From the Fact Check Desk: Did McKiernan’s Troop Requests Just Sit on Bush White House Desks?

Interesting, and thanks.
Though Obama is well past acting with urgency, and ‘suddenly’ doesn’t really apply any more.

“‘I assume that the war in Afghanistan is over, or is the contention that you have that it continues?’ she said to a reporter.
“A few moments later, she said: ‘This isn’t about the duration of the war. The war in Afghanistan is over.’”
–Nancy Pelosi, April 2005

I for on don’t beleive anything I read on the news media they are in the bathtub for Obama. adc cbs cnn nbc c/span 1 2 npr all liberal loons.

Once again Jake prooves that he is one of the last honest journalists out there. Ask a question, gather “the facts” and then disclose all those facts in a well written article! Nice work!

Thanks, that sheds some light. Winning in Iraq obviously required resources that would have been welcomed in Afghanistan. As they could be spared, they were redeployed — under both administrations. Now that Iraq is far less a drain, the reasons for delays in meeting requests for more troops in Afghanistan are less apparent.

If the Dems get backed into a corner just bring up Bush right?
The Dems are turning out to be a bigger joke than they claim the GOP to be.
The Dems keep saying how bad the Bush years were but now they are in office they and their most ardent far left fans are turning out to be a joke.
Wow what a thing be a far right fascist (according to the far left loons) or be a laughing stock by most.
Keep blaming Bush and the GOP it helps you look far less foolish. Yeah right. Just because many people hate or hated the GOP does not give the Dems a magic pass. Here is a little secret Mr Gibbs people can hate BOTH parties and make them BOTH a joke (the Dems are in power however so you guys get the attention, sucks to be the party in power or didn’t you get that memo?)
Sorry to be the one to tell you sir.

doese everyone think that disions made during war should be snap dissions? god way ti get alot of people killed, and alot of money wasted. Obama is doing the right thing.

So, Cheney is saying the incoming administration should’ve paid more attention to intelligence advice from the previous administration? The same sort of attention he & Bush gave to the info regarding Al Queda? Wasn’t there some silly doc with a misleading title like, “Al Queda determined to attack on US soil?”

Mr. Obama seems to be blaming everyone but himself for all the problems of this world.

Don’t forget it was the Bush administration (Rumsfeld) who said the United States had the resources to fight wars on two fronts.
Turns out he was wrong. While resources were directed to Iraq by that administration, Al Qaeda and the Taliban were steadily regrouping in Afghanistan (and of course across the border in Pakistan).
They should never have been allowed that opportunity.
Again, the Bush administration’s very questionable decision to shift resources to attack Iraq plays a key role, as does the heavy right wing propaganda campaign to convince America Hussein was involved in 9/11.

Does anybody still listen to Cheney’s rantings? This desperate old man is an embarrassment all to himself and his sidekick, George Bush. Afghanistan was not a priority to them because Saddam had WMD and was responsible for 9/11.

The Bush/Cheney administration took the emphasis off Afghanistan (where it belonged) and attacked not-involved-in-9/11-Iran (trying to out-macho Daddy Bush, I guess). Brilliant. So we’ve wasted lives and a fortune setting up the mess we’re in now. And Cheney thinks he has an expert’s view of the war in Afghanistan? He helped to screw up all chance of our coming out of this well and he opted out of patriotic action during the war being waged when he was young. How many deferrals did he get to avoid fighting in Viet Nam? He should blush every time he plays patriot.

Jake,
I am unashamedly a conservative.I don’t believe that you are.Yet,I appreciate your reporting. It is fair and I thank you for that.Keep up the good work.

Obama – like a divorcee who claims innocence 24 x 7! I had nothing to do with it – it was all his/her fault!

my cat died it must be G Bushes fault

It’s refreshing to see some logical thought in the mainstream media (coming from tapper)… and it’s also very very rare occurrence! Cheney always was straitforward and logical.

“Throughout most of 2008, the Bush administration tried (?)to get NATO countries to fill that gap, though they had to have known (?) that would be a challenge. By the late summer, 2008 Bush administration officials realized NATO wasn’t going to come through.”
Hey Jake, can we get a fact check on these little gems? I know you’re still smarting from your last press conference smackdown, but you’re gonna have to try a little harder to not look like the petulant child you are.

Jake,
Petulant you are, along with its associated displays of insecurity and bullying. Why ABC News tolerates your biases on their programming dime is beyond me. What does George S have to say about your behavior and reporting? Is he proud of you? I would doubt it very much.

