pick. If you have ever watched Biden speak, he has nothing but rave reviews of McCain. Sure, he's now running against him but he didn't suddenly change his feelings about him. He hasn't towards Obama either; he's just going through the motions in hopes of getting to the White House VP slot where he can make another run in 2012.
Um, I didn't say this was about Obama. It's about timing.
Israel knows the Bush admin supports them. They know Obama does not. It doesn't take a genius to deduct that if they are planning any kind of attack, they would want to do it while they have the support of the U.S. Of course there are many other factors leading up to this attack, but the timing is significant in that they are squeezing it in just before they lose the support of the U.S.
I am interested to see when Obama is going ring in on this and what side he's going to land on. The future of our nation will be significantly affected by our support of Israel. Obama will be tested as soon as he takes the oath. And he is going to fail. I'll say it again, like I said back in November --- MARK MY WORDS!
FYI, The Palestinians are squatters. The land has always belonged to the Israelis. They will never win. This is a battle that has been waging for centuries and Israel always prevails.
I didn't know Obama was a reporter...(sm)
How this story was covered by either side is not the point. Or, on second thought, maybe it is. In case you haven't noticed, this is the kind of thing that Obama is trying to overcome - bipartisan politics. Did I call them neocons? Yes, because most of them are self-proclaimed neocons. But who ended up calling Obama a nazi? Hmmmm.
As noted in the OP, if you did not like the source provided, you could look it up through a media source that is more to your liking. Maybe you couldn't find this story in conservative media. Why do you think that is?
No, which is why I didn't vote for Obama....
**
Of course Obama didn't admit to that.
I heard Biden's speech - on MSNBC and then again on Fox. That was exactly what he was talking about.
What if Obama didn't hate people like me? (sm)
I like Obama as a speaker, I think Obama is very intelligent and educated. I think Obama is very attractive. I like a lot of the ideas he has. I just cannot skirt around the issue of those he has associated with and the church he attended for 20 YEARS! I find it hard to believe he is not racist against me, a plain old white citizen. I think it doesn't matter that I have friends of all races, and that I love someone of another race. All that matters to his minister is that I am white and that makes him hate me, and if Obama didn't also hate me, and those like me, then why did he continue to attend that church and listen to the acid spewing from his minister's mouth for 20 years?  While I think it is horrible that our ancestors forced African's into slavery and treated them horribly, I didn't do it! I would never do it! I love everyone! Why do I have to be a victim of prejudice now, just because I am white? Why can't prejudice not exist either way?
Obama supported the bailout too didn't he?
I respect your right to vote for who you want to, but why is it whenever something negative is said about Obama it is rumor but whenever something negative is said about Mccain it is fact? Shouldn't it go both ways. I mean I'm not dumb, I know that a lot of the mudslinging on both sides is pure crap, but there is some truth to both sides.
I'm praying with you too, but I'm not praying for one candidate over another. I'm just praying that God will put the person HE wants in there and He will work in their heart to help them make the right decisions. But sometimes I fear we may have already pushed God out of our nation to much and we it may be time for the judgment on America, just like what happened to Israel.
No matter who wins, it's time to batten (right word?) down the hatches and start saving and probably start stocking up on canned food! We are in for a llloonnnggg winter!
the response didn't come from an obama supporter
If you're referring to my response to the OP about scraping the bottom of the barrel. FYI I'm voting for McCain.
You didn't watch Obama's speeches before the
He said "I will close Gitmo". All the O lovers were on here posting how wonderful that was; how glad they were to hear it. And now, you act as if you know nothihng about that? Obama wouldn't do such a thing? All he had to do was say, no, things will go forward, a trial will be had NOW, and there will be no freeze.
He didn't do that! And so it has started..
Obama didn't create this mess
I am amazed at the criticism directed at Obama regarding the current economic crisis.
1. Did he run up our huge debt with China?
2. Who blew billions on Wall Street without any oversight - Bush/Paulson - ring a bell?
3. Who gave us the stimulus checks last year that the government couldn't really afford to give?
4. Who got us into a $10 billion a month Iraq war when our allies and the UN Security Council could see that the "evidence" was total b.s.? Wasn't it McCain who said we would keep at it 100 years? How much has that and would that fiasco cost us?
I speak as a former Republican/turned independent. Both parties have sold us down the river to appeal to the interests of big multinationals interested in "free trade". How could we possibly hope to keep our economy healthy by allowing trade with people making pennies an hour? Our own profession is a microcosm of the maladies caused by the "global economy". We make far less and work much harder - finding it difficult to pay bills. It had to crash sometime.
I agree with you that this stimulus package will probably not do the trick, but to blame Obama for it is ridiculous. It would be the equivalent of having been sent in a barrel over the side of Niagara Falls, and halfway down Obama tries to figure out a way to soften the landing. He didn't put us in the situation - and maybe he can't get us out.
