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Obama on McCain's Troop Level Comment: 'We've Seen This Movie Before'
May 31, 2008 10:31 AM
ABC News' Sunlen Miller reports: Sen. Barack Obama called Sen. John McCain’s refusal to admit he misspoke about troop levels in Iraq "disturbing" and cast his actions as the sequel to the Bush administration’s refusal to admit their own mistakes.
"We've seen this movie before," Obama said at a town hall in Rapid City, S.D. "A leader who pursues the wrong course, who is unwilling to change course, who ignores the evidence. Now, just like George Bush, John McCain is refusing to admit that he's made a mistake."
Obama explained to the crowd of 2,700 that McCain had said on Friday that the United States had drawn down to pre-surge troop levels in Iraq.
"John McCain was wrong, and he was wrong on the most important question that any commander-in-chief faces," Obama said. "We have not drawn down to pre-surge levels. We have about 20,000 more troops in Iraq today than we had before the surge. Even after we finish rotating more troops out later this summer, we’ll still have thousands more of Americans in Iraq than we had before the surge. Those are the facts."
Today marks Obama's second day of criticisms of McCain over these remarks -- but today Obama went further -- saying that McCain’s refusal to admit a misstatement will be indicative of his presidency and a continuation of the Bush administration’s Patten.
"Now we all misspeak sometimes. I’ve done it myself. So on such a basic, factual error, you’d think that John McCain would just say, 'Oh, I misspoke, I made a mistake' -- and then move on. But he couldn't do that. Instead, he dug in," Obama said and connected it to Bush’s handling of the Iraq war, "We all know this president refused to admit that he made a mistake. That’s the leadership that we’ve had enough of over the last eight years."
The McCain campaign pushed back, defending McCain’s original remarks.
"Barack Obama is ignoring facts, he irresponsibly refuses credible evidence on the ground proving American troops have surged toward significant gains in Iraq and it proves he is just not ready to be commander-in-chief," McCain campaign spokesman Tucker Bounds wrote. "For over 874 days, which includes the entirety of the 'Surge' strategy, Barack Obama has refused to visit Iraq, see the conditions on the ground, and meet with General Petraeus and it raises questions about whether his campaign is based on conceding defeat in Iraq, no matter what progress our troops make there."
Obama, within his remarks, spent most of his time focusing on the presumptive Republican nominee -- sighting differences on the GI bill, and the gas tax holiday among the foreign policy criticisms. By comparison, Obama mentioned his opponent on the Democratic side, Sen. Hillary Clinton, only once. He told the audience she has run an outstanding campaign, and "She is going to be working on behalf of the Democratic Party as I will be."
May 31, 2008 in Political Radar | Permalink | Share | User Comments (69)
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And just WHAT makes you the expert??? Obama, I'll wait...
You have NO grounds to criticize him, or shall I say EXPERIENCE!!
I know, I know, "I voted against the war before I 'could' vote against the war". Puhleeeze!!
You are just blowing in the breeze! You have no record other than "present"!
Hillary '08 or ABB (Anybody But Barack)
Posted by: Krissy K | May 31, 2008 10:39:08 AM
"A BHO voter is someone who reads "Audacity of Hope". An anti-BHO voter is someone who understands BHO"
- paraphrasing Ronald Reagan -
Posted by: csquan | May 31, 2008 10:39:36 AM
These two clowns sound like a comedy act. But they can't decide who the straight man is, neither can I!!
Never vote for Obama, never.
Anyone but Barry BO! Anyone!
Posted by: HP Boston | May 31, 2008 10:42:50 AM
Obama is proving that he still can deliver the talking points presented to him by Moveon.org!!
And deliver he can, his Obamabats lap it up! (profusely huge eyeroll)
Hillary '08 or ABB
Posted by: Krissy K | May 31, 2008 10:43:52 AM
LOSER CLINTON FANS AND "HARDBLOW" RIGHT WING KNUT JOBS. FIRST MCCAIN IS SENILE AND NOT INTELLIGENT BUSH IS PROBABLY SMARTER THAN HIM THATS A PRETTY GOOD COMPLIMENT. THE GUY GRADUATED AT THE BOTTOM OF HIS CLASS. ONLY IDEOLOGS WILL VOTE FOR MCCAIN BECAUSE THEY ARE JUST AS DUMB.
Posted by: THINK FORYOURSELF | May 31, 2008 11:18:48 AM
KRISSY K "SWEETY" GO COOK ME MY DINNER AND GET OF THE COMPUTER "SWEETY"
Posted by: THINK FORYOURSELF | May 31, 2008 11:20:03 AM
Obama will have the senile McCain drooling in the corner by the general. He's opening up a can of whoop-ass on McCain.
Posted by: Don | May 31, 2008 11:23:12 AM
McCain defends himself by veering off in a different direction, just like Bush. Never asnwer the question asked, spin it into something irrelevant. More of the same, vote McCain.
Posted by: JR | May 31, 2008 11:26:41 AM
Obama simply puts everyone down. He is negative all the time.