“Europe would suffer more from a Taliban/Al Q victory than the US. ” Interesting but wasn’t it ‘Al Q’ that attacked us on 9/11?? If they were the threat to the U.S., what was Bush doing in Iraq in the first place?
Oh, I remember, WMD’s. Or was it that he was cleaning up after Dad?

Almost a year since elected, and they STILL blame everything on Bush….its no wonder people do not take responsibility for their actions when the highest office in the land doesnt either!

From the time McKiernan made his requestuntil Bush left office, how many GI’s were killed? How many since Obama took over?

Another story by the Obama news network (ABC) trying to blame Bush for Obama’s failures. Obama hasn’t doen ANYTHING since he’s been in office except give lip service.

Why doesnt Cheney just disappear…….He and his daughter are doing us no good as a country.

Unless your question is just rhetorical , why don’t you simply ask Bush and Cheney. Unlike the Obama child those two have the guts to give you an honest answer.

“Quick, somebody ask Cheney why we’re even still in a war after 8 years. Add to that a second one.”
_________________________________
Exactly, Bush and Cheney had the two wars for 8 years and couldn’t end them – and now the right wing thinks Obama is supposed to fix it all in 9 months.

“Exactly, Bush and Cheney had the two wars for 8 years and couldn’t end them – and now the right wing thinks Obama is supposed to fix it all in 9 months.”………. No, they don’t think Obama is supposed to fix their mess. They’re just looking to stir up more garbage. What blows my mind is anybody buying it.

Obama has done nothing?Look,I dont like the guy,BUT,You cant be serious..Look at the stock market. Look at the housing numbers.Cash for Clunkers? Tax credits for first time home buyers? Hes done more for the people who keep this country running, (the working class) Than ANY Bush,Jeb included!

someone who is doddering shouldn’t be pointing fingers about dithering..This would have been a moot discussion if cheney had kept his trigger happy fingers off the afganistan war and let us finish it..instead of authoring his own “crusade” to Iraq…imagine if we had just polished off the taliban and alqeda in afganistan…how many of our soldiers would still be alive and not dead or severely wounded…if we wanted to listened to his advice we wouldn’t have kicked his ass out-please try to fade into obscurity-where is the “nuance” Jake?????

someone fire up the microwave and put an end to cheneys monolog…get the hook out and jerk him offstage…as he doesn’t seem to realise …ITS OVER for you Mr. Cheney…you blew it!!!

Leadership is taking charge and dealing with the hand you’re dealt…not whining about it. Imagine if President Lincoln would have sat around and cried about inheriting slavery rather than leading the country out of it…Obama is a complete joke, Cheney farts more leadership than Obama will ever have. God help us!

Leadership: Someone who gets drunk and shots their hunting partner in the face with a shotgun…in my kneck of the woods..thats called a “moron”

Just the lib media trying to devert attention from Obamo while he lingers on the request to send more troops or not, just pull them out if it takes this long for monkey ears to make up his mind. Bush has been out of office for nearly a year, yet the Pres. and the mdia morons keep bring back something that doesn’t matter now because they can’t be responsible for their own action. Typical brown nosed media freaks.

Why doesn’t the Obama Admin. release the open records of the meeting with CEO of 7+ banks that involve his key people back in 2008? Talk about transparency? What transparency, there has been more law suits filed against this Admin. for open records that any Admin. in history, and we are only 10 months into the current Admin. One other question, Why doesn’t Obama want to release the White House visitor log since he has been office? Tranparency my rear end…..

The best argument for you libs would be citing Obama’s leadership and accomplishments…it speaks volumes that you can only go back to your typical sniveling school yard nonsense about Bush/Cheney…how can you clowns look yourselves in the mirror is beyond me.

Tom, does Fox pay to rent your brain or did you just give it to them? How embarrassing it must be to still be defending the worst Administration in history by trying to deflect responsibility from the Bush/Cheney cut-and-run strategy in Afghanistan. How utterly embarrassing…

dither: to act nervously or indecisively : vacillate, the very definition of the 7 years of the 8 year war in afganistan…Afganistan has our presidents full attention, unlike the previous administration, oh yes he does have to spend sometime on our collapsing economy and health care crisis, which occurred on the cheney bush watch, lets see as I recall -they were dithering in Iraq….while all else burned

“There was a $1.2 Trillion dollar deficit left on the table for 2009 BEFORE Obama was even sworn in.”
False. The $787 billion stimulus is entirely Obama’s doing, as is the cost of the two automotive bailouts.
Obama is giving us an average deficit of $900 billion for each of the next ten years. He owns them, and it’s yet another thing that he can’t blame on Bush. But it’s in his nature to try, because he is a moral coward.