One thing is certain - McCain could not have done better. He would have kept us bleeding billions in Iraq that we simply do not have.
We are likely going to see runaway inflation. The government is committing itself to compounding the effects of the disaster - starting with Bush allowing Paulson to throw billions to his Wall Street buddies and the continuing effort to stave off the inevitable crash of our economy. The only way they can afford these megabillion plans is to print more money - and the money will become worth a lot less. Get ready for a $100 loaf of bread.
Didn't Obama say "NO LOBBYISTS"?
There are 12 lobbylists in his administration............but, of course, all Obama lovers will certainly defend them somehow! They always do.
Of course it didn't in your mind...... you're an Obama
//
OMG, I hope my post didn't look like I thought Obama did it
I know he didn't. He's a very decent person and respectful and when something is wrong he'll say so (and will have words with his people if they cross the line). I wasn't sure who did it. The news said they were going to tell us who is responsible but they never did (go figure). I just think its a horrible thing to happen to anyone and DH and I were talking tonight about when did all the nasty things like this start happening. I'm sure 100 or so years ago it wasn't bad like this. I just think it's a horrible world when someone is running for an office and people think its okay to do this. How low will they go?
Obama didn't even stop campaigning to mourn
I'm with you -- it's ridiculous to think we need a moratorium on this board.
Didn't the Washington Post back Obama?
My math isn't wrong. Gov. Blago+Mrs. Blago (real estate agent, or did you forget?)+Rezko=Obama. Can I make it any clearer?
Yeah, and didn't Michelle just tell us to judge Obama on his actions? sm
They finally let her out of her box onto the Larry King show, and that's one of the things she said.
I don't like his actions, one little bit.
He's bamboozled millions of people.
Thanks to Obama? Get Real. He didn't send jobs overseas....
Most MT companies will not offshore work. Most hospitals and large clinics DEMAND that their work not be sent overseas. Unfortunately, you have those that LIE and I worked for an MT company that sent overload work to India. It was indeed, unfortunate, as the quality was horrible. But, I've trained plenty of MTs who were just as bad with "supposed" experience. They could pass a test, they just couldn't work accurately consistently. I blame that on the "production pay system." I learned MT when they used to respect you and paid you by the hour. There was no demand on HOW MUCH as long as it was COMPLETELY accurate.
What if Obama didn't hang around with terrorists? What if he was not a long-time follower of a r
Then I would be voting for him.
Obama didn't wait for his term to legally begin, he started on Nov. 5th.
The American people didn't listen to the anti Obama sentiments sm
That Ayers crapola is not applicable. All that bashing of Obama is over SOUR GRAPES BABY!!! WE WON, YES WE CAN, YES WE DID
I didn't miss any part and didn't say...
anything either way. I just posted a link.
This is the reason we are in Iraq and it's the same reason I didn't vote for him in 2000: Didn't
his own personal reasons.
http://www.tompaine.com/articles/20050620/why_george_went_to_war.php
The Downing Street memos have brought into focus an essential question: on what basis did President George W. Bush decide to invade Iraq? The memos are a government-level confirmation of what has been long believed by so many: that the administration was hell-bent on invading Iraq and was simply looking for justification, valid or not.
Despite such mounting evidence, Bush resolutely maintains total denial. In fact, when a British reporter asked the president recently about the Downing Street documents, Bush painted himself as a reluctant warrior. "Both of us didn't want to use our military," he said, answering for himself and British Prime Minister Blair. "Nobody wants to commit military into combat. It's the last option."
Yet there's evidence that Bush not only deliberately relied on false intelligence to justify an attack, but that he would have willingly used any excuse at all to invade Iraq. And that he was obsessed with the notion well before 9/11—indeed, even before he became president in early 2001.
In interviews I conducted last fall, a well-known journalist, biographer and Bush family friend who worked for a time with Bush on a ghostwritten memoir said that an Iraq war was always on Bush's brain.
"He was thinking about invading Iraq in 1999," said author and Houston Chronicle journalist Mickey Herskowitz. "It was on his mind. He said, 'One of the keys to being seen as a great leader is to be seen as a commander-in-chief.' And he said, 'My father had all this political capital built up when he drove the Iraqis out of Kuwait and he wasted it.' He went on, 'If I have a chance to invade…, if I had that much capital, I'm not going to waste it. I'm going to get everything passed that I want to get passed and I'm going to have a successful presidency.'"