He panders to everyone with vague 'change' and 'hope' but has no real way to accomplish any of it nor has any experience in doing it.
He was the poor choice by democrats, but now they have to lie in their bed.
Mc Cain 08
Posted by: cgeast | May 31, 2008 11:27:20 AM
Rather take McCain's bait over Iraq, Obama should visit Afganistan, you know, the country we were supposed be invade so that we could find Bin Laden. Does anyone remember him or 9-11? He was why we went to war, remember?
Posted by: JR | May 31, 2008 11:30:12 AM
Obama said arabic speakers are being moved away from Iraq to Afghanistan. Then he said pastun speakers are being moved to iraq from afghanistsan.
He never admitted his mistake.
Posted by: david | May 31, 2008 11:37:46 AM
Arabic translators are needed to communicate in Afghanistan. It might not be what most people there speak, but the people we need to catch do!
Posted by: Cory | May 31, 2008 12:38:13 PM
John McCain quotes pre-Iraq War and during Iraq War:
"Because I know that as successful as I believe we will be, and I believe that the success will be fairly easy, we will still lose some American young men or women." [CNN, 9/24/02]
"We’re not going to get into house-to-house fighting in Baghdad. We may have to take out buildings, but we’re not going to have a bloodletting of trading American bodies for Iraqi bodies." [CNN, 9/29/02]
"But the point is that, one, we will win this conflict. We will win it easily." [MSNBC, 1/22/03]
"But I believe, Katie, that the Iraqi people will greet us as liberators." [NBC, 3/20/03]
"It’s clear that the end is very much in sight." [ABC, 4/9/03]
"There’s not a history of clashes that are violent between Sunnis and Shiahs. So I think they can probably get along." [MSNBC, 4/23/03]
"This is a mission accomplished. They know how much influence Saddam Hussein had on the Iraqi people, how much more difficult it made to get their cooperation." [This Week, ABC, 12/14/03]
"I’m confident we’re on the right course." [ABC News, 3/7/04]
"I do think that progress is being made in a lot of Iraq. Overall, I think a year from now, we will have made a fair amount of progress if we stay the course. If I thought we weren’t making progress, I’d be despondent." [The Hill, 12/8/05]
Even McWar has become less confident of our ability to WIN in Iraq over the years…but he will keep us there anyway.
Posted by: our only hope | May 31, 2008 12:47:17 PM
Great Grandma speaks:
As one who will be 82 tomorrow and has held her nose and voted so many times, and who is an indepenent but avidly against the war and the Bushies, I say you are all talking like a bunch of hot headed children. Learn your history. If Bush had had any idea what happens when a country is invadded for ANY reason, noble seeming or simply aggressive, he could not have waged that idiotic war. But stop getting hysterical you people!!!!Learn what has happened in the future; learn the state of the world, and then vote with as much wisdom (and a grain of hope) as you can. I have no patience with all this juvenile mud slinging--yes, even John McCain is acting like a pouty child!!! i could not vote for Hillary simply because she is female, nor could I vote against Barack simmply because he is black. I listen, I observe and ultimately I decide but weithout all this idiocy you are all engaged in!!!!!I keep hoping for intelligent comments, but they are very few and far between!
Posted by: June B. Cater | May 31, 2008 12:48:53 PM
The numbers are the numbers. Did he lie, mispeak or did he not know? McSame does not address the fact of what he said.
Is it 135 or 150?
Posted by: john | May 31, 2008 12:55:10 PM
PENN AND TELLER FOR PRES AND VICE!!!!!
Posted by: dgei | May 31, 2008 1:03:11 PM
It still amazes me that any of you would vote for someone that has TOLD you they want to raise your taxes. I'm not responsible for YOUR health care or anyone elses. The ONLY responsibility of our Federal Government, is for our protection against foreign forces and Al Queda is a foreign force.
Posted by: Mark | May 31, 2008 1:07:43 PM
What does Obama stand for? What is Obama going to change and how? Does Obama now were Iraq is and how much progress is really being made?
I challenge anyone to answer these questions without talking about some else.
Obama is just a suit and tie and a mouth!
Posted by: rdotx | May 31, 2008 1:19:15 PM
The hypocrisy doesn't get any clearer than this.
So now Obama is actually criticizing someone else for not owning up to a mistake.
Dear Senator Obama, we are still waiting for you to admit it was a mistake to say that you would meet Iran without any preconditions (you have since flip flopped, or as you call it "refined", your position to saying there would be "preparations").
I really try to like Obama, but this man just stinks of fatal flaws - arrogance, hypocrisy, deceit, empty rhetoric.
Posted by: JA | May 31, 2008 1:23:31 PM
Exactly what does Obama now about anything since all he has done as a senator is run for President? He is clueless to foreign affairs. He seems to run with a bad crowd. Oprah dumped him. His wife is angry and has no class. But he sure can give a moving speech. To bad, NOT ENOUGH QUALIFICATIONS.
McCain 2008, Change you can trust.
Posted by: rdotx | May 31, 2008 1:30:32 PM
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