Obama, Clinton tangle on Iraq war
Immediately after President Bush marked the fifth anniversary of the Iraq war with a speech this morning defending its conduct and consequences, the Democrats who want to replace him in the White House tussled over who is best to change course.
Barack Obama indirectly and directly assailed Hillary Clinton.
The indirect: Obama said that the war began because too many politicians in Washington spent too little time reading intelligence reports and too much time reading political polls -- a slap at Clinton, who has acknowledged not digesting reports on Iraq's weapons programs before her 2002 vote authorizing the conflict.
The direct: Obama said that by claiming that her experience makes her more qualified than him to be commander-in-chief, she is playing right into the hands of Republican John McCain, who has more years in Washington and more national security credentials. And if McCain wins in November, the Iraq war will continue and "we all lose," Obama said.
"The way to win that debate and to keep America safe is to offer a clear contrast, and that’s what I will do when I am the nominee of the Democratic Party – because since before this war in Iraq began, I have made different judgments, I have a different vision, and I will offer a clean break from the failed policies and politics of the past," Obama said in a speech in Fayetteville, N.C., near Fort Bragg, one of the nation's largest military bases.
In the speech, Obama said without ending the war in Iraq, the US can't address its national security and foreign policy needs.
He called for a renewed focus on Afghanistan to finish the fight against the Taliban and root out al Qaeda, including $1 billion more a year in non-military assistance to help the Afghan people. Obama also proposed a comprehensive anti-terrorism strategy. He also called for enhanced efforts to stop nuclear proliferation, to cut global poverty in half, and to reduce global warming.
"I have no illusions that any of this will be easy," he said. "But I do know that we can only begin to make these changes when we end the mindset that focuses on Iraq and ignores the rest of the world."
For her part, Clinton, who gave her Iraq speech earlier in the week, released a video featuring testimonials from some of the 34 retired generals and admirals supporting her.
“We face growing threats around the globe. Sen. Clinton is the candidate that we believe is the strongest, most experienced leader,” Rear Admiral David Stone says in the video.
UPDATE: The Clinton campaign also released a web video questioning Obama's commitment to withdraw troops, splicing together clips of him making the pledge and of former adviser Samantha Power calling his 16-month plan a "best-case scenario."
UPDATE: McCain issued a statement today that warned of dire consequences if the US withdraws from Iraq too soon. Clinton and Obama both propose a phased withdrawal of combat troops that would likely take a year or more after they take office.
"America and our allies stand on the precipice of winning a major victory against radical Islamic extremism," McCain's statement said. "The security gains over the past year have been dramatic and undeniable."
"Americans should be proud that they led the way in removing a vicious, predatory dictator and opening the possibility of a free and stable Iraq," the statement continues. "Americans should be proud that once we implemented the surge and new counterinsurgency strategy, a dire situation has been dramatically improved. And, Americans know that the consequences of failure would leave our nation less secure for generations to come."
UPDATE: McCain's campaign followed up with a critique of what it called Obama's "fantasy plan for making us safer."
"Senator Obama says that ending the war will not be easy, that 'there will be dangers involved,' " senior adviser Mark Salter said in a statement. "Yet, in that patented way of his, he declines to name those dangers. Let me enumerate a few: al Qaeda, which is now on the run, will survive, claim victory, and continue to provoke sectarian tensions that, while they have been subdued by the 'tactics' of the surge, still exist and are ripe for provocation by al Qaeda, which would almost certainly ignite again civil war in Iraq, a civil war that could easily descend into genocide. To say that invading Iraq was used as a recruiting tool for al Qaeda is one thing. To pretend that our defeat there won't provide an even bigger one is foolish supposition."
Really, John McCain! "A free and stable Iraq"? You mean that you could walk down the street during your visit just like anywhere in America? After all that money and those lives lost of ours, of theirs, and a crumbling economy, infrastructure, and educational system here? We're done, we were done before we started. We made it a hotbed of terrorism. Let's build our country up to the shining light it used to be for other countries around the world that respected us, instead of pouring it down the drain there. Greeted as liberators with cheers and flowers my foot.
Since when have either Barack or Hillary admitted that they propose a phased withdrawal that will, "likely take more than a year"? I have never heard that time frame put forth by either candidate. Sounds to me like the author might have taken some lterary license.
Since when have either Barack or Hillary admitted that they propose a phased withdrawal that will, "likely take more than a year"? I have never heard that time frame put forth by either candidate. Sounds to me like the author might have taken some lterary license.
