Of course, it always helps to get good press coverage with headlines like this: "McCain Will Be in Lehigh Valley Today -- But Where?"
Unrelated...no blood in ants.
This is an open thread -- that means you guys can talk about whatever you want for the whole day. I'm writing a book. Stop annoying me. :-)
Comment removed.
Where's Joe Lieberman when you need him?— SteveMG- At least the NY Times has stopped pretending that they don't care who wins the election and embraced their role as Obama's campaign paper. It's kinda refreshing, this honestly.— Ramon
Will, why don't you examine Obama's claims that he believes things are better in Iraq but he still would not have supported the surge. I mean, talk about a disconnect. Doesn't he know that he will be asked about the surge in every debate. He's gonna get hammered on this. Why doesn't he just admit he was wrong? Oh I forgot, he's a liberal.— jmc- Why does the home page of Philly.com show all Eagles and no Phillies stories after a win like last night. It's training camp b.s. while there is a first place showdown with an awesome result. Any body know a good editor? Hey Will- any brains in ants?— Molly
- Comment removed.
- How exactly is that a disconnect? That things are better now doesn't change the facts that existed in January 2007. Obama's statement is really no different from the people who say they would still have voted for Iraq, even knowing now about the intelligence failures, the lack of WMD, the mess that's been created, etc.— Politburo
- Let McCain try to hammer him in the debate. This is what's going to happen. McCain will get his history lesson thrown right back in his face because the awakening had nothing to do with the surge, and ultimately all the surge has done is to prop up a pro-Iranian puppet government. You're always quick to forget that the good old USA is supposed to be the benificiery of operations, not the Iraqis. It's ironic that to win an election, you are the ones willing to hand Iraq to Iran on a silver platter.— SteveMG
- Politburo: That is not the same thing. Not at all. Obama is saying that making Iraq stable was not worth an extra 2 years of our effort. He is saying that, even knowing the surge would lead to victory, he would choose defeat. Because, according to his own muddled, confused answer, he had to oppose Bush's policies, even if they would work. (This is why McCain rightly points out that Obama would rather win an election than win the war in Iraq.) Someone who thinks deposing a genocidal, destabilizing dictator in the heart of the middle east was a good idea is not making any such odd logical leap. They simply think the WMD were a supplemental reason to an already justified war.— bon
- SteveMG: That is simply not true. Not at all. The awakening began in 2006, but it did not flourish until 2007 when two additional "surge" brigades were sent to protect the Sunni who wanted to fight AQI. McCain is 100% right, without the surge, the awakening would have been smothered in the crib. ----- You keep repeating the "Iranian puppet government" line. It remains incorrect (and I am pretty sure you know that at this point). If the Iraqi government is an Iranian puppet, whya re they fighting and dying to rid their country of Iranian-backed militias? Iraq will be a stable, independent, democrat ally in the war against terror. No matter how much you repeat the same fallacy.— bon
- bon: I can't say I'm surprised that you disagree.. However, you're once again drawing conclusions that are unsupported by reason and logic. First off, you are basing your argument on a false choice, specifically that the surge was the only viable option at the time. Obama's response specifically mentioned his alternate plan that existed in Jan 2007. Obama specifically said that we have no way of knowing what would have happened had the Obama plan was implemented instead of the surge. Obama did specifically state "What I can say is that there is no doubt that our US troops have contributed to a reduction in violence in Iraq."— Politburo
- It was Iran who got Sadr to order a cease fire after Maliki's offensive fell flat on its face.— SteveMG
- bon: You're spinning for McCain, but you should really read his statement first, cause you're losing what little credibility you have left. He said "[The surge] began the Anbar Awakening". He didn't say it accelerated the Awakening, he didn't say it helped the Awakening, he said it BEGAN the awakening. And yet you readily admit that the awakening actually began in 2006. Keep spinning.— Politburo
- Politburo: It did not the surge "accelerated" it. Indeed, the awakening, despite having gone on for months, had not gotten any traction or had any results. It did not really begin until those two additional surge brigades were added to protect the Sunni groups who wanted to fight AQI. The number of people involved directly in the movement skyrocketed and AQI was suddenly on the run. The statement makes sense and is factually correct, even if you want to quibble with when a movement "begins". ----- Do you think quoting Kieth Olberman's take on foreign policy is something different than "spin"? When you are finished denigrating what I have to say perhaps you will actually address what I said? :)— bon
- SteveMG: You are asserting debunked facts. Maliki's offensive was initially reported as a failure, but those early reports were wrong. The Iraqi military took over Sadr's strongholds easily and Sadr was forced into a ceasefire because he was being overrun. Iran is pulling Sadr's strings, and the Iraqi military has badly defeated him and disarmed his forces. This is a prime example of the Iraqis fighting Iranian influence in their country. There is nothing puppety about that. (Iraq is a regional superpower. So long as we stay long enough to allow them to build up an air force, they do not need to bow to anyone.)— bon
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About Will Bunch
Will's new book: Learn about it here and purchase it here.
Will Bunch, a senior writer at the Philadelphia Daily News, blogs about his obsessions, including national and local politics and world affairs, the media, pop music, the Philadelphia Phillies, soccer and other sports, not necessarily in that order.
Will Bunch, a senior writer at the Philadelphia Daily News, blogs about his obsessions, including national and local politics and world affairs, the media, pop music, the Philadelphia Phillies, soccer and other sports, not necessarily in that order.
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