“How about not sending enough troops for 7 years of Bush Admin after 9/11?”
We sent enough for Nancy Pelosi to declare the war over in April, 2005. And Americans weren’t dying at the rate of forty per month.

Well, I agree that NATO even some other countries should share some military support fight against terror. I, American are tired of world look us as world police and fingerpoint us of something wrong. If we send huge number of soldier much soon then it will hurt our budget so bad due to very expensive logical support as we may need some extra for future problem. So Obama should start share work load and send some instead of blame on Bush. We want catch Bin Laden for attack NY Twin even want destroy Tabian problem. I remembered Bill too chick to said Yes to firing missile attack Bin Laden so Is Obama too chick?

love it. Cheney has no credibility. That we have two wars still waging is a testement to how badly they were run for 8 years. They Cheney show is over. WE saw it played out for 8 years. It left us with a crumbled economy, two wars gone bad, and huge debt for NOTHING. Bush and Cheney didn’t fix the banks, or bail out an automaker saving hundreds of thousands of jobs. What DID Bush and Cheney do for their billions spent???? we KNOW what Obama did and yeah, I think i’d rather save teh economy than kill the economy trying to save the debt, which, if the economy died, yeah, we’d have no debt, but we’d also have no banks and 40% unemployed so realy wasn’t a great deal Bush and Cheney left us with. That he thinks he’s an authority on anything other than running your country and your military in the ground is amazing. I think that’s why they did so poorly. Delusional.

“I didn’t see Pelosi under any “Mission Accomplished’ banner primping for the cameras.”
Had you been paying attention you’d have seen her primping for the cameras in the Capitol building telling reporters that the War in Afghanistan was over. Let me know if you want me to drag out the quote yet again.

Now Jake can you fact check that lie ridden mess of a speech Cheney gave? —BINGO!!!! Tell me, why the scrutiny only on Obama? Anyone getting sick of this? Bush got a wash for everything. And no scrutiny. Bush never did a thing when congressional hearings for predatorial lending practices. Never lifted a finger “let the bad banks fail” – he causes this meltdown – no scrutiny. But then the media puts a microscope on anything Obama does. Amazing. Cheney and Bush running the wars into theground ,no scrutiny. Obama is just assessing a situation and everyone is down his throat. Dear Lord, let the man breath! He has done so well with so much HUGE stuff that everyone just gave Bush a pass for. LEAVE HIM ALONE for a minute and half, huh? And Dear lord, of all the people to play judge…cheney!!!! LOL!! Are you kidding me?????? THis is ridiculous!

“So, they sat on Afghanistan for 7 years…”
Again, see Pelosi, N., April 2005. She thought it was over. By that time not a single Democrat had called for more troops.
If you want to re-invent history to your liking, bear in mind that there is a public record out there that won’t go away.

The most telling thing here is McKiernan’s quote: “There was a saying when I got there: If you’re in Iraq and you need something, you ask for it. If you’re in Afghanistan and you need it, you figure out how to do without it.”
Afghanistan was the ugly stepchild of the Bush/Cheney regime. They were utterly focused and resourcing Iraq as Afghanistan drifted. We were told Bin Laden was dead, then alive, then mortally wounded… Bottom line: Bin Laden, Al-Qaeda and their hosts the Taliban were never finished off when we had them on the ropes. 7 years later, they’ve regrouped and are even more of a threat. Thanks for nothing Darth the Ditherer!

Wow – an almost truthful article from ABCNEWS on the Bush Administration that doesn’t bash it, or hide facts! I am impressed. My son was part of the Marine MOR that went over in that request last year, and they kicked *ss… so part of what you should also include is that after 3 – 4 months of the Marines slaughtering the enemy in South Afghanistan, the need for additional troops at that point in time was reduced. What should also be said is that when the election approached in late last year, when Bush made it clear that he would defer to the NEXT President – whomever that may be – to make the decisions even prior to entering the WH – that all focus on Afghanistan was dropped, troops stopped going over, units were brought home – and pretty much all of the turf our force won in the summer – was taken back by the Taliban – thus requiring the original troop request needs to continue on. Had we stayed and maintained – rather than left and then shown a VERY WEAK face to the enemy, we wouldn’t need as many troops as we now need to go win it back again.!
Oh – and you should also have mentioned that Congress (DEM Controlled) started cutting the budgets/not approving them for the troop increases back home for recruitment, so enlistment was severely impacted until the noose was loosened. You can only feed troop requests, if Congress approves the $$.
Other than that – pretty good piece. A

Leadership? where were bush and cheney during the 911 crisis? Bush was hiding behind a childrens book and then hidden in an airplane, and cheney was hiding in a bunker below the white house, while thousands of americans were dying…how long did it take them to come out of hiding and address their fellow country men? Is that your definition of leadership? They were and are cowards of the first order.

