As has become the norm in American politics, it was a “debate” without any discussion or substance, a tired and empty ritual designed to conceal the truth and chloroform the public.
Every aspect of the event was orchestrated and vetted. The so-called “town hall” setting had nothing to do with a real give-and-take with ordinary people. The 82 people sitting on the stage with Obama and Romney had been chosen by Gallup, the polling firm, from so-called “undecided voters” residing in the Hempstead, Long Island area, where the debate was held.
Following a rehearsal the morning of the event, these 82 hand-picked voters submitted their questions to the moderator, Candy Crowley of CNN, who then decided the questions to be asked by choosing which of the 82 would get to speak. The microphones of the questioners were automatically shut off as soon as their questions had been asked.
Candy Crowley was the worst presidential moderator ever. I've heard her compared to Carole Simpson. Negatively.
I am sorry but Carole Simpson did a fine job. She was the first to moderate these so-called town halls (she did it when Bill Clinton was running against George H.W. Bush). There was a mixture of tough and soft questions, the candidates spoke to some of the tougher issues. Most of all, after the debate, you weren't thinking, "That was all about Carole!"
Carole knew how to moderate. (Carole is retired today but was a journalist for many years and was most famous for her work with ABC News which did include guest anchoring the weekend network news.)
Candy Crowley didn't have a clue.
She was combative and rude.
The only thing I can compare it to is one of those 70s Mike Wallace interviews. I could be wrong, but I don't remember Mike Wallace ever moderating any of the debates.
You wouldn't want that because it would have been all about Mike Wallace.
That's how Crowley's debate came off.
Look, right there. I just called it "Crowley's debate." I didn't even catch myself until after I had typed it. That is how much she interjected herself into the debate.
"The King of Self-Love sings to the Choir (Ava and C.I.)" (The Common Ills):
If only everyone could find Barack as amusing as he finds himself. Last night at Hofstra University, it was a three-way draw in many respects as President Barack Obama, Governor Mitt Romney and CNN correspondent Candy Crowley faced off with truth left bruised and bloody.
As the authors of " TV: Jim Lehrer, notch below child molester," we wanted to applaud Candy Crowley. The debates -- controlled by a duopoly commission -- are a sham. So we pointed out, "And when a Jim Lehrer (or Bob Schieffer or Martha Raddatz or Candy Crowley) provides cover to these shams by posing as a journalist, they're doing incredible damage to democracy and, again, they're as damaging as child molesters. If they don't have any self-respect, their peers should at least hold them accountable. Until that happens, nothing is going to change."
But there was Crowley talking about how she wasn't going to follow this rule and wasn't going to follow that one and she was going to break the conract's rule against her asking any follow up questions and she was going to be in charge and -- In her 'pre-game' interviews, she certainly talked a good game.
Sadly, she appeared to leave that game in the locker room.
And her post-game (let's not pretend that was a debate) interview was appalling.
[. . .]
Who won the debate?
The clear loser was an informed public.
We are sure there are well informed undecideds. But the ones who made it to the microphone with questions (picked by Candy) did not represent the basis for an informed discussion. We have, in fact, heard more probing questions asked of pageant contestants.
The clear winner?
Some are saying it's Barack. We don't see how.
He was abrupt and rude. 'So was Mitt Romney!' Maybe Romney was as much as Barack. (It seemed to us like Barack was more so.) But Romney's not been hailed as The One. While some Dems will cheer, not all will (we aren't). More importantly swing voters and undecideds had little to grab onto.
If you're undecided at this point, presumably, the last four years have not pleased you. And that's why we see Barack as the loser. Last night, he yet again had a chance to present a vision or even a glimpse of four-more-years of Barack. He never did. He runs from his actual record and he won't talk about the future.
That left him with nothing but cheap shots. Like that last one at the end of the debate when he was given the last word and chose to bring up Mitt Romney's 47% remarks. If you wanted to explore that, you bring it up in an exchange. If you're a little, scared kid, you wait until the last minute, blurt it out and high tail it off stage.
That parting image? Not striking us as presidential.
Ava and C.I. remain the best analysts. They did such a great job.
Ann's "Stephen Stromberg: Idiot of the Day" notes how that was written. I knew they were giving speeches in the morning so I figured that they had to stop and start to make time for that, stop and start and stop and start repeatedly. I did not realize that Ava's baby also had a fever. (On the phone tonight, C.I. explained Ava's daughter was getting a new tooth.)
Have you ever dealt with a teething child?
That is work. It is work if you and your child are lucky enough to stay home. Ava and C.I. were dealing with that and with more and doing it on the road. But managed to pull off that wonderful analysis.
Be sure you read it, if you haven't already.
"Iraq snapshot" (The Common Ills):
Wednesday,
October 17, 2012. Chaos and violence continue, Libya makes the debate
but the news cycle's really not sure how, White House owns up to a visit
to Iraq that we'd already noted this week, a new poll spells bad news
for Nouri, tensions between Iraq and Turkey continue, the US Ambassador
to Turkey stirs things up (intentionally?) in a region that can't afford
any outside sparks right now, and more.
