McCain Was in Favor of Talks with Syria, Despite Saying they Were "Sponsoring and Harboring Terrorists"

After the invasion of Iraq there was much talk among conservatives about invading Syria. Then Secretary of State Colin Powell was heavily criticized for taking a trip to Syria to talk to its leadership. Newt Gingrich said, "The concept of the American secretary of state going to Damascus to meet with a terrorist-supporting, secret-police-wielding dictator is ludicrous."

What did John McCain have to say about the trip? Despite the fact that John McCain believed that Syria was a "state sponsor of terror," was "harboring terrorists," and were sending "Syrians in to fight Americans," he thought it was worth talking to them, saying that Powell's trip was "appropriate."  (See below)

McCain is directly contradicting himself by attacking Senator Obama on his plan to confront Iran at the negotiating table. A pattern is emerging. While McCain claims to be a deep foreign policy thinker with positions carefully developed from his quarter century in Washington, the reality seems to be that his positions - when not outright crazy - are often knee-jerk and contradictory - often dictated by what his temperament is at that moment or influenced by how the political winds are moving.

Here are the transcripts:

McCain on Chris Matthews said on April 23, 2003"We know the Syrians allowed, or sent Syrians in to fight Americans." But McCain said that: 

"I think it's appropriate that Colin Powell is going there...

 

MATTHEWS: So you don't agree with Newt Gingrich dumping all over him? You don't agree with Newt Gingrich dumping on the Powell trip?

MCCAIN: You know, Dick -- Richard Armitage is Powell's deputy. And he's a wonderful guy. He served in Vietnam. And he's a really tough guy. And he was quoted someplace today that Newt Gingrich is out of therapy.

McCain added:

Colin Powell is going to look Bashar aside in the eye and say, look, you know. You better clean up your act here. It's a new day in the Middle East. And I think it's entirely appropriate to do that.

Five days earlier on the Today Show on April 18th, McCain said the same thing. When asked how he would proceed with Syria - a country that he believed to be a state-sponsor of terrorism - McCain said he would talk first.

LAUER: Let me ask you about Syria.

Mr. McCAIN: Sure.

LAUER: They have denied possessing weapons of mass destruction, they've also denied harboring any senior members of the Iraqi leader. The US administration says they have evidence to the contrary. How would you proceed with that situation?

Mr. McCAIN: I think it's very appropriate that Colin Powell is going to Syria. I think we should put diplomatic and other pressures on them. It's also a time for Mr. Asad Bashar to realize that he should be more like his father was. I think he's too heavily influenced by a lot of the radical Islamic elements and--and militant groups.

LAUER: Do you think Syria meets the criteria set forth by the president in his post-9/11 address to Congress that they pose an imminent threat to the US in that they are either sponsoring or harboring terrorists?

Mr. McCAIN: I think they're--they're sponsoring and harboring terrorists. I think they have been occupying Lebanon, which should be free and independent for a long time, but I don't think that that means that we will now resort to the military action. We--we can apply a lot of pressure other than military--than the military action. So what I'm saying, we're a long way away from it.

LAUER: Under what circumstances--under what circumstances would you back military action?

Mr. McCAIN: When we've exhausted all other options. And we have a lot of options to--to exercise.  And I'm glad Colin Powell's going there, but the Syrians have got to understand there's a new day in the Middle East.

Comments

[Bobrobert]

McDoodoo does it again.

Talking before thinking ahead to this election year.

Silly McDoodoo.

Bad

Bad

Oh well.

Let's see the spin on these comments.

What you heard isn't what I meant to say when I said it in the first place.

ROFLMAO

His group must hate the internet and the ease of getting the facts to the people.

Don't forget to vote everyone!!!

:-)

[ajax2]

To ask John McCain to remember his positions from yesterday is not fair. In fact it could be considered torture to our generation.

[egal]

We've already had a Welfare presidency for a man too stupid, lazy, and incompetent to hold any other job position his father paid for; we don't need one for a decrepit Veteran tortured in his past but who now can't tell the difference between negotiating and bombing, Shia or Sunni, beneficial policy and asinine continuation of current failure.

The presidency is NOT supposed to be Welfare for the washed-up wealthy.