AMERICA WAKE UP...BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE..J
According to The Book of Revelations the anti-christ is:
A man, in his 40s, of MUSLIM descent, who will deceive the nations with persuasive language, and have a MASSIVE Christ-like appeal....the prophecy says that people will flock to him and he will promise false hope and world peace, and when he is in power, will destroy everything. Is it OBAMA??
AMERICA WAKE UP...BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE..J
According to The Book of Revelations the anti-christ is:
A man, in his 40s, of MUSLIM descent, who will deceive the nations with persuasive language, and have a MASSIVE Christ-like appeal....the prophecy says that people will flock to him and he will promise false hope and world peace, and when he is in power, will destroy everything. Is it OBAMA??
Why would anyone who shows poor judgment as Obama over his handling of Rezko and Wright's relationships? On top of that, Obama is not a Uniter, he continues to perpetuate Wright's teachings of anti-american and anti-white to the future generations as demonstrated by his conscious choice of exposing his own children to this type of teaching for all of their life so far.
Poor judgment, dishonest of the worst kind. At least with Clinton and McCain, I know what I can or can't get from them. Obama is worse because he is not authentic, his words and actions are not consistent.
no
Yeah, the book of revelation is always right on the money!
Jerry Wayne Wilson, with all due respect, be specific by giving the Chapter and verses to support your case. If you are in doubt of understanding the Book of Revelation, please get some theological help.
Obama is not the likes of the Anti-Christ. Please read the Bible in its entirety.
Remember this..."when God bless no one can curse". And all those who rise up against His own, they will fall; and every tongue that rises up against His own, will be proven to be wrong". One more thing..God has not given us the spirit of fear but of love, power and sound mind.
OBAMA WILL EMERGE VICTORIOUS COME WHAT MAY! You will live to see it.
Jerry Wayne Wilson, with all due respect, be specific by giving the Chapter and verses to support your case. If you are in doubt of understanding the Book of Revelation, please get some theological help.
Obama is not the like of the Anti-Christ.....read the Bible in its entirety.
Remember this..."when God bless no one can curse". And all those who rise up against His own, they will fall; and every tongue that rise up against His own, will be proven to be wrong". One more thing..God has not given us the spirit of fear but of love, power and sound mind.
OBAMA WILL EMERGE VICTORIOUS COME WHAT MAY! You will live to see it.
Just curious why a supposedly non-biased article on the candidates positions opens with an ad for the Hillary campaign?
I wish I could answer your question Mr. March. I myself am curious as to why the media in general came down so hard on Clinton for Ferraro's remarks and treated Wright and Obama with kid gloves. Perhaps the reasons are similar?
I am impressed that Obama would make a speech calling for an end to the Iraqi war in Fayetteville, since Ft. Bragg has been home to the Special Forces, Delta Force, an elite airborne division, and a counterinsurgency school.
But if I am impressed with the venue, I am not impressed with Obama's credentials as an antiwar candidate. Nor am I impressed with his efforts to portray Clinton as pro-war because she voted for the invasion of Iraq. When Bush and Powell made their arguments to the American people and members of the UN Security Council, not only did the Washington Post go along, so did the New York Times and the bulk of the American people. So it is hard to see how Clinton can be blamed for having poor judgment or being pro-war, given that almost everybody in the country demonstrated the same judgment, including most of those on the left.
If Obama once made a speech opposing the war, that may be to his credit, given the current mood of the country and depending on his reasons for doing so. But I am curious to know what he has done since being in the Senate (if anything) to end the war, and if his actions have been significantly different from those of Clinton. Can anybody help out with this, or am I condemned to surf the web in search of enlightenment?
I am still waiting to see Obama make a real effort to unite America, instead of offering clever arguments to cover his gaffes and his past. Uniting America is going to be especially difficult, owing to the hard positions most of us have regarding Iraq, race, economic theories, and so on. So I am curious -- does attacking Clinton and McCain really help him to unite America by reassuring the rest of us that he is indeed a new type of politician who runs a purely positive campaign?
I upset a lot of my colleagues and acquaintances and even a few friends and relatives by opposing the slide to war in Iraq. But there was little more I could do than argue for a prudent policy in the Middle East because I was not in a position to shape events. Words are sometimes just words and powerless to affect events, and Obama's constant referral to what he said rather than what he did strikes me as posturing, just as his supposed disavowal of his pastor was clearly sophistry, and his appropriate of John Edwards' campaign platform a form of plagiarism.
No, Obama is not the Messiah; he is just another politician out of Chicago, Illinois.
Alas!
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