We're
starting with the Libya because the media can't get their story
right. We have to start with last night's debate in New York between
President Barack Obama, Governor Mitt Romney and -- as Cedric and Wally pointed out this morning -- from Team CNN 'candidate' Candy Crowley.
This
is really the best example of the failure of the media. Something
happened last night in the debate. Forget who is accurate in facts for a
moment (we'll get to that). A series of events went down and the press
can't even report that accurately -- they can't even handle a
timeline. We're going to use Brian Montopoli (CBS News) as an example
because he's got one mistake (while others have many) and he's also easy
to follow (while others are obscuring -- intentionally or not). Montopoli reports
the chronology the way everyone else does (he just does so in a more
understandable manner). To make it even easier to follow, I'm going to
put numbers in the excerpt of Brian's report and we're calling the
debate [1]:
Crowley isn't offering apologies. Though she initially seemed to backtrack
[2] on her Libya fact check, suggesting that Romney was "right in the
main, I just think he picked the wrong word," she later maintained [3]
that she had not in fact done so. She said [4] on The View Wednesday morning
that her fact check was simply an attempt to move the conversation
forward, and suggested that criticism of her performance was inevitable.
So
the timeline is: [1] debate where 'moderator' Candy Crowley says Barack
Obama is correct; [2] CNN post-debate last night where Crowley
'suggests' Romney is "right in the main"; [3] Wednesday morning on CNN
says she's not backtracking; and [4] goes on The View and says what she said at [2] but pretends criticism is inevitable.
That chronology is technically correct. But [1] has an (a) and a (b) that the media is missing.
Rachel Weiner (Washington Post) reports on
[3], Crowley on CNN this morning (that's where Brian's link goes) and
Weiner seems to grasp the point others are missing. It seems so obvious
to Rachel that she's probably wondering what her peers are talking
about.
The false narrative is Crowley said
Barack was right, Crowley went on CNN last night and conceeded Mitt had a
point, this morning she said she hadn't backtracked on CNN last night
post-debate and whatever she said on The View.
We're going over this slowly. Most of you probably already grasp what happened. As Ava and I noted this morning:
Romney expressed disbelief that Barack stated that on September 12th but Crowley declared that "he did in fact, sir." And Barack asked her to repeat that "a little louder, Candy" which led her to state, "He -- he did call it an act of terror."
No, he didn't. At best, he implied it. And Crowley knew she was wrong almost immediately. You can see it on her face as the audience applauds and she rushes to quickly add, "It did as well take -- it did as well take two weeks or so for the whole idea there being a riot out there about this tape to come out. You are correct about that."Ruth caught that quick amend by Crowley but few others did, especially alleged news outlets.
Romney expressed disbelief that Barack stated that on September 12th but Crowley declared that "he did in fact, sir." And Barack asked her to repeat that "a little louder, Candy" which led her to state, "He -- he did call it an act of terror."
No, he didn't. At best, he implied it. And Crowley knew she was wrong almost immediately. You can see it on her face as the audience applauds and she rushes to quickly add, "It did as well take -- it did as well take two weeks or so for the whole idea there being a riot out there about this tape to come out. You are correct about that."Ruth caught that quick amend by Crowley but few others did, especially alleged news outlets.
The
reason Crowley is saying she did not backtrack after the debate is that
she's aware of what she said during the debate -- a point that did not
make the news cycle this morning at most outlets. After the debate, she
echoed what she'd already said. Why are people not aware that Crowley
also told Romney he was correct? Again, Ava and I this morning:
At
the start of the debate, Candy Crowley declared, "Each candidate has as
much as two minutes to respond to a common question, and there will be a
two-minute follow-up. The audience here
in the hall has agreed to be polite and attentive - no cheering or booing or outbursts of any sort."
(We're using the CNN transcript, by the way, which is laid out on one web page and will not require you to click for another page every few paragraphs the way ABC and others offering a transcript do.) Applause is an outburst. And it can be distracting. For example, Ruth caught Crowley admitting at the debate that Romney was correct but most people didn't and that was probably due to the second round of applause that was going on.
in the hall has agreed to be polite and attentive - no cheering or booing or outbursts of any sort."
(We're using the CNN transcript, by the way, which is laid out on one web page and will not require you to click for another page every few paragraphs the way ABC and others offering a transcript do.) Applause is an outburst. And it can be distracting. For example, Ruth caught Crowley admitting at the debate that Romney was correct but most people didn't and that was probably due to the second round of applause that was going on.
She
did not pause, she did not say, "You, Governor Romney," most people
thought she was continuing the same support she gave Barack.
She
didn't. the second statements after the applause for rescuing Barack,
were supporting Mitt Romney. That most people in the news industry do
not grasp that goes to how poorly Candy Crowley performed as a
moderator. When the moderator herself is confusing, that's a problem.
Now let's deal with the factual issue. After the debate, Glenn Kessler (Washington Post) explained:
What did Obama say in the Rose Garden a day after the attack in Libya? We covered this previously in our extensive timeline of administration statements on Libya.
"No acts of terror will ever shake the resolve of this nation, alter that character, or eclipse the light of the values that we stand for," Obama said.
But the president did not say "terrorism"— and Romney got tripped up when he repeated the "act of terror" phrasing.
