What a maverick, huh?
WASHINGTON Mar 1, 2007 (AP)— Republican presidential contender John McCain, a staunch backer of the Iraq war but critic of how President Bush has waged it, said U.S. lives had been "wasted" in the four-year-old conflict. Democrats demand the Arizona senator apologize for the comment as Sen. Barack Obama did when the Democratic White House hopeful recently made the same observation.
"Americans are very frustrated, and they have every right to be," McCain said Wednesday on CBS' "Late Show With David Letterman." "We've wasted a lot of our most precious treasure, which is American lives."
Update: McCain apologizes but damage done. If he were on the upswing it might not matter quite as much. But given his existing issues with the Republican base and the way things have been headed for him, bad timing makes this is a tougher knock.
"Last evening, I referred to American casualties in Iraq as 'wasted'," McCain said in a statement Thursday.
"I should have used the word 'sacrificed' as I have in the past. No one appreciates and honors more than I do the selfless patriotism of American servicemen and women in the Iraq War," said McCain, a decorated Vietnam war hero.
Some of those 32 percent in favor of a timetable may want a timetable based on benchmarks, not on calendar dates which would give Al Qaeda an easy strategy: sit around and wait for American withdrawal. So there is no clash between the results.
But the main point is that you can't decide military strategy based on polls. You make decisions based on what will protect the country and our way of life.
When you're the President, you have to make tough and unpopular decisions. If you're in Congress, you can hide behind the CIC's authority, claim it's not your responsibility and make irresponsible calls for surrender, and badmouth our international policies, slander our military and belittle our principles.
The President doesn't have that luxury. Only Congress. And the NY Times.
Posted by: Korla Pundit | Monday, March 05, 2007 at 04:14 PM
It's the president's job to get it absolutely, positively 100% right when he takes us to war. Once at war, he owes it to those he asks to fight to make sure it's competently. He's done neither. The war was a mistake in the first place, then run utterly incompetently.
And nobody's calling for surrender. We're still going to be at war with Al Qaeda. We need to go after them where they live - Afghanistan and Pakistan - and kill them there.
Posted by: Jon G | Monday, March 05, 2007 at 08:50 PM
What war ever went 100% according to plan, with no casualties? In fact, what war can you name since WWII where American forces are not still stationed, even after 60 years?
There's only one: Viet Nam, because that's where Congress forced us to withdraw by cutting off funds. And millions of people were massacred because of this moral cowardice and self-congratulatory navel gazing.
Millions died because of "peace" activists.
And there's even more at stake in the current situation. This is a world war, and Iraq is only one of the fronts, but it's a vital place to win. Surrender there will only reinforce Bin Laden's prediction that to beat America, just kill a few, and the antiwar crowd back in the US will beat the drum of surrender. Pelosi and company are more than happy to comply with Bin Laden's thesis. If we withdraw now, this will confirm the beat-America tactic, and we will never regain our credibility.
This, ironically, will ensure not that we are made more peaceful. It will ensure that any threat of military force will be ignored in the future, because everybody will only remember our withdrawal under fire. Without this credible threat of force, actual war will become our only option.
By the way, to state that the terrorists are confining themselves to Afghanistan and Pakistan is not just disingenuous and simplistic, but downright idiotic.
Posted by: Korla Pundit | Monday, March 05, 2007 at 09:22 PM
If it's really a world war, how come none of our leaders - starting with Bush and Cheney - act like it. Why no campaign for a draft since we obviously need more soldiers? Why no request for more money to not only replace all the equipment getting destroyed but also to equip soldiers going to battle properly? Why aren't we pressuring our allies to do more instead of watch them pull soldiers out? They, obviously don't think it's a world war. How come basically zero - that's 0 - sons and daughters of our leaders are helping fight this war? Why no request for sacrifices from American corporations? And how come there's so many people that post on these boards about what a threat Al Qaeda is, but can't actually find it in them to go off and fight?
No WMDs, no drones, no 9/11 connection. The biggest con job in our nation's history and you took it hook line and sinker.
Posted by: Jon G | Monday, March 05, 2007 at 10:43 PM
Why so many antiwar idiots asking stupid and disingenuous questions that they already know the answers to?
Posted by: Korla Pundit | Monday, March 05, 2007 at 11:06 PM
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