I thought we loaned money to auto makers. Not gave them a bail out.

“Most everyone is not happy with how the Bush years ended…. ”
__________________________________
It is unfair to compare President Obama with President Bush because Bush and the Cheney regime were such a disaster.
Obama has worked quite hard. You’ll remember Bush had already taken 3 weeks holidays at his ranch by September of his first year (2001) and returned to Washington in time to be caught completely off guard by 9/11.
Strange that the tired old right can’t seem to get past buzz words and speaking points that are so thin they STILL are including ‘Ayers’ and Wright’ – old news by any standards, and VERY dubious when it was first used.

Obama has worked quite hard. You’ll remember Bush had already taken 3 weeks holidays at his ranch by September of his first year (2001) and returned to Washington in time to be caught completely off guard by 9/11.
Oh your right again, I guess family trips around the world technically don’t count as “vacation”. Score one more for you.
Tell me though…. You said “Obama has worked quite hard”….
At what? Saying he’s sorry? Spending money? Appointing communist czars? which one?

” I guess family trips around the world technically don’t count as “vacation”.
_____________________________________
The President was on official business which you know quite well. The children were on school vacation and their trips were paid for by the family.
Again, you’re grasping at straws and making your arguments look pretty thin and phony.

Name three things good ol Barry has done you are not happy with? Can you?

” I guess family trips around the world technically don’t count as “vacation”.
____________________________________
You cannot make weak, slanted arguments like this and then expect people to think you have accurately assessed the situation – nor expect people to respect your judgement or your opinion.
That’s the problem stick.

McKiernan’s Bush-era troop requests were not “met with the urgency Cheney has suddenly decided President Obama must meet, lest he be seen as ‘dithering?’”
Obfuscation poses as analysis and investigation! It’s MCCRYSTAL, not just CHENEY, who’s saying that the troops must be sent promptly or Afghanistan will likely be “mission failure” … and Petraeus is pretty much agreeing with McCrystal (although in more diplomatic terms)! Making decisions promptly to use resources in Iraq rather than Afghanistan (as the Bush people did) is NOT the same as deferring decisions (as Obama ADMITS he is is doing). In other words, making a decision someone else doesn’t like is not the same as refusing to decide because one is afraid someone else might not like what one decides. Bush may or may not have made bad decisions, but Obama is definitely dithering.
Further, McKiernan’s Bush-era requests didn’t carry urgency comparable to McCrystal’s because the situation in Afghanistan has only more recently deteriorated. Indeed, the relative quiet and apparent US success in Afghanistan allowed candidate Obama to chirp that Afghanistan was a “war of necessity” on what he mistakenly believed to be a “no political cost” basis. He’s chirping a different tune now.

Things will come to pass on the AFPAK situation and the Health Care Thing that will demoralize all the hard core supporters of the president… I seriously doubt you will show up for the mid terms… the dirty little secret is that there wotn be relief for the middle class there will be taxes on health care etc etc IM no conservative there hasnt been anythign accomplished yet

WASHINGTON — The top military commander in Afghanistan is asking for up to 80,000 more American troops even as he warns that rampant government corruption there may prevent victory against the Taliban and al-Qaida, according to U.S. officials briefed on his conclusions.
Even with additional troops, McChrystal concluded that corruption still could let terrorists turn Afghanistan back into a haven, according to officials at the Pentagon and White House.
_________________________________
So the White House is correct in weighing the situation – given McChrystal’s own assessment.

Am I getting anywhere yet? Do you see that both parties stink, and it just so happens that this guy, who came after the worst guy, is even worse? Maybe? Can you even consider it?

Sarcasm huh? Well it’s bedtime for me. I hope you take a closer look at what’s happening and realize it’s not all BUSH BUSH BUSH. Maybe….. just maybe…. Barry isn’t perfect. Maybe there were some serious problems….. Maybe he makes them worse. All I ask is you consider it like I did Bush 1&2, Clinton, Carter, all the way back. Remember he works for us. Is this what you signed up for?