Bush apparently accepted a view that Herskowitz, with his long experience of writing books with top Republicans, says was a common sentiment: that no president could be considered truly successful without one military "win" under his belt. Leading Republicans had long been enthralled by the effect of the minuscule Falklands War on British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's popularity, and ridiculed Democrats such as Jimmy Carter who were reluctant to use American force. Indeed, both Reagan and Bush's father successfully prosecuted limited invasions (Grenada, Panama and the Gulf War) without miring the United States in endless conflicts.
Herskowitz's revelations illuminate Bush's personal motivation for invading Iraq and, more importantly, his general inclination to use war to advance his domestic political ends. Furthermore, they establish that this thinking predated 9/11, predated his election to the presidency and predated his appointment of leading neoconservatives who had their own, separate, more complex geopolitical rationale for supporting an invasion.
Conversations With Bush The Candidate
Herskowitz—a longtime Houston newspaper columnist—has ghostwritten or co-authored autobiographies of a broad spectrum of famous people, including Reagan adviser Michael Deaver, Mickey Mantle, Dan Rather and Nixon cabinet secretary John B. Connally. Bush's 1999 comments to Herskowitz were made over the course of as many as 20 sessions together. Eventually, campaign staffers—expressing concern about things Bush had told the author that were included in the manuscript—pulled the project, and Bush campaign officials came to Herskowitz's house and took his original tapes and notes. Bush communications director Karen Hughes then assumed responsibility for the project, which was published in highly sanitized form as A Charge to Keep.
The revelations about Bush's attitude toward Iraq emerged during two taped sessions I held with Herskowitz. These conversations covered a variety of matters, including the journalist's continued closeness with the Bush family and fondness for Bush Senior—who clearly trusted Herskowitz enough to arrange for him to pen a subsequent authorized biography of Bush's grandfather, written and published in 2003.
I conducted those interviews last fall and published an article based on them during the final heated days of the 2004 campaign. Herskowitz's taped insights were verified to the satisfaction of editors at the Houston Chronicle, yet the story failed to gain broad mainstream coverage, primarily because news organization executives expressed concern about introducing such potent news so close to the election. Editors told me they worried about a huge backlash from the White House and charges of an "October Surprise."
Debating The Timeline For War
But today, as public doubts over the Iraq invasion grow, and with the Downing Street papers adding substance to those doubts, the Herskowitz interviews assume singular importance by providing profound insight into what motivated Bush—personally—in the days and weeks following 9/11. Those interviews introduce us to a George W. Bush, who, until 9/11, had no means for becoming "a great president"—because he had no easy path to war. Once handed the national tragedy of 9/11, Bush realized that the Afghanistan campaign and the covert war against terrorist organizations would not satisfy his ambitions for greatness. Thus, Bush shifted focus from Al Qaeda, perpetrator of the attacks on New York and Washington. Instead, he concentrated on ensuring his place in American history by going after a globally reviled and easily targeted state run by a ruthless dictator.
The Herskowitz interviews add an important dimension to our understanding of this presidency, especially in combination with further evidence that Bush's focus on Iraq was motivated by something other than credible intelligence. In their published accounts of the period between 9/11 and the March 2003 invasion, former White House Counterterrorism Coordinator Richard Clarke and journalist Bob Woodward both describe a president single-mindedly obsessed with Iraq. The first anecdote takes place the day after the World Trade Center collapsed, in the Situation Room of the White House. The witness is Richard Clarke, and the situation is captured in his book, Against All Enemies.
On September 12th, I left the Video Conferencing Center and there, wandering alone around the Situation Room, was the President. He looked like he wanted something to do. He grabbed a few of us and closed the door to the conference room. "Look," he told us, "I know you have a lot to do and all…but I want you, as soon as you can, to go back over everything, everything. See if Saddam did this. See if he's linked in any way…"
I was once again taken aback, incredulous, and it showed. "But, Mr. President, Al Qaeda did this."
"I know, I know, but…see if Saddam was involved. Just look. I want to know any shred…" …
"Look into Iraq, Saddam," the President said testily and left us. Lisa Gordon-Hagerty stared after him with her mouth hanging open.
Similarly, Bob Woodward, in a CBS News 60 Minutes interview about his book, Bush At War, captures a moment, on November 21, 2001, where the president expresses an acute sense of urgency that it is time to secretly plan the war with Iraq. Again, we know there was nothing in the way of credible intelligence to precipitate the president's actions.
Woodward: "President Bush, after a National Security Council meeting, takes Don Rumsfeld aside, collars him physically and takes him into a little cubbyhole room and closes the door and says, 'What have you got in terms of plans for Iraq? What is the status of the war plan? I want you to get on it. I want you to keep it secret.'"
Wallace (voiceover): Woodward says immediately after that, Rumsfeld told Gen. Tommy Franks to develop a war plan to invade Iraq and remove Saddam—and that Rumsfeld gave Franks a blank check.