Otherwise, Romney's broader point is accurate — that it took the administration days to concede that the assault on the U.S. mission in Benghazi was an "act of terrorism" that appears unrelated to initial reports of anger at a video that defamed the prophet Muhammad. By our count, it took 8 days for an administration official to concede that the deaths in Libya was the result of a "terrorist attack."
More to Romney's point, Obama continued to resist saying the "t" word, instead repeatedly bringing up the video, even in a speech to the U.N. General Assembly on Sept. 25. On Sept. 26--15 days after the attack-- the White House spokesman felt compelled to assert "it is certainly the case that it is our view as an administration, the President's view, that it was a terrorist attack."
What did Obama say in the Rose Garden a day after the attack in Libya? We covered this previously in our extensive timeline of administration statements on Libya.
"No acts of terror will ever shake the resolve of this nation, alter that character, or eclipse the light of the values that we stand for," Obama said.
But the president did not say "terrorism"— and Romney got tripped up when he repeated the "act of terror" phrasing.
Otherwise, Romney's broader point is accurate — that it took the administration days to concede that the assault on the U.S. mission in Benghazi was an "act of terrorism" that appears unrelated to initial reports of anger at a video that defamed the prophet Muhammad. By our count, it took 8 days for an administration official to concede that the deaths in Libya was the result of a "terrorist attack."
More to Romney's point, Obama continued to resist saying the "t" word, instead repeatedly bringing up the video, even in a speech to the U.N. General Assembly on Sept. 25. On Sept. 26--15 days after the attack-- the White House spokesman felt compelled to assert "it is certainly the case that it is our view as an administration, the President's view, that it was a terrorist attack."
Kessler is being more
than fair to Barack who was talking about 9-11 (2001) at the Rose Garden
when he starts using the terror word. Let's go to the White House for what Barack said in the September 12, 2012 Rose Garden speech and use the link for the full speech, we don't have the room so we'll offer the sections that apply:
The
United States [1] condemns in the strongest terms this outrageous and
shocking attack. We're working with the government of Libya to secure
our diplomats. I've also directed my administration to increase our
security at diplomatic posts around the world. And make no mistake, we
will work with the Libyan government to bring to justice the [1] killers
who attacked our people.
Since our
founding, the United States has been a nation that respects all faiths.
[2] We reject all efforts to denigrate the religious beliefs of
others. But there is absolutely no justification to this type of
senseless violence. None. The world must stand together to
unequivocally reject these brutal acts.
Already,
many Libyans have joined us in doing so, and [1] this attack will not
break the bonds between the United States and Libya. Libyan security
personnel fought back against the attackers alongside Americans.
Libyans helped some of our diplomats find safety, and they carried
Ambassador Stevens's body to the hospital, where we tragically learned
that he had died.
[. . .]
Along
with his colleagues, Chris died in a country that is still striving to
emerge from the recent experience of war. Today, the loss of these four
Americans is fresh, but our memories of them linger on. I have no doubt
that their legacy will live on through the work that they did far from
our shores and in the hearts of those who love them back home.
Of
course, yesterday was already a painful day for our nation as we marked
the solemn memory of the [3] 9/11 attacks. We mourned with the
families who were lost on that day. I visited the graves of troops who
made the ultimate sacrifice in Iraq and Afghanistan at the hallowed
grounds of Arlington Cemetery, and had the opportunity to say thank you
and visit some of our wounded warriors at Walter Reed. And then last
night, we learned the news of [1] this attack in Benghazi.
As
Americans, let us never, ever forget that our freedom is only sustained
because there are people who are willing to fight for it, to stand up
for it, and in some cases, lay down their lives for it. Our country is
only as strong as the character of our people and the service of those
both civilian and military who represent us around the globe.
[4]
No acts of terror will ever shake the resolve of this great nation,
alter that character, or eclipse the light of the values that we stand
for. Today we mourn four more Americans who represent the very best of
the United States of America. We will not waver in our commitment to
see that justice is done for [1] this terrible act. And make no
mistake, justice will be done.
But we also
know that the lives these Americans led stand in stark contrast to those
of their [1] attackers. These four Americans stood up for freedom and
human dignity. They should give every American great pride in the
country that they served, and the hope that our flag represents to
people around the globe who also yearn to live in freedom and with
dignity.
We grieve with their families, but
let us carry on their memory, and let us continue their work of seeking
a stronger America and a better world for all of our children.
That's what he said regarding the "attack."
[1]
represents the time he specifically mentioned the events of 9-11-2012.
He refers to the "attackers," to "this terrible act," "this attack"
(twice), "the killers" and "this shocking and outrageous attack." When
speaking specifically of 9-11-2012's event, he never uses the terms
"terrorism," "terrorist," "terrorist attack," etc.
[2]
is where Barack is referencing a YouTube video that the White House was
maintaining led to a protest outside the US Consulate in Benghazi and
the White House maintained cause the attack.
[3] notes where he specifically addresses the attacks of 9-11-2001 -- eleven years prior.