The best argument for you libs would be citing Obama’s leadership and accomplishments…it speaks volumes that you can only go back to your typical sniveling school yard nonsense about Bush/Cheney…how can you clowns look yourselves in the mirror is beyond me.
Posted by: Tom | Oct 22, 2009 11:42:11 PM
***
And how you can project the clown and school yard nonsense thing onto others is beyond me, but whatever. Not everyone possesses self awareness.
I do get sick and tired of the whole accomplishment thing. Things aren’t nearly as dire as you’d like to think–
Since his inauguration the President has removed barriers to responsible scientific research involving human stem cells, signed the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Act, signed legislation expanding children’s health care (SCHIP), established the White House Council on Women and Girls, pushed for enactment of the Matthew Shepard Act, which expands hate crime law– and he’s about to sign the bill, doubled the troops in Afghanistan and ordered an assessment as part of a thorough policy review pertaining to the war in Afghanistan, secured $5 billion in aid commitments for Pakistan “to bolster the country’s economy and help it fight terror and Islamic radicalism” within the country, engaged the Muslim world in a manner wholly underappreciated by right wingers but important nonetheless, led a meeting of U.N. Security Council heads of state, a first for a U.S. president, which resulted in the adoption of a resolution focused on stopping the spread of nuclear weapons, signed the Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (the largest conservation effort in 15 yrs), put into place the framework for an auto industry recovery including an allocation of $2 billion in stimulus cash for advanced batteries systems, singed U.N. convention on the rights of persons with disabilities, signed credit card bill of rights, put $75 billion toward helping homeowners mostly via TARP funds, banned lobbyist gifts to exec branch employees, singed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which dedicates funds to alternative energy research, highway projects, and Health IT, the stimulus bill and Obama’s first budget dedicates money to high-speed rail, the Attorney General has directed federal prosecutors Monday to back away from pursuing cases against medical marijuana patients, signaling a broad policy shift that drug reform advocates interpret as the first step toward legalization of the drug, President Obama also signed the Veterans Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act into law today, the Dow is UP; the Nasdaq is UP ; in May, U.S. home prices rose for the first time in THREE YEARS; in June, new home sales rose 11% and as we move into the last quarter of 2009, home sales figures have risen on average all over the nation meaning there are signs of recovery; Health Care Reform likely with some sort of “public option” will become law before year’s end. Regulatory reform on Wall Street will take awhile and it’ll be a slug fest, but that’s going to happen too. While some feel it’s not happening fast enough, the administration is sticking to the status of forces agreements with Iraq to pull out our forces on time, and while we may not meet the deadline, Gitmo will be closed and no longer serve as a recruitment tool for those who wish to destroy us; and the world views America more positively again. World opinion has noticeably gone back up. And while transparency may not be where we want it to be, this admin is the most transparent to date. Not perfect, not even good enough *yet* but a few steps in the right direction.
Oh, and as hopesprings52 pointed out Defense Secretary Gates, initially appointed by Bush “said the strategy Obama laid out for Afghanistan in March was the FIRST real strategy America has had in Afghanistan since the ’80s.”
He also has said he very much enjoys working with Obama, but that’s neither here nor there, I suppose — the point is the President is also the first to develop a real strategy for Afghanistan which I hinted at but didn’t spell out. It may be taking him longer than you’d like (though you’d likely complain no matter what) but somehow I doubt it will be simply about “muddling through.”

tiredgirlie – Sorry to say (NOT), but Clinton should’ve paid more attention to HIS intelligence advice regarding Al Queda, as was identified in the 9/11 Commission Report.
BOTH parties had their eyes off the target… and “We the People” paid, and are paying, the price.

Please don’t force me to do this, I am tired: The fact is I don’t agree with half the “accomplishments” you bring up. SCHIP is designed around the worst income levels and will become just as bad a medicare part d
” engaged the Muslim world in a manner wholly underappreciated by right wingers but important nonetheless”
I am proud of my country I am sorry you are not STOP apologizing.
“led a meeting of U.N. Security Council heads of state, a first for a U.S. president, which resulted in the adoption of a resolution focused on stopping the spread of nuclear weapons”
The U.N. is a scam, we know that from every administration regardless of party. Nuclear weapons? Get real!
“Omnibus Public Land Management Act of 2009 (the largest conservation effort in 15 yrs), put into place the framework for an auto industry recovery including an allocation of $2 billion in stimulus cash for advanced batteries systems,”
“singed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act which dedicates funds to alternative energy research, highway projects, and Health IT, the stimulus bill and Obama’s first budget dedicates money to high-speed rail”
Really? these are good things? The stimulis programs are a joke at best. Even the Dems are starting to come out and admit that.
” the Dow is UP; the Nasdaq is UP ; in May, U.S. home prices rose for the first time in THREE YEARS; in June, new home sales rose 11% and as we move into the last quarter of 2009, home sales figures have risen on average all over the nation meaning there are signs of recovery”
Recovery? Where do you live? Markets are up? What levels did you invest at?
“Health Care Reform likely with some sort of “public option” will become law before year’s end. Regulatory reform on Wall Street will take awhile and it’ll be a slug fest, but that’s going to happen too.”
This is the obvious joke, Reform? No. Government healthcare? Yes. Mandating pay via czar? Yes. Show me in the constitution where any of this is warranted. Please.
“Gitmo will be closed and no longer serve as a recruitment tool for those who wish to destroy us; and the world views America more positively again.”
Obama is the recruitment tool. Play nice he says. He is the weakest of any Pres in history. I guess the views of the world have changed so much those guys we keep catching that want to blow us up in our own country just have a bad attitude.
Sorry for any errors but there was a whole lot of B.S. to sort through and had to be quick. Goodnight all.

“The fact is I don’t agree with half the “accomplishments” you bring up.”
_______________________________________
That’s good, that means you agree with half of the accomplishments – that’s quite a lot.

Mr. Tapper and Mr. Martinez,
During the relevant period, did the U.S. military commanders in Afghanistan tell President Bush they were afraid they would lose the war if they didn’t get the requested troops? I don’t think so.

Obama, Rahm, Gibbs, Axelrod, they are all such despicable Chicago punks.
The sooner we are rid of this criminal gang, the better.
2010 they can be made lame ducks. 2012 they can be kicked to the curb.
They have denigrated the office since day one.

“Mr. Tapper and Mr. Martinez,
During the relevant period, did the U.S. military commanders in Afghanistan tell President Bush they were afraid they would lose the war if they didn’t get the requested troops? I don’t think so.”
This pretty much says it all… And this was years after we entered Afghan. They understood not to even bother asking because Chaney & his fellow neo-cons got it so wrong by diverted the war effort to another country rather than finishing the job in Afghan. where Al Queda was based.

The situation in Iraq evolved towards rapid (too rapid) troop reductions, so Obogus has resources to play with that Bush and Cheney did not.
Simple arithmetic seems to be beyond journalists and other liberals. “Nuance” not required. Or useful.

What I find “nuanced” is less Gibb’s statement than it is this article’s take on it. I find it disheartening that the reporters never simply and clearly give the facts about the conflicting claims: What was the maximum number of additional troops requested by McKiernan during the Spring of ’08, and about what month was this maximum request forwarded? If close to 40,000 troops were requested approximately 8 months before the Bush administration approved it, then Gibb’s statement is true. If not, it is false. The “why” the troops were or were not moved is moot; both administrations would have plenty of reasons to not rush to send more troops overseas. Though very important, IT I NOT THE STORY. What needs to be resolved in this case is this: if Gibb’s statement is true, either both administrations “dithered” or they both had good reaon to “wait,” making Cheney’s statement disingenuous. On the other hand, if Gibb’s statment is not anywhere near true, then we should consider electing a new president.
Dear Mr. Tapper and Mr. Martinez: C’mon guys! Get your game on!

Oops. I had better “get my game on” too. Of course I should have written “IT IS NOT THE STORY,” instead of “IT I NOT…”
Sorry guys.

The 21,000 troops being sent are not combat troops as MyCrystal requested.
Obama ran on the motto “Bush undersourced the war in Afghanistan”. Leaving 8 troops to be slaughtered in an undermanned and remote outpost means Obama is undermanning Afghanistan.
More troops have died in Afghanistan in the year Obama has been in office than in the prior 7 years combined.

The same people who are complaining about Bush letting the request sit on his desk.. were probably yelling about the war..at the time.. it’s easy to criticize the sitting President.. and guess what lefties ‘It’s our turn to criticize!!’….

Stickman said “Name three things good ol Barry has done you are not happy with?” ooh – I can!!!!
1. Going around the world “apologizing” for us. We don’t need to apologize to anyone.
2. Pushing this health care “reform”
3. Taking over the auto companies.
4. Thinking he has the right to determine salaries in a non-government company.
5. Pushing ‘cap and trade’
That’s 5 right off the top of my head – without even thinking about it. I’m sure I could come up with 5 more given another couple of minutes.