[PioneerKing]

The main stream media's attempt to maintian the McCain myth is falling apart.
America is beginning to see McCain for the addlepated political opportunist that he really is - as the "straight talk express," has rolled over into a ditch somewhere on the Washington Beltway.
The republicans are beginning to realize that McCain is not a substantive canidate on foreign policy and national security regardless of his military service, which is to be lauded, and his years in Washington; flip-flopping McCain makes G.W. Bush look like a Mensa heavyweight champion.
Writ large and projected upon the big screen the title says "The Bush/Cheney/McCain GOP Brand of Dog Food Is Not Selling This Year."

[appleknocker]

"Talk with terrorists?" Never! why should we, when our tough-guy approach is serving the country so well?

[OhioJan]

Are we REALLY surprised at this? I'm not. I remember all too well the "flip-flopper" pummeling the Rep's gave John Kerry in the '04 Presidential campaigns. It's only natural that they "project" their deepest guilts & sins onto those who are innocent of the charges, isn't it?

[RumiSouth]

Psychological projection is a chief property of the right-wing mindset. Consider the following:

1.) The John Birch Society opposes communist "subversives"...by organizing secretive cells.

2.) Pastor Hagee and company declare that Muslims want to erect a global Caliphate through worldwide jihad...and say we should erect a global Christian empire through worldwide crusade.

3.) Conservatives say that liberals engage in "moral relativism"...then excuse the Iraq debacle by saying it's better than leaving Saddam in power.

The examples can go on and on.

[LawSource]

ME TOO!!

THIS DOES NOT SURPRISE ME, BECAUSE I HAVE SEEN John McBush FLIP-FLOP OVER AND OVER AGAIN!!

ESPECIALLY IN HIS RUN TO SECURE THE GOP'S NOMINATION!!

YOU JUST CANNOT RELY ON ANYTHING HE SAY; HE IS JUST Changing with the wind every other month!

WE CANNOT ALLOW PEOPLE LIKE THIS TO Govern this contry. period!!

[The Impartial]

I am not surprised at all. OLD people tend to FORGET. Forgive them. LOL.

[kravitz]

McCain's trying to appeal to liberals by being his usual weathervane self. I guess in his mind it's working.

[NegSpin]

We've got the pattern. McCain said what he really thought years ago. But now he's just lying to score political points.

[Stevelagain]

The thing that stinks the "progressives" here is that Obama does believe in appeasing terrorists, he does believe in the far left, anti US, anti Israel, anti Flag agenda but now he has to appeal to moderates and that means he can't have them knowing what he believes.

Change we can "believe in"? No, just another far left liberal running for office, temporarily suspending his agenda for votes.

[Chris7982]

Do you know what the term APPEASING means and why it is not applicable to OBAMA ...Obama is not giving away ISRAEL or any other country to Iran...all he wants to do is negotiate....not a bad thing to do...Great leaders are not afraid to talk to their enemies.....you do not use bombs first then try to negotiate....As a matter of fact Bush and MCcain are appeasers because they ahve given IRAQ to Iran...so much for History and intelligence to know that by overthrowing Saddam who was Sunni, you will have a Shiite majority to rules and that will embolden iran whose sect is Shiite. If only all the war mongers in this country take the time to learn the history of the Middle east and their sects we will be better served. Glag pins, far left propaganda is what got us in this mess and creates hatred around the world...READ some more, learn the facts before you join the rheotoric and talking points of the WING NUTS of this country...we nedd to think as one nation and not left or right....we need to unite and not divide..its what politiciansd want and you are falling for the CRAP!!! IF you going to Rant at least be knowledgeable!!!!

[Powderhound522]

Feel free to post fact-free screeds such as this as often as you choose.

Sure it's idiotic, but you can take consolation in the fact that it won't do your candidate any good!

[Sioen]

So when McCain attacked Obama for wanting to talk to Ahmadinejad, saying, "What does he want to talk about?" -- I guess he knows there's plenty to talk about:

"Colin Powell is going to look Bashar aside in the eye and say, look, you know. You better clean up your act here. It's a new day in the Middle East. And I think it's entirely appropriate to do that."

What a hypocritical doofus. Why talk, when you can bomb-bomb-bomb, bomb-bomb Iran?!

[barrista]

WE NEED VIDEO. Fire off an e-mail to hardball