[4]
is when he suddenly declares "no acts of terror." What is he speaking
of? We all are aware that September 11, 2001 saw two "acts of terror"
in NYC with two planes crashing into the Twin Towers -- and doing so at
two different times, right? We're all on the same page there? And, on
that same day, "acts of terror" including a plane (or missile for those
who don't believe a plane hit) going into the Pentagon and another plane
crashed in a field in Pennsylvania.
We have
what Barack said. The press gets in a hell of a lot of trouble when
they try to mind read. So what did he say? After bringing 9-11-2001
into his speech, he finally uses terror to state "no acts of terror."
Is he including the Benghazi attack in that? You don't know. He may or
he may not be. He's also spoken of Iraq and Afghanistan and, by
inference, tied them both into the attacks of September 11, 2001. Which
no one objected to because when Bully Boy Bush does it, we scream like
crazy. But when Barack does it, we just stay silent.
Six
times in the spech, he directly references the September 11, 2012 event
from the day before. In those six times, he never once calls the
Benghazi attack terrorism or the attackers terrorists.
Candy
Crowley was wrong to cut Mitt Romney off last night in his assertion
that Barack Obama did not label the attack "terrorism" as Barack
insisted when he stated "[. . .] I told the American people and the
world that we were going to find out exactly what happened, that this
was an act of terror and [. . .]" No, he did not call the events of
9-11-2012 "an act of terror."
Word games. That's what we're getting from the White House. Earlier we got lies. Now we get word games.
And the mix gets more toxic as Scott Shane (New York Times) arrives
to 'explain' to us. Shane insists (lies), "Mr. Obama applied the
'terror' label to the attack in his first public statement on the events
in Benghazi, delivered in the Rose Garden at the White House at 10:43
a.m. on Sept. 12, though the reference was indirect." If you're a mind
reader you might make that claim. We've already established that was
talking about the September 11, 2001 attacks and then proclaimed "No
acts of terror . . ." Shane knows better than to mind read. Is he on
firmer ground referring to a Las Vegas, September 13th speech by Barack
where it is stated, "No act of terror will dim the light of the values
that we proudly shine on the rest of the world, and no act of violence
will shake the resolve of the United States of America."?
Not
really. What does that have to do with September 11, 2012. The "no
act of terror" or the "no act of violence"? Both? Both and? None at
all. I have no idea because, unlike Scott Shane, I don't present myself
as a mind reader. Nor do I play the game of, "I know what he said but
what he really meant was . . ." If something's a terrorist act, you
call it that. I thought Barack was the great communicator. Presumably,
even a poor speaker could clearly call something a terrorist attack if
they thought it was a terrorist attack.
We could go through all of Scott Shane's ridiculous b.s. but I didn't watch Crowley on The View because life is too short and we'll move to another topic for the same reason. Read Brian Montopoli's piece for CBS News,
it's worth reading -- timeline not withstanding -- and don't accept
Candy Crowley's nonsense at the end which seems to argue that
conservatives are criticizing her and liberals praising her and it's
about them.
It's not about them. Ava and I are extreme lefties. We didn't slam Jim Lehrer for the questions he asked or the way he asked them nor did we slam Martha Raddatz.
We're slamming Crowley because she conducted herself very poorly. We
slam both/all for participating in this sham that denies third party and
independent candidates their place on the stage. In that regard, maybe
we should praise Crowley for making it all about herself? She revealed
just how hollow and meaningless these faux debates are. Murphy (Puma P.A.C.) ventures,
"I think Candy Crowley was pissed for being assigned to the 'less
prestigious' debate, the one where the moderator is supposed to be
practically invisible, and she wasn't going to stand for it. She really overstepped." Glen Ford (Black Agenda Report) offers his take on the debate and these are his points on the Libya exchange:
The
consensus on imperial war is near absolute. What passes for argument is
merely a matter of style and posture. Romney attacks Obama for failing
to grasp or reveal the "terrorist" nature of the fatal attack on the
U.S. ambassador in Libya. But both candidates are wedded to an alliance
with Muslim fundamentalist jihadis against Middle East governments
targeted for destabilization or regime change: Syria and Iran. Obama's
obfuscations on Benghazi were an attempt to continue masking the nature
of the Libyan legions armed by the U.S. as proxies against Gaddafi, many
of whom are now deployed in Syria – a mission with which Romney is in
full accord. There is also no daylight between the contenders on drone
warfare or the continued projection of U.S. power in the "Af-Pak"
theater of war, or in Somalia and Yemen. The War Party wins in November,
regardless of the Electoral College outcome.
September
12th, as we learned in last week's hearing, the State Dept's Patrick
Kennedy could brief Congress that it was a terrorist attack. Why
couldn't Barack tell the American people? Why the song and dance about a
YouTube video while a very important, very real video was hidden from
the public and is still hidden from Congress? I'm referring to the
footage of the attack. As we learned in last week's hearing, the FBI
said they'd turn it over to Congress gladly but they didn't have
possession of it. Someone else does and, on the orders of the White
House, is refusing to turn the video over to Congress.
Anne Gearan and Colum Lynch (Washington Post) had an important Libya story on Monday.