Has anyone ever calculated how much it would’ve cost to put up a terrorist fence around all of the lower 48 to protect us from terrorism vs. fighting terrorist wars on their home turf? At least at home, we have some control of the ground on which we stand and our airspace and could have a much better chance of fending off attacks. I’m beginning to conclude that Afghanistan is another Vietnam. We can never win there.

The Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll for Friday shows that 29% of the nation’s voters Strongly Approve of the way that Barack Obama is performing his role as President. Thirty-eight percent (38%) Strongly Disapprove giving Obama a Presidential Approval Index rating of -9.

“… the Constitution allows for many things, but what it does not allow is the most revealing. The so-called Founders did not allow for economic freedom. While political freedom is supposedly a cornerstone of the document, the distribution of wealth is not even mentioned. While many believed that the new Constitution gave them liberty, it instead fitted them with the shackles of hypocrisy.”
–Barack Hussein Obama, Columbia thesis
*sigh*

Stickman also said “Please don’t force me to do this, I am tired: The fact is I don’t agree with half the “accomplishments” you bring up… I am proud of my country I am sorry you are not STOP apologizing.
Poor Stickman. You kinda remind me of my grandfather who claims to be independent now after watching Glen Beck– and yet, he’s as partisan and conservative as they come. You definitely sound conservative. To me that’s an outdated ideology, especially economically.
As for the patriot, love of country allegation– it cracks me up that a certain breed of so-called patriots are wholly in favor of policies that have nearly destroyed the ideals and economy of our country. For many of us who weren’t alive when Carter was president and barely remember Reagan, being proud of your country doesn’t require being close-minded, scared of change or people with exotic names or unwilling to acknowledge that America isn’t perfect. I’m proud of my country, and one thing I’m very proud of is that we were able to self-correct after making a HUGE mistake– we elected President Obama after getting stuck with Bush in 2000(despite the fact that he didn’t win the popular vote) and then (gulp) re-electing him (shame on us, though I wasn’t responsible for the debacle.)
Anyway, my investments are modest, but my mom invests and is doing well. She gives me tips and stuff so I know the Dow and Nasdaq are up and that she’s been making money. The recovery will take time, and I wish the stimulus had been larger and more focused on jobs, and even more focused on energy, but they did some great things with the money– things that will make a difference for my generation. And I’m hopeful that a jobs bill is coming (cue the conservative shrill)
The main reason I came back on here this morning is I forgot to mention an accomplishment– David Brooks has an op-ed in the NYT today about education reform.
As for something I don’t like that Obama has done, the number one thing is his efforts toward bipartisanship. Republicans don’t understand that sort of thing so it’s been a colossal waste of time and effort. I also wish he’d move toward repealing DADT and doing away with DOMA very, very soon. And I wanted a single payer health care system. But, overall, I’m glad we’ve moved out of the dark ages.
Baby steps.
I’m off to work but carry on with the wild rumpus…

George S.-smart move this morning to have Anne colter on to support the republican side…what a hoot, don’t they have smart women in the republican party? Oh thats right, shes one of those nut cases on the fringe (of reality) susan collins and Snowe are mainstream….apparently colters fan club resides on trappers site…no one hear subscribes to reality and the truth

The White House is like a bunch of little kids whining, “But they didn`t do it either.” or “Don`t look at me I didn`t start it”.
We do not want a President that whines and points fingers, we want a President that knows and accepts what job he is getting into and fixes things and makes things better.
If Obama can`t do that, then resign.

Presidential Job Approval
54/39 Gallup
49/50 Rasmussen Reports
50/46 USA Today/Gallup
55/43 CNN/Opinion Research
57/40 ABC News/Wash Post
49/45 FOX News
53/41 Marist
52.4%/43.4% RCP Average*
*Don’t be fooled by imitators. This is the most current REAL RealClearPolitics Obama Job Approval average.

The White House is not ‘whining’, it’s defending itself against the partisan political attacks from the last (shamed)Vice-President.
Retired General Paul Eaton, senior adviser to the National Security Network:
“The record is clear: ex-VP Cheney and the Bush administration were incompetent war fighters. They ignored Afghanistan for 7 years with a crude approach to counter-insurgency warfare best illustrated by: 1. Deny it. 2. Ignore it. 3. Bomb it. While our intelligence agencies called the region the greatest threat to America, the Bush White House under-resourced our military efforts, shifted attention to Iraq, and failed to bring to justice the masterminds of September 11.
“The only time Cheney and his cabal of foreign policy ‘experts’ have anything to say is when they feel compelled to protect this failed legacy. While President Obama is tasked with cleaning up the considerable mess they left behind, they continue to defend torture or rewrite a legacy of indifference on Afghanistan. Simply put, Mr. Cheney sees history throughout extremely myopic and partisan eyes.”

