White House Claims Iraqi Demand For Withdrawal Timeline Is Transcription Error

Today, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki suggested having a timetable for the withdrawal of coalition troops. "The direction we are taking is to have a memorandum of understanding either for the departure of the forces or to have a timetable for their withdrawal," Maliki's office quoted him as saying.

The State Department also hedged on whether the Bush administration would listen to Maliki. In a briefing today, spokesperson Sean McCormack said the remark may have been a transcription error:

McCORMACK: Well, that's really the part -- the point at which I would seek greater clarification in terms of remarks. I've seen the same press reports that you have, but I haven't yet had an opportunity to get greater clarify as to exactly to what Mr. Maliki was referring or if, in fact, that's an accurate reporting of what he said.

Read the whole story here.

Comments

[GeorgeMilquetoast]

Duhbya simply refuses to listen to the truth. For Duhbya, Mailiki's statement must be an obvious translation/transcription error. How remarkably convenient. Duhbya covers his ears, closes his eyes, holds his breath and buries his head in the sand, while others apply pressure on Maliki to change his statement.

[gakabani]

The new Saddam Hussein of Iraq is G.W. Bush. Can you please HP write it down in BIG LETTERS foir everybody to see and understand. Bush wants oil, free oil, from Iraq, that is all.

We Americans are a pathetic nation!

[RatgurlSD]

BUSH: But, but we can't leave now. There's still more oil!

MALIKI: I said get out!

[ThermoChemist]

Maybe their conversation went like this:

al-Maliki: "Leave now."
Bush: (smirks, cups his ear) "Huh? What did you say?"
al-Maliki: "Leave our country! Get out! Go home! Scram!"
Bush (smirking): "Sorry, no habla Iraqi."

[DesertLight]

It is more like a translation error. They still can get dubya to understand plain english.

[chirps]

How about this partial scenario (feel free to fill in the blanks):
1. We leave and sectarian violence takes over. They fight each other over blood feuds, religion, autonomy and, of course, oil.
2. Iran enters the fray to aid their Shiite brothers and sisters across the border in Iraq.
3¦?
4¦?
5¦?
6¦?

[DesertLight]

there is a lot of bad blood there from $addams rein of terr0r. The Shia were kept under the thumb by the Sunnis, many were slaughtered.

[lthuedk 1]

And the Sunnis want it all. http://www.light-to-dark.com/energy_merchants.html

[Gatormouth]

George Bush's presidency was a "Transcription Error". Hanging chads, Diebold election systems, and a Supreme Court appointment that trumps a re-count.

[doctorwang]

Transcription error my @$$! That Malikii is a traitor! Where's his flag pin? Timetable is just another word for surrender! Terrorist appeasing S0B! Don't the Iraqiss want to wait for what our generals on the ground have to say? Don't they give a sh%t what General Putraeus thinks?

McCane needs to get his bulletproof vest on, find a battalion to hide behind, and get over to Iraq and straighten Malikii's @$$ out!! (oh- and better bring Joe to 'clarify' what you mean when you speak).

[sociocanuck]

One of the stories commenters on the source page makes a great point: how is it that the administration could be so sure of the translation of that quote by the Iranian president, concerning Israel and eradicating it (apparently by military means), but seem totally skeptical of how anything passed by the Iraqi legislature is interpreted? It's not like this is the first time they've disputed it...

[lvdragonlady]

Sure george whatever you say......

[keepemhonest]

Money& Oil:

a) After the U.S. invaded Iraq, the USA took control of all the Iraqi"s bank accounts, including income from OIL.

b) USA stored hundreds of millions of OIL dollars in a vault in a Baghdad palace. Auditors found the key to the vault was kept "unsecured" " in a U.S. official"s backpack.

c) A draft government audit faults the United States for "inadequate stewardship" of up to $8.8 billion in OIL money, handed over to Iraq"s ministries but NEVER fully accounted for.

d) Auditors for UN's Iraq Advisory found: Missing records and Two sets of books at Iraq's Finance Ministry, which did not match.

e)6/30/2008 Shell, Exxon, Total & BP won a NO BID 30 Year Contract to Drill in Iraq - under a controversial law the US government has been involved in drawing up.

f) 1999 - VPCheney, said in 1999, while CEO of oil services company Halliburton, the world would need an additional 50 million barrels of oil a day by 2010. "So where is the oil going to come from? The Middleeast, with two-thirds of the world's oil and the lowest cost, is still where the prize ultimately lies," he said.

hmmm... the "prize" of oil in mideast ... invade Iraq with 'non-existent' intelligence linking Saddam with al Qaeda ... control Iraq's money & oil ... draft laws that Western oil companies get a 30 year no-bid drilling contract.

Bush/Cheney/McCain's war has always been about the "prize" control the Iraq oil fields.

[PuppaX]

Are we going to still pretend we're not an occupying force?

[drauz]

the Bush regime mo is transcription errors, lost back-ups, no recollections & puzzlements. an object lesson in how to get away with murder.

[DaOne]

Didn't they say the same thing about our Constitution?

[spiderbucket]

Black is white. Up is down. Right is left.