If you doubt it's importance, Bob Somerby attacks the story. What
happens when Bob goes crazy and off his meds? I seem to remember the
last time. He knew a player in Plamegate but refused to make that
public. Still hasn't. All this time later. We called him out in real
time when he was trashing Joe Wilson and Valerie Plame. Bob did a great
job obscuring reality on behalf of a bad journalist. Bob's back to
that crap again. We won't be linking to him again until he's back on
his meds. Anne Gearan has a solid career behind her for being a meat
and potatoes, basic facts nailed reporter. Can she make a mistake?
Anyone can. But did she make the mistakes Bob accuses her and Lynch
of? Nope. I'm all for holding people accountable. I'm not for your
cloaked wars where you pretend to hold someone accountable but it's
really about some petty grudge. I don't play that game. If someone
deserves to be called out, they get called out (I would prefer not to
call out Joe Biden -- I know Joe and Hillary but it's harder for me to
call Joe out than Hillary just because of his nature -- he's a very
sweet person). By the same token, I couldn't stand Patricia Heaton
because of an attack she made on a very good friend of mine. So when I
had reason to mock her, I mocked her loudly and repeatedly -- I'm
talking offline at various events but it was true online as well. My
anomosity was so well known that friends at ABC avoided even suggesting
Ava and I review The Middle. When we finally did,
I had no problem praising Patricia's performance. I was stunned by how
good she was as Frankie. I am still stunned. I caught two episodes
last year, she's still doing an amazing job. She should be nominated
for an Emmy for this role and she should win. She's better than I would
ever expect her to be, yes, but she's also playing a fully developed,
fully created character. So our political differences as well as what
she said about a friend of mine didn't enter into it and don't. If
someone deserves praise, I don't care if I like them or not. I don't
play that game. I'm actually happy for Patricia that she's become such a
first rate actress. This is a quality of work that few actresses ever
achieve and she should be very proud of herself for what she's done in
the role of Frankie.
There are serious issues
and Bob Somerby can cover for another friend all he wants but the
reality is if Barack's going to claim to be responsible -- as he did in
last night's debate -- the first thing he needs to do is start
explaining why Susan Rice made those statements. As many in the press
who cover the White House have pointed out in conversations over the
last weeks, "Why even Susan Rice? Why was she the one sent out?"
The
White House had an announcement about Iraq and Afghanistan today --
sent to the public e-mail address by a White House friend (I can't find
it at the White House website, if it's up tomorrow -- or if a friend
calls and tells me where it is -- we will do a link to it in tomorrow's
snapshot). So here's the brand new news that the White House announced
today:
Deputy National
Security Advisor Denis McDonough traveled to Iraq and Afghanistan
October 15-17. In meetings in Baghdad on October 15, Mr. McDonough
underscored the U.S. commitment to Iraq's success through the structure
of the bilateral Strategic Framework Agreement. He reviewed our
cooperation on security issues, and discussed how the U.S. and Iraq
could further improve their partnership, including on counterterrorism.
In meetings with President Talabani, Prime Minister Maliki, and with
Parliament Speaker Nujayfi and others, Mr. McDonough stressed the
President's support for Iraq's independent democratic institutions, and
urged inclusive dialogue toward national reconciliation. Mr. McDonough
reiterated our view that that any investigation into Iraq's Central Bank
must be transparent, in accordance with Iraqi law and free from
political influence to avoid undermining the independence of the
institution or investor confidence in Iraq. In all of his meetings
with Iraq's leaders, Mr. McDonough discussed Syria, with a particular
focus on ensuring that violence from Syria does not degrade Iraq's
domestic security. During his visit to Baghdad, Mr. McDonough spoke
with Roman Catholic Archbishop Jean Sleiman and expressed the
President's continuing support for the rights and security of all of
Iraq's minority groups.
On October 16 and
17 in Afghanistan, Deputy National Security Advisor McDonough met with
U.S. civilian and military leaders, as well as our coalition and Afghan
partners, in Kabul, and in Eastern and Southern Afghanistan. In these
meetings, he discussed the current state of transition to Afghan lead
and our progress towards meeting the objectives agreed to at the NATO
Summit in Chicago earlier this year. In Kabul, Mr. McDonough met with
General Allen and other senior ISAF officials to discuss the military
campaign, the transition process, and the status of building and
strengthening the Afghan National Security Forces to assume
responsibility as U.S. and coalition forces continue to draw down. Mr.
McDonough also met with Ambassador Cunningham and Embassy staff to
discuss Afghanistan's political transition, including reconciliation,
the upcoming 2014 elections, and implementation of our mutual
commitments under the Strategic Partnership Agreement. Mr. McDonough
completed his visit by meeting with military personnel in Regional
Command-East and Regional Command-South, to hear their perspective on
the challenges they face as we move forward, including the recent
troubling trend of insider attacks and the mitigation steps being taken
against them.
Wow.
That is news. Maybe the press will report it now? Tuesday morning
though, hmm? What went up here Tuesday morning? Oh, that's right, "What is the US Deputy NSA doing in Iraq?" From that entry:
While
England's closing its Basra Consulate, the US has a figure on the
ground, Denis R. McDonough. Barack's Deputy National Security Advisor.
All Iraq News reports he and members of his team met with Iraqi President Jalal Talabani yesterday. Al Mada adds that the discussions involved Syria, violence and the Strategic Framework Agreement. Al Mada also reports
that McDonough met with Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and along with
discussing those topics, McDonough also stressed the many visits the US
government will be making in the coming weeks.Press TV has an article
about alleged renewed interest in Iraq by the campaigns of Barack
Obama and Mitt Romney. And some might see the meetings as part of
that. But there's a reason the White House isn't publicizing the visit
or who's on it -- including a key SOFA negotiator from the Bush
administration.
SOFA? Strategic Framework Agreement? What was it Tim Arango reported: for the New York Times September 26th? Oh, yeah:
SOFA? Strategic Framework Agreement? What was it Tim Arango reported: for the New York Times September 26th? Oh, yeah:
["] Iraq and the United States are negotiating an agreement that could result in the return of small units of American soldiers to Iraq on training missions. At the request of the Iraqi government, according to General Caslen, a unit of Army Special Operations soldiers was recently deployed to Iraq to advise on counterterrorism and help with intelligence.["]
That's what the US security delegations are making trips about: the negotiations to send more US troops back into Iraq.
So
this afternoon, the White House announces a trip after it's taken
place. I guess that's one way to ensure that it won't be covered. (UPI, to its credit, did do a write up on the White House press release today.)
That's
not the only American official who's visted Iraq and had a press
release. A friend with the State Dept passed on this (and she included a link):
Assistant
Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs Andrew J. Shapiro
completed a series of consultations with senior civilian and military
officials in the United Kingdom, Iraq, and Jordan this week.
In
London, Assistant Secretary Shapiro met with senior officials on a wide
range of political-military issues, including counter-piracy and
further expansion of security cooperation through the new U.S.-U.K.
Defense Trade Cooperation Treaty, which entered into force earlier this
year. This treaty recognizes and supports the longstanding special
relationship between the two nations by facilitating industry
collaboration and innovation, allowing American and British troops to
get the best technology in the fastest way possible to meet shared
security challenges.
In Baghdad, Assistant
Secretary Shapiro met with senior officials, highlighting our ongoing
commitment to developing a long-term cooperative bilateral security
relationship through training and defense trade.
In
Amman, Assistant Secretary Shapiro held consultations on a wide range
of political-military issues, including ongoing efforts to further
enhance partnerships with a longstanding regional partner in
peacekeeping, humanitarian demining, border security, and regional
security issues.
If you're not getting it, there is a reason Shaprio went to Baghdad. Refer to those two sentences from Tim Arango.
Turning to the continued violence, AP reports
a Baghdad roadside bombing claimed the lives of 2 police officers with
two more left injured, a Baghdad market bombing claimed 2 lives and left
seven injured and yet anoteher Baghdad market bombing claimed 1 life
and left six people injured, Alsumaria adds that an Abu Saida bombing (Diyala Province) claimed the life of 1 farmer and an Abu Sir bombing (also Diyala Province) left one Iraqi solider injured. All Iraq News notes that, just north of Mosul, a police officer and his son were attacked leaving the police officer dead and his son injured. AFP adds
that 1 truck driver was shot dead in Baghdad and that 2 people were
shot dead in Muqdadiyah "in separate incidents by gunmen using silenced
weapons."
In addition, Alsumaria reports
Turkish warplanes bombed Dohuk Province last night for approximately
two hours. Citing the office of the PUK (Iraqi President Jalal
Talabani's political party) as its source, All Iraq News notes that the bombings began at approximately one this morning (Iraq time). Aaron Hess (International Socialist Review) described the PKK in 2008,
"The PKK emerged in 1984 as a major force in response to Turkey's
oppression of its Kurdish population. Since the late 1970s, Turkey has
waged a relentless war of attrition that has killed tens of thousands of
Kurds and driven millions from their homes. The Kurds are the world's
largest stateless population -- whose main population concentration
straddles Turkey, Iraq, Iran, and Syria -- and have been the victims of
imperialist wars and manipulation since the colonial period. While
Turkey has granted limited rights to the Kurds in recent years in order
to accommodate the European Union, which it seeks to join, even these
are now at risk."