Thank you for cutting through the spin to report to us exactly what happened. Keep it up.
Now more than ever, we rely on you to give us an honest accounting of those who are in power.
(And, although I sent it other ways, I’ll say it here: Thanks to your decision-makers for standing up/against Obama’s attempt to censor Fox from the television pool for the Pay Czar segment yesterday. I fear it won’t be the last important choice you folks have to make to preserve free discourse. All the best.)

Posted by: mjishernameo | Oct 23, 2009 3:04:00 PM
The White House is not acting like a child, it’s defending itself against the hack partisan political attacks from the last (shamed) Vice-President.
Retired General Paul Eaton, senior adviser to the National Security Network:
“The record is clear: ex-VP Cheney and the Bush administration were incompetent war fighters. They ignored Afghanistan for 7 years with a crude approach to counter-insurgency warfare best illustrated by: 1. Deny it. 2. Ignore it. 3. Bomb it. While our intelligence agencies called the region the greatest threat to America, the Bush White House under-resourced our military efforts, shifted attention to Iraq, and failed to bring to justice the masterminds of September 11.
“The only time Cheney and his cabal of foreign policy ‘experts’ have anything to say is when they feel compelled to protect this failed legacy. While President Obama is tasked with cleaning up the considerable mess they left behind, they continue to defend torture or rewrite a legacy of indifference on Afghanistan. Simply put, Mr. Cheney sees history throughout extremely myopic and partisan eyes.”

WHY ARE YOU STILL ON THE BUSH ADMINISTRATION? FOR GOD SAKES ITS ALMOST A YEAR. WHEN CAN THEY LET GO. CHRIS WALLACE (FOX NEWS) THEY ARE THE BIGGEST WHINERS WE HAVE EVER SEEN IN THE WHITE HOUSE. AND THE MSM PLAYS ALONG

Neo-cons shrilly decry Obama’s “blaming” Bush-Cheney for our problems. Fine, but under their standard the responsiblity for 9/11 falls squarely in their lap..not Bill Clinton’s.

I admire JAKE TAPPER !
Long live FREEDOM OF SPEECH !

Posted by: gee | Oct 23, 2009 4:36:14 PM
Whatever Cheney says now, if you do even a shred of research you won’t exactly get the sense that the Bushies were grabbing the bull by the horns on Afghanistan. Period. You might want to read the statement from National Security Network Senior Adviser Gen. Paul Eaton (Ret.), who served more than 30 years in the United States Army and from 2003-2004 oversaw the training of the Iraqi military. It’s been posted on a couple threads here and you can google it. In fact, see julieterra’s post at {Posted by: julieterra | Oct 23, 2009 2:01:28 PM}
Personally, I think Gibbs was spot on.
And just for the record, nobody’s freedom of speech has been jeopardized. Nobody has been censored. Somehow I doubt you’re from a communist country as you claim. It seems like it’s just part of a schtick. Truth of the matter is because of freedom of speech, we all have the right to use our filters and common sense, and label Faux News as we see fit. I see it as propaganda and total crapola. It makes me feel good that the admin hasn’t been duped into thinking that FNC has integrity or balance or truth on its side. It’s a bent news organization. Nobody has tried to stop them from doing their bent thing, and it’s not like smart people didn’t already think Fox News fans were gullible and less intelligent than, say, Jon Stewart or Colbert Report fans.

“Interesting to note today’s daily job approval changes:
Approve: up 2 points at Rasmussen, up 3 points at Gallup.
Disapprove: down 3 points at Rasmussen, down 2 points at Gallup.”
_______________________________________
Interesting, and that guy on here who is always pushing Rasmussen’s polls hasn’t mentioned this?
I guess it’s clear he’s just pushing his own personal political agenda regardless of the facts.
Posted by: julieterra | Oct 23, 2009 3:31:14 PM
Oops, I just noticed the Rasmussen Disapproval rate is down 2 points, not 3. Thought I’d better correct my mistake before “that guy” jumps all over it.

Lather rinse repeat, Tom. Talk about the “same old tired and whiney crap.” See Olivia’s post from last night: Posted by: Olivia | Oct 23, 2009 1:40:57 AM
She added education reform (see David Brook’s oped in NYT today.)

Hey Steve.
Obama’s Approval Rating matches Reagans to a T for the same number of days in office.
psst.
Real Clear Politics is a GOP front website.