Obama Adviser: McCain May Have Made Georgia Situation Worse

Barack Obama adviser Susan Rice said on Hardball last night that John McCain's belligerent response to the Russian actions in Georgia "may or may not have complicated the situation."

WATCH:

At the Belgravia Dispatch, Gregory Djerejian explains why McCain's position would compound the mistakes President Bush has made in the region.

Ben Smith explains that McCain has long history of aggressive anti-Russian rhetoric:

While virtually every other world leader called for calm in Georgia last Thursday morning, John McCain did something he's done many times over his career in public life: He condemned Russia.

Indeed, McCain, who publicly confronted Putin in Munich last year, may be the most visible -- and now potentially influential -- American antagonist of Russia. What remains to be seen is whether the endgame to the Georgia crisis makes McCain seem prophetic or headstrong and whether his muscular rhetoric plays a role in defining for voters the kind of commander in chief he would be.

Comments

[celticjag]

I watched Ms. Rice on Hardball and she failed to mention that Pres. Saakashvili of Georgia started this conflict by attacking South Ossetia's capital city, Tskhinvali. Is she related to Condi, because her knowledge of the area and this madnees seems very limited and she is giving Barack bad advice. I am not defending the over the top response by Russia, but they could not stand idly by while Saakashvili launch his attack. I would urge everyone to read Mikhail Gorbachev's op-ed in yesterdays Washington Post, in order to get some insight into the problems in this unstable area. And to Barack, stop blaming the Russians, they did not start this, Georgia did, and please upgrade your foreign policy advisors.

[StillIRise]

I admit that I don't know all of the particulars, but your post reads exactly like a caller's comments on C-Span this morning, to which the guest replied, "You are merely espousing the Russian propaganda."

Apparently, it's a lot more complicated than what you've suggested.

[celticjag]

Who was the quest and whose propaganda was he espousing, Bush's or Cheney's?

[justwaitandsee]

Regardless of whom started what for John McCann to come out making reckless and dangerous statements as one posted put it this is inexcusable.

Calling for more warrs when we haven’t finished the warrs in Iraq or Afghanistan; so if John McCann has it his way where are we going to pull new military people from? They are all tied up in one war he supports and another one he never thought was important. Are we going to implement a draft because that is exactly where we are headed if this man is in charge?

John McCann needs to shut up and stop listening to his Georgians’ Lobbyist he has on his staff before we are involved in another war created by people with a fabricated John Wayne Mentality.

[InfinteShibumi]

Dr. Rice is not related to the other Dr. Rice.

[celticjag]

I know that they are not related, tried using a little humor to point out their ignorance of the situation.

[MagisterLudi]

Both MC and OB have rabidly anti- Russian foreign policy advisers. OB's Brzezinski was a favorite of another freedom lover: Ronnie Reagan.

[Hillgrazer]

here's a link that should prove interesting
McCain adviser got money from Georgia

http://www.newsvine.com/_news/2008/08/13/1745564-mccain-adviser-got-money-from-georgia

[justwaitandsee]

Susan is right. McCann is reckless and he apparently thinks this is a game. There are civilians over there is George loosing their lives and John McCann, who claims that O would rather lose a war to win an election seems to be speaking of him self when he made this statement.

The guy who is always calling for WARR but the most he ever did in a WARR was get caught.

[Hillgrazer]

I agree. I think the Obama camp has it right with McCain. I did some research on McCain's security adviser,Randy Scheunemann

Randy Scheunemann is the President of the Committee for the Liberation of Iraq, which was created by the Project for the New American Century (PNAC), of which he is a board member. He was Trent Lott's National Security Aide and was an adviser to Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Iraq.

Here is a couple of links to check out

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sg_NRC8ozk

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Randy_Scheunemann

[MizLiz]

He thinks of himself still as the devil-may-care flyboy.

[PackyJ]

Doesn't John McCain sound a bit presumptuous?
Maybe even uppity?

[justwaitandsee]

He sounds more irresponsible, reckless and dangerous to me.

[comacoma]

Sounds like he's violating the Logan Act.

[Chiang]

As always the Democrats' position is that the only way to save the world is to avoid confrontation with Russia.

If there were not men like McCain, men like Obama would be eaten by wolves.

[JoeBlough]

The end of the world will happen with a Republican as President.

[Counterglow]

And, as always, there's a particular variety of idiot who defines anything short of in-your-face, gun-waving threats of war as "avoiding confrontation". We call these people "Republicans".

[stateMachine]

You must live off a daily diet of 80s action films to believe a belligerent posture towards a nuclear superpower is anything but fatally stupid. The Soviets were defeated by bogging them down in a proxy guerilla war. Direct engagement is, as I mentioned before, fatally stupid. I mean really, grow up, my child. Chuck Norris, Dolf Lungren, Sylvester Stallone *combined* can't save you now. We need to be heady.

[jazzman]

Chiang, War with Russia would last about 60 minutes and end in the total annihilation of both countries. This is the nuclear age. The nuclear age requires savvy and thought not knee jerk reaction. So, if men like McCain is President, you and your family may end up simply being ashes.
Then where will all your machismo be?

[Ides]

McCain wanted to send in troops. Obama wanted a peaceful negotiation with international parties. France went in and ended it. No one died today.

Good job, McCain!

[KQuarksSuperKollider]

Wow diplomacy does work.

[workinman]

Yeah, but who got the billions in no bid contracts?

[AlwaysFairDem]

Shooting from the hip kind of cowboy mentality is not going to make America safer or prosperous. This kind of wanna look tough type of attitude is what got us in trouble in every aspect of our life’s here at home...the same reason why this guy is Bush's Third Term and the right reason why he can never take America to the promise land of one that was looked at in the world superior in every aspect of International and Domestic Politics.

[JAZZYHiggins]

Lord have mercy, the President of Georgia has called John McCain out and McCain is caught with his pants down and his foot in his mouth (now, that's a feat). Put up or shut up is what President Saakashvili is say to him. What in the hell does McCain think he is doing? If Bush has any control over his Party, he needs to put a muzzle on him. We are so screwed!

[newworldman777]

Talk about the ultimate in hypocrisy. McCain's condemning Russia for naked aggression, while he himself lives in Arizona -- a state that America created from land stolen from Mexico during our own naked aggressive endeavor in 1848 -- is like the pot calling the kettle black. Yeah, America can really claim the moral high ground on that issue -- not.

[WillNYC]

hmm how about something more recent... McStooge supported and supports the Iraq quagmire...

The US in Iraq.... the shining beacon of example to rest of the world... NOT.

[newworldman777]

We could go back centuries. Why limit ourselves to recent land grabs? After all, the Israelis lost ther land 2000 years ago to naked aggression, yet they used that as an excuse to retake it in 1948.

[iggy06]

Make no mistake, McCain is insane and if he becomes president, you can bet your a@@ he will start a nuclear war with Russia. McCain is batshit crazy.

[gwinegarden]

He was a bomber pilot. That's all he knows how to do.

[DoomtoNeoCons]

So he's used to ki!!ing people from a distance.

[blueshield]

Pat Buchanan on Mc.Cain's tendency to see military action as the solution to foreign policy: "...he will make Ch.eney look like Ghandi."

[karela]

If McCain is given the power to take America where his mouth goes, we will find ourselves in massive wars, the draft will be back and we will be broke. John McCain is always trying to prove that America is the most powerful country on earth and as a result he is always looking for wars that he thinks we can fight to prove that point. Unfortunately, Bush has taken us from a country with a surplus after Clinton, to a country with a $10 Trillion debt. We're not helpless, but let's face it folks, Russia is sitting on it's own huge supply of oil and since they quit trying to out do us in military spending and their profits went up from the oil, they are a strong foe. America needs to stay home and rebuild our own infrastructure, insure our own citizens have healthcare and education, create and build our own energy independence. This is not a great time to be mouthing off about starting major World Wars. It's terrible what Russia is doing, but on the other hand, what on earth was Georgia thinking? You don't go out in the woods and poke the biggest bear you can find with a stick in the eye. You have to figure that the bear is going to take a swipe at you. Somebody needs to put John McCain in a closet with duct tape over his mouth!

[Scarllatti]

Get me the duck tape quick. I will be so willing to tape off this guy's snouts.

[KQuarksSuperKollider]

McBush has an I'll prove daddy wrong complex just like Boosh. McBush left the Navy one week after his father the former A dmiral died because they told he that he would never make A dmiral.

Every since McBush's whole goal in life is to become Commander-in-Chief to prove his daddy and the Navy wrong. He wants to be C-in-C so he can command the G enerals and A dmirals. I wouldn't be surprised if McBush started wearing some kind of C-in-C uniform if he is elected. McBush wants to start as many wars as he can because he knows his time is short. His mother might be 96 but his father died at 70 and grandfather died at 61.