The latest bombing raids follow the objection to the bombings by some in Nouri's Baghdad-based government and the one-year renewal of the bombing authorization by the Turkish Parlament. Such a vote grants legal authorization only within Turkey. The legal justification for the raids outside is the existing agreement that Iraq and Turkey signed a few years back giving authorization to these raids. This agreement has not been rescidned even though Nouri has been critizing the raids in recent weeks. Trend News Agency notes that MP Iskander "Witwit said that the Iraqi parliament is considering the issue of cancelling the agreement about the presence of Turkish troops in Iraq signed earlier between Turkey and Iraq." Vestnik informs that Baghdad wants "forces to the Turkish border" in the belief that this will stop the aerial bombings. And not only are things tense between the Baghdad-based government and the Ankara-based government, now the US Ambassador to Turkey has made comments that may force the Turkish Prime Minister to 'get tough' at a time when it should be obvious that military action does not solve the issue of disenfranchising the Kurds. Hurriyet Daily News reports that the opposition parties in Turkey are bringing up the comments made by the US Ambassador and implying that Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a puppet of the United States:
The latest bombing raids follow the objection to the bombings by some in Nouri's Baghdad-based government and the one-year renewal of the bombing authorization by the Turkish Parlament. Such a vote grants legal authorization only within Turkey. The legal justification for the raids outside is the existing agreement that Iraq and Turkey signed a few years back giving authorization to these raids. This agreement has not been rescidned even though Nouri has been critizing the raids in recent weeks. Trend News Agency notes that MP Iskander "Witwit said that the Iraqi parliament is considering the issue of cancelling the agreement about the presence of Turkish troops in Iraq signed earlier between Turkey and Iraq." Vestnik informs that Baghdad wants "forces to the Turkish border" in the belief that this will stop the aerial bombings. And not only are things tense between the Baghdad-based government and the Ankara-based government, now the US Ambassador to Turkey has made comments that may force the Turkish Prime Minister to 'get tough' at a time when it should be obvious that military action does not solve the issue of disenfranchising the Kurds. Hurriyet Daily News reports that the opposition parties in Turkey are bringing up the comments made by the US Ambassador and implying that Recep Tayyip Erdogan is a puppet of the United States:
"Unfortunately,
Mr. Prime Minister is the leader of a government that fought against
terror to the extent that the United States allowed him to do," Haluk
Koç, spokesperson of the Republican People's Party (CHP) told reporters
at a weekly press conference yesterday. "He is not a ruling prime
minister but is being ruled."
Ambassador Frank Ricciardone had said that Washington suggested to Turkey the implementation of the TTPs (tactics, techniques and procedure, a means of multi-disciplinary military organization), that paved the way for the killing of Osama bin Laden, the architect of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, during an Oct. 16 meeting in Ankara with the bureau chiefs of news channels.
"We have made proposals to Turkey to provide more than we do. We have [offered] to share the TTPs [with them]. I will not enter into the details of our secret works with your government, but the Turkish government is carrying out its works on the basis of its laws and experiences," Ricciardone said.
Ambassador Frank Ricciardone had said that Washington suggested to Turkey the implementation of the TTPs (tactics, techniques and procedure, a means of multi-disciplinary military organization), that paved the way for the killing of Osama bin Laden, the architect of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, during an Oct. 16 meeting in Ankara with the bureau chiefs of news channels.
"We have made proposals to Turkey to provide more than we do. We have [offered] to share the TTPs [with them]. I will not enter into the details of our secret works with your government, but the Turkish government is carrying out its works on the basis of its laws and experiences," Ricciardone said.
Is
the US attempting to force the Turkish government into more violence?
Is that what this exposure is about? Ricciardone as an ambassador dates
back to the Bully Boy Bush era, he's been around enough to know what
you do say intentionally and what you don't. It appears he either had a
serious lapse of judgment or else it is the US government's goal to up
the violence in northern Iraq. This is a big story in the Turkish
press. Hurriyet Daily News has several stories on it including this one which notes:
If
Francis Ricciardone, the U.S. Ambassador to Ankara, had not revealed
that there had been a secret offer to the Turkish government to have an
"Anti-bin Laden" type joint operation against Murat Karayılan and other
military leaders of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) based in the north of Iraq, it would possibly have remained a secret for many more years.
Responding to questions from Turkish journalists, Ricciardone said on Oct. 16 that the U.S. had offered the Turkish government its state of the art military technology to hunt down the military leaders of the PKK. However, the Turkish government declined, saying it would continue fighting the PKK "on the basis of its laws and experiences."
When asked the same day, Prime Minister Tayyip Erdoğan confirmed that he had turned down the offer on a rather technical basis. "Bin Laden was caught in a house" he said, recalling the U.S. commando raid on a house near the Pakistani capital Islamabad on May 2, 2011. "But the struggle here is in mountainous geography". (We can assume that the offer was made within the last year-and-a-half.)
Responding to questions from Turkish journalists, Ricciardone said on Oct. 16 that the U.S. had offered the Turkish government its state of the art military technology to hunt down the military leaders of the PKK. However, the Turkish government declined, saying it would continue fighting the PKK "on the basis of its laws and experiences."
When asked the same day, Prime Minister Tayyip Erdoğan confirmed that he had turned down the offer on a rather technical basis. "Bin Laden was caught in a house" he said, recalling the U.S. commando raid on a house near the Pakistani capital Islamabad on May 2, 2011. "But the struggle here is in mountainous geography". (We can assume that the offer was made within the last year-and-a-half.)
The
region did not need this. It was either a huge bungle or the US
government is attempting to sew unrest. Just yesterday, Azad Amin (Kurdish Globe) was issuing cautions and warnings in an article entitled, "Disaster awaits Kurds without National Strategy."
The US Ambassador's remarks are like playing with matches at a gasoline
pump. The White House needs to be asked to explain their strategy
towards and relationship with the Turkish government and how the
amassador's remarks fit into that grand-scale vision. Today's Zaman notes
that Nechirvan Barzani, prime minister of the Kurdistan Regional
Government, has told the BBC that warfare will not solve the problem
and "So, the critical question is 'Does Turkey want to solve the issue?'
If it does, it has to sit down at the negotiating table with the PKK."