Woodward: "Rumsfeld and Franks work out a deal essentially where Franks can spend any money he needs. And so he starts building runways and pipelines and doing all the necessary preparations in Kuwait specifically to make war possible."
Bush wanted a war so that he could build the political capital necessary to achieve his domestic agenda and become, in his mind, "a great president." Blair and the members of his cabinet, unaware of the Herskowitz conversations, placed Bush's decision to mount an invasion in or about July of 2002. But for Bush, the question that summer was not whether, it was only how and when. The most important question, why, was left for later.
Eventually, there would be a succession of answers to that question: weapons of mass destruction, links to Al Qaeda, the promotion of democracy, the domino theory of the Middle East. But none of them have been as convincing as the reason George W. Bush gave way back in the summer of 1999.
Yes I do have it made.
I do have it made, and it is well earned. How much military service do you have under your belt? How many political action committees have you served on?
I don't think she has made this
decision without thinking about all she might miss with her kids. My mom was at a lot of the things I did in school. However, my dad was at work. He was supporting his family by making a living. He was making our situation better by working that overtime so we could afford stuff. Would I have liked my dad to be at my tennis match.....sure. But the reality is that even though he wasn't there watching, he still was literally the one supporting me and I appreciated and loved him for that.
As for Palin, did you ever think that maybe....just maybe she is willing to sacrifice time with her kids to make a better country for them as well as all of us? Have they asked Obama about sacrificing time with his kids? No....because we all just assume Michelle will take care of the kids.
Al would have made sure we were . . .
not kissing (notice I did not say kicking) butt over in Iraq to get that oil. This country would have been a lot further along with alternative energy sources!!!
I made my own
NObama pin which I alternated with an Obama pin (with the red slash through the O as in a no smoking sign).
thank you SO much, made my day!!
 That was truly worth the seven minutes!!
Please tell me you just made that up!!!
Because if you didn't, you're right, that is much more sick.
Please tell me you just made that up!!!
Because if you didn't, you're right, that is much more sick.
NO vaccines are made in the U.S. now???
Or is that another conservative "fact"?
And, yes, those dang whacko liberals like Robert F. Kennedy and those of his ilk should be ashamed of themselves for connecting the presence of thimerosal in vaccines and resultant autism and attempting to STOP it. Who cares about the children who are already here? The most important thing is that we make sure not to hurt those inanimate cells in a petrie dish.
And, yes, it's certainly has been proven that there can be side effects associated with the smallpox vaccine where a small percentage of people might get sick and die. We COULD maybe let the people CHOOSE whether they want the vaccine or not (if enough of it ever actually EXISTED to protect the entire country), but, no, free choice isn't a very "red" thing to do. So the only logical thing to do is make sure that we deny the vaccine to all Americans so we can ALL die if terrorists decide to use that as a form of bio warfare. (By the way, I truly doubt that lawsuits will be much of an issue if we're all DEAD.)
Right? I mean, you "red" guys know what should be allowed and denied in the life of every single American, don't you? You've got some kind of special "divine knowledge" where you know what I should be "allowed" to do with my own personal body, who I'm "allowed" to love, how I'm "allowed" to plan my family, when I decide I'm "allowed" to die, and which God I'm "allowed" to worship without being doomed to eternal damnation?
wow, you made that assumption of me HOW? sm
by the way, the immaturity and silliness of your answer just makes you look like a fool. Might want to work on that.
Yep, made a mistake, should have been why would anyone BAN you. SM
People do that all the time on the board, don't make a big deal out of it and I am perfectly FINE here. Why.....feeling uncomfortable? It's not like you guys don't take pot shots on the Conservative board now is it?
No, only the ones made by liberals.
xox
SOY was the one who made it personal anyway.
**This fits many on THIS board...To fear the LORD is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil behavior and perverse speech.**
Maybe you missed that because you've stereotyped, judged and sentenced the liberals already.
Yes! You made my point exactly
They just keep shipping the jobs out until eventually we'll be left with millions of doctors and lawyers!! And who wants that?! :)
Seriously, something has to be done about this. Unfortunately, quite a few politians are paid by these big companies that make profits by off-shoring. We have to start putting major pressure on them to stop.
But who and how would that decision be made
From a legal perspective? Say "convenience" abortions are made illegal. I get pregnant and decide I want to have a "convenience" abortion. However, I know these are illegal, so I say the guy raped me. Who gets to pick in which cases abortion is permitted and in which cases it's not?
This is my main concern. You're preaching to the choir on the rest of it, because it used to disgust me when I would type reports and a woman would've had 15 abortions. I do not agree with that at all, and I don't think there are many who do. But, logistically speaking, again, it's either legal or illegal.
I only made it through the first two paragraphs
I had a nauseating sense of deja vu.
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