Leave it to conservative FOX News' Washington, D.C. managing editor Britt Hume to raise the specter of John McCain's age as an issue in the 2008 election. Appearing on this week's Fox News Sunday program, Hume suggested McCain's advanced age was responsible for the Arizona senator's factually incorrect remark last week that the country of Iran is training al-Qaeda terrorist and sending them into Iraq.
McCain's gaffe revealed that the senator is unaware that Iran is a Shiite country that views al-Qaeda, a predominantly Sunni group, as an enemy. Given the chance to clarify his remarks, McCain only made matters worse, suggesting that his misinformed views were widely held. It is "common knowledge and has been reported in the media," he told reporters, "that al-Qaeda is going back into Iran and receiving training and are coming back into Iraq from Iran. That's well known. And it's unfortunate."
What's unfortunate is that the Republican nominee for president knows so little about Iraq and Iran and the religious divide that has fostered their historic hostility toward each other. So it was left to Senator Joe Lieberman to rescue McCain in the middle of a news conference, correcting the GOP candidate and instructing him to say that Iran is supporting extremists in Iraq.
Rather than allow an impression to develop that the Republican nominee for president has no clue about the realities in a perilous part of the world, FOX anchor Hume suggests that the blame should be placed on "a senior moment," a polite way of suggesting that McCain made a momentary mistake, one that should not be of significant concern to us.
But, John McCain's age shouldn't be an issue in the coming election, and Britt Hume was wrong to introduce it into the discussion. It is John McCain's ignorance, not his age, that's the issue. Many Americans older than McCain know the difference between Sunnis and Shiites. I've met seniors across the country who have a far better understanding of the complexities in the Middle East than John McCain demonstrates.
Age is beside the point. Last summer, Barack Obama said in the middle of the AFL-CIO's debate in Chicago that he would deal with NAFTA by contacting the "president of Canada." Of course, Canada has a prime minister, not a president. But no one suggested that the 46-year old senator's gaffe was a result of his youthful inexperience. His age didn't enter the discussion.
John McCain's age should be left out of it as well. In fact, Senator McCain made the same false statement about Iran and al-Qaeda not once, but three times last week, demonstrating that ignorance was the real culprit. Last Monday, for example, he told listeners of right-wing radio talk show host Hugh Hewitt: "As you know, there are al-Qaeda operatives that are taken back into Iran, given training as leaders, and they're moving back into Iraq."
It is disturbing that John McCain appears not to know that al Qaeda is a Sunni organization, and he doesn't understand the key role sectarian divisions play in the violence unleashed since our invasion of Iraq. No wonder he supports keeping our troops there for 100 years.
Moreover, these "misstatements" are more than a momentary lapse. McCain told Larry King in 2002 that winning a war in Iraq "will be fairly easy." He told Chris Matthews "we will be welcomed as liberators." He told Tim Russert in 2003 that the war would soon be over: "I believe that this conflict is still going to be relatively short," he said on Meet the Press.
John McCain was wrong then. He is wrong now. Britt Hume and the rest of McCain's buddies in the media should stop making excuses for his blunders and make sure the American people know about John McCain's long history of being wrong on Iraq. He doesn't understand the region and his lack of understanding has consequences. As we commemorate the 4,000th American death in Iraq, let's not make the mistake of electing a new president who shares George W. Bush's ignorance. And let's not blame that ignorance on age.
http://politicalitch.blogspot.com/2008/03/dementia-mccains-most-difficult-medical.html
Kind of like GWB's drumming up Saddam's WMD. don't you think?
I will not be surpried if elected, his first order of business will be jst that.
If there weren't so many pay-per-click media outlets, maybe we could get some actual reporting on the issues.
Because that's why this country's in trouble. And people who don't care to diffentiate the truth from fiction, or hold them accountable for what they say are also the problem.
Get over that.
But how do you explain Hillary's ongoing stream of lies -- repeated on multiple occasions, not only in response to questions but even in prepared texts -- about landing under sniper fire at Tuzla, Bosnia?
How do you explain her ongoing stream of lies about being the prime mover behind enactment of the Family and Medical Leave Act and SCHIP when she was no more than a supportive bystander?
Are these "senior moments" for someone who is 12 years younger than McCain? Or do they show the same regard for the truth -- and the intelligence of her audience -- as George W. Bush?
Come on, Gerry. Let's face it, you jumped into the Clintons' arms once too often. And now your rivals, the Change to Win unions, are going to have better access to the next president of the United States than you. Follow the lead of your Oregon Council and jump to Barack Obama -- as strong an ally as Illinois AFSCME has ever had -- before it's too late and Hillary hands the election to McCain on a silver platter.
Shoot first, ask questions later. McCain 08!!!
Experience is only as good as ones memory, and intellect. If someone doesn't learn from their experiences its a waste of time. John McCain learned from his 5 year stint as a POW in Viet Nam, ( something I respect the hell out of btw ) that we needed to commit more troops and weaponry to that black hole war.
Just as he thinks that's the solution now. But if doesn't understand who we're fighting, and has mistaken Al Qaeda for Shiites, allied with Iran, why should we commit more troops and money to this cause. There's no endgame, no goal, that I can see, other than taking down Iran's leadership.
What are we doing in Iraq, Mr. McCain. Who are you expecting to wave the white flag of surrender? Because right now we're just babysitting Cain and Abel, two sects that don't adhere to that brotherhood of man stuff, or the truths our forefathers posited as self evidenciary, that we are all of us created equal. They are fanatics in their allegiances to their sects.
Perhaps you could at least learn to discern the difference between them.