In other news, a new poll can be seen as an indictment of Nouri al-Maliki's six years as prime minister. Al Mada reports
a survey of Iraqis has found that they have little faith in their
government. Whether it's the 55% that does not have faith in the
security forces, or the 61% who believe that equal rights (regardless of
religious beliefs -- this isn't about gender equality) are very low in
Iraq or 60% who believe the government doesn't treat citizens fairly, or
the 50% who believe they will be harmed if they criticize the
government, or the 54% who think the judiciary lacks independence, these
results read like an indictment of the last six years (the US made
Nouri prime minister in April of 2006, after they rejected Iraqi MPs'
choice of Ibrahim al-Jaafari). The disastification comes as All Iraq News reports a protest in Najaf today over the reduction in hours of electricity.
Yesterday, Sinan al-Shabibi, the governor of Iraq's Central Bank, was ousted and replaced with the Nouri-friendly Abdul-Baset Turki. This follows Nouri's 2011 attempt to insist that he had control over the Central Bank (he doesn't). AP notes, "The governor, Sinan al-Shabibi, is seen as a politically independent economist who has led the bank since shortly after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003." Al Mada notes criticism from Moqtada al-Sadr and Iraqiya over the move and that some fear -- since other members of the Central Bank's board are being investigated -- this is part of a move by Nouri to take control by appointing State of Law-ers to all the posts (State of Law is Nouri's political slate). MP Naajiba Najib serves on Parliament's Finance Committee and tells All Iraq News that the alleged irregularities did not rise to the leve of firing and that the move damages Iraq's reputation on the international stage. Iraqiya MP Qusay al-Abadi tells All Iraq News that the move was premature and damaging.
Not a good news cycle for Nouri. From yesterday's snapshot, "Staying with the political, Wael Grace (Al Mada) reports the other political blocs are accusing Nouri's State of Law of preventing progress on proposed legislation due to a walk out State of Law staged. Iraqiya says State of Law's goal Monday was to disable the Parliament with their walk out. " Today Mohammad Sabah (Al Mada) reports that Parliament's Services Committee is accusing State of Law of blocking a vote on the Telecommunications and Information Law.
While Nouri's reputation diminishes further, All Iraq News reports that KRG President Massoud Barzani, Iraqiya leader Ayad Allawi and Iraqi National Congress leader Ahmed Chalabi met to discuss the political crisis and propose solutions with all agreeing the Erbil Agreement needs to be implemented.
Yesterday, Sinan al-Shabibi, the governor of Iraq's Central Bank, was ousted and replaced with the Nouri-friendly Abdul-Baset Turki. This follows Nouri's 2011 attempt to insist that he had control over the Central Bank (he doesn't). AP notes, "The governor, Sinan al-Shabibi, is seen as a politically independent economist who has led the bank since shortly after the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003." Al Mada notes criticism from Moqtada al-Sadr and Iraqiya over the move and that some fear -- since other members of the Central Bank's board are being investigated -- this is part of a move by Nouri to take control by appointing State of Law-ers to all the posts (State of Law is Nouri's political slate). MP Naajiba Najib serves on Parliament's Finance Committee and tells All Iraq News that the alleged irregularities did not rise to the leve of firing and that the move damages Iraq's reputation on the international stage. Iraqiya MP Qusay al-Abadi tells All Iraq News that the move was premature and damaging.
Not a good news cycle for Nouri. From yesterday's snapshot, "Staying with the political, Wael Grace (Al Mada) reports the other political blocs are accusing Nouri's State of Law of preventing progress on proposed legislation due to a walk out State of Law staged. Iraqiya says State of Law's goal Monday was to disable the Parliament with their walk out. " Today Mohammad Sabah (Al Mada) reports that Parliament's Services Committee is accusing State of Law of blocking a vote on the Telecommunications and Information Law.
While Nouri's reputation diminishes further, All Iraq News reports that KRG President Massoud Barzani, Iraqiya leader Ayad Allawi and Iraqi National Congress leader Ahmed Chalabi met to discuss the political crisis and propose solutions with all agreeing the Erbil Agreement needs to be implemented.
Back to the US, Trina praised Brian Montopoli's "Do the debates unfairly shut out third parties?" (CBS News) last night and she was right to praise it. Here he is reporting on 1980's third party candidate John Anderson:
In an interview, Anderson said the debates are now "pretty well locked into the maintenance of a two-party system."
"Very
clearly, the present system is wrong in my humble judgment in that it
excludes the possibility that there could rise up a reasonable and
probably candidate from someone other than one of the major parties," he
said.
Brian's written a very
important article exploring the factors that decide the debates
currently. On third parties, do not miss this interview with Cindy Sheehan.
(Time permitting, we'll note some of it tomorrow.) The Green Party
presidential ticket (Jill Stein and Cheri Honkala) were at the New York
debate last night and arrested for attempting to participate. Kimberly and Ian Wilder were there and they have photos at their site On The Wilder Side. Robert Naiman has an important piece on the Drone War at Huffington Post. And personal note, Cedric read your wife's post from last night. I hate it when I know things I'm not supposed to. Ann, if he doesn't figure it out, call me. And _____.