[SwingingFromCenter]

"McCain may have made Georgia situation worse"

GEE, YA THINK?

Making threatening rhetoric to a nation that could give us a run for our money militarily (and who would probably get China to back em, making us the short side) is usually a bad idea. Thanks, Captain Obvious.

[KQuarksSuperKollider]

Best quote on the blog today. venicesurfer said they were "liberal" but agrees with McBush on almost ever blog.

[snobama]

if susan rice is the best person obama's got even after becoming the nominee of the democratic party and having the likes of james rubin and madeleine albright and holbrooke to tap from... -- we really are in trouble...

lets see :
susan rice : assistant secretary of state for african affairs under clinton.
her acheivement : - urging clinton not to take action on rwanda ...and letting the genocide there continue...

way to go obama... !!

[Scarllatti]

I have no doubt that you have pus as brain substance if this is all the argument you can come up with to justify your xenophobia.

You really think that America should move troops to Georgia? You should first enlist in the military before you open your mouth further.

[BatedBreath]

snobama is an embittered clinton supporter. She doesn't have a clue who Obama's advisors are. Here's a link to an article about Obama's advisors for those who are interested.
http://www.cfr.org/publication/16188/foreign_policy_brain_trusts.html#4

Not mentioned in the article for foreign policy are Sam Nunn and David Boren.

[snobama]

xenophoobia ??

i lament that a sec of state of african affairs (who happens to be black) did not assess the dire situation in rwanda (and africa country) properly , recommended against action to the president and hence failed in her job colossally as the genocide there (in which 'bloack' africans were butchered) and all you can come up with is 'xenophobe' ???

my criticism of Rice would stand even if she was a green gremlin...

if all you can see is race all the time... then maybe its really you who are a closet xenophobe !!

[JRandomPoster]

Consider the "achievements" in foreign policy for the last eight years.

Not exactly stellar.

Time for something different.

[apoyo]

She frowns too much. And what is this "may or may not have." It's either, or. She needs to make up her mind or stay off the idiot box.

[Chiang]

Urging inaction is a hallmark of Democratic Party leadership.

[StillIRise]

Lying us into wars with no end, for the sake of profit, seems to be the hallmark of Republican leadership! I would take inaction over senseless wars any time!

[OuterBoroughPrincess]

Just so that we're clear, you're asserting that President Clinton would have heroically committed U.S. troops to intervene in Rwanda BUT FOR the "urging" of the Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs that he not do so? That's your argument? For reals? Wow. And maybe the bat boy made Roger Clemens do steroids.

I won't even bother to ask what sources your relying on in making this demonstrably insane assertion, since we all know there are none.

[snobama]

here is my source : (hope it meets your standards)
http://www.genocidewatch.org/aboutus/stantonrwandapreventionarticle.htm

BTW Clinton did ... "heroically committed U.S. troops to intervene in Rwanda" .
It was a tad to late for a millions ... but it was better than nothing...

And the delay was because he got bad advice from Susan Rice his point person for African affairs.
I am not saying Clinton could not have over-ruled her and gone with his gut (which was they needed to intervene -- he should have , and he wrote as much in his book -- this was his single biggest regret from his time as president)
But apparently Susan Rice strongly advised against in...

She defends her decision this election cycle by saying that she was a 'junior' person and that she cant believe that clinton took her advice !!

[MagisterLudi]

McCain pledeged to eat nothing but shish kebab and drink a liter of Georgian wine per day to protest Leonid Brezhnev's attack on peaceful Georgia. "Bolsheviks out of Caucasus," bellowed McCain.
" Freedom lovin' Georgian tank columns must be set free."

[KQuarksSuperKollider]

Boy that's not a very healthful food habit for a 72 year old man.

[demfriend]

Even though everyone wants the answer from the two candidates of "What I would do if I were president today" I think it is not the place of a candidate to insert angry words or threats because it is the current president who has to answer for those words/threats if they cause any response which could inflame the situation and cause even more deaths. Reason and support of talks and cease fires is a much better way than to have a result from Mccain's words now and even later if he should win. Do we want an all out war with Putin directly now or later because of someone making threats and using words that will set up something Putin will never forget? Is this the kind of leader people really believe will and can protect and prevent further escalations and wars?