McCain Channels Hercules, The War You're Not Reading About Contributed by 72nd TCS
What's all this about Hercules? Well, if we can believe a front-page item in the of Saturday, April 7, Senator John McCain, in his to-be-announced campaign for the presidency, plans to wade all alone into the fever-swamp of the MSM crusade to discredit the war effort and--like Hercules in the Augean Stables--to clear up the whole foul, stinking mess.
The article linked to bears the title "McCain to Stake Bid On Need to Win in Iraq," and is bylined Michael D. Shear, who kicks off with this:
(R-Ariz.) will launch a high-profile effort next week to convince Americans that the Iraq war is winnable, embracing the unpopular conflict with renewed vigor as he attempts to reignite his stalling bid for the presidency.
With the Virginia Military Institute as a backdrop, McCain plans to argue in a speech on Wednesday that victory in Iraq is essential to American security and that President Bush's war machine is finally getting on track after four years, aides and advisers said.
McCain's rosy assessment of safety on Iraq's streets after his recent visit to a Baghdad marketplace was mocked by many, prompting him to tell a television reporter that he 'misspoke' and now regrets the comments. But, in the interview to be broadcast tomorrow, the senator sticks by his defense of the overall war effort, predicting that failure in Iraq would be 'catastrophic.'
Why on earth, if the senator hopes to convince a skeptical public that there is visible progress in Iraq, did he step on his own message by admitting that he "misspoke" when he proclaimed the good news in ? [ed. note: The reference above to "a television reporter" points to a McCain interview to be broadcast Sunday evening on "60 Minutes" and perhaps watched by millions.] Are his "aides and advisors" asleep at the switch?
Michael Shear dilates upon the generally negative response of the media to the Baghdad press conference:
Wearing a bulletproof vest and surrounded by 100 soldiers in Baghdad's central market, McCain said: 'Never have I been able to go out into the city as I was today.' Headlines soon after called his statements 'propaganda' and a 'magic-carpet ride.' The Statesman Journal in Salem, Ore., declared: 'Brainwashed McCain is a straight-talker no more.'
One GOP consultant said of the incident: 'That strikes right at the heart of who people thought he was-- a truth teller.'
Poor John McCain. The Salem, Oregon broadsheet calls him brainwashed and laments the derailing of the Straight Talk Express. An anonymous "GOP consultant" [working for Chuck Hagel?] chimes in. Has the Arizona Republican got a prayer of winning the GOP nomination? At this moment, it would be foolish to speculate. Recent polling results, however, indicate that a solid majority of Republican voters--the only folks who count in a primary, outside of crossover states--remains loyal to the president and his new policy in Iraq. They are unlikely to punish McCain for standing firm.
There are plenty of other reasons why conservatives might want to shun McCain. Like him or not, one has to admire his courage. The man is no weathervane.
*** Webmaster's update: 72nd TCS just sent me a link to this with a suggestion that mention it in a post. I responded that Senator McCain may not be an "Old War Dog" but he definitely qualifies as an "old war dog" and I think what he wrote qualifies for mention on this site as well:
By John McCain
I just returned from my fifth visit to Iraq since 2003 -- and my first since Gen. David Petraeus's new strategy has started taking effect. For the first time, our delegation was able to drive, not use helicopters, from the airport to downtown Baghdad. For the first time, we met with Sunni tribal leaders in Anbar province who are working with American and Iraqi forces to combat al-Qaeda. For the first time, we visited Iraqi and American forces deployed in a joint security station in Baghdad -- an integral part of the new strategy. We held a news conference to discuss what we saw: positive signs, underreported in the United States, that are reason for cautious optimism.
I observed that our delegation "stopped at a local market, where we spent well over an hour, shopping and talking with the local people, getting their views and ideas about different issues of the day." Markets in Baghdad have faced devastating terrorist attacks. A car bombing at Shorja in February, for example, killed 137 people. Today the market still faces occasional sniper attacks, but it is safer than it used to be. One innovation of the new strategy is closing markets to vehicles, thereby precluding car bombs that kill so many and garner so much media attention. Petraeus understandably wanted us to see this development.
I went to Iraq to gain a firsthand view of the progress in this difficult war, not to celebrate any victories. No one has been more critical of sunny progress reports that defied realities in Iraq. In 2003, after my first visit, I argued for more troops to provide the security necessary for political development. I disagreed with statements characterizing the insurgency as a "few dead-enders" or being in its "last throes." I repeatedly criticized the previous search-and-destroy strategy and argued for a counterinsurgency approach: separating the reconcilable population from the irreconcilable and creating enough security to facilitate the political and economic solutions that are the only way to defeat insurgents. This is exactly the course that Petraeus and the brave men and women of the American military are pursuing.
The new political-military strategy is beginning to show results. But most Americans are not aware because much of the media are not reporting it or devote far more attention to car bombs and mortar attacks that reveal little about the strategic direction of the war. I am not saying that bad news should not be reported or that horrific terrorist attacks are not newsworthy. But news coverage should also include evidence of progress. Whether Americans choose to support or oppose our efforts in Iraq, I hope they could make their decision based on as complete a picture of the situation in Iraq as is possible to report. A few examples: ...
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Contributed by 72nd TCS on April 8, 2007 at 12:05 AM in , , , , , |