On "Fox & Friends" this morning, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs was interviewed by host Gretchen Carlson and claimed Barack Obama had said all along that the surge would improve the security situation on the ground:
GRETCHEN CARLSON, CO-HOST, "FOX & FRIENDS": Will President Obama recognize the success of the surge put in place by President Bush tonight?
ROBERT GIBBS, WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY: There's no doubt that first and foremost, that the men and women in our uniform and the sacrifices that I think we are all in awe of -- the president will log today at Fort Bliss when he stops there as well as in his speech -- I don't think there's any doubt, as candidate Obama said, adding 20,000 men and women into Iraq would improve the security situation. I think along with a series of other things…
CARLSON: Candidate Obama said that?
GIBBS: He did.
CARLSON: Excuse me, back in 2007, he said he was against the surge.
GIBBS: No, he said he was against the surge. He said there was no doubt that adding 20,000 men and women would improve the security situation, but as we know, our efforts in Iraq weren't going to be done simple militarily, Gretchen.
Robert Gibbs is misstating the facts here. On January 10, 2007, Obama predicted the surge would actually increase violence.
OBAMA: I am not persuaded that 20,000 additional troops in Iraq is going to solve the sectarian violence there. In fact, I think it will do the reverse. I think it takes pressure off the Iraqis to try to arrive at the political accommodation that every observer believes is the ultimate solution to the problems we face there. So I am going to actively oppose the president’s proposal. I don't doubt his sincerity when he says he thinks this is the best approach, but I think he is wrong. And I think the American people believe he is wrong. (NBC News)
In fact, a simple online search shows Senator Barack Obama repeatedly predicted additional troops in Iraq would not improve the security situation in Iraq. Do you think he’ll thank former President Bush tonight?
Sounds Like Another One Of Those " I Was Against It Before I Was For It" Thingys Libs Use Only In Reverse.
ReplyDeleteChanging A Position I Can Understand Saying I Feel Strongly Both Ways Is Lack Of Leadership. Nobama Would Do Better To Admit Change And Citizens Would For The Most Part Understand The Switch But Denying His Earlier Stance Is At Best Weak, Citizens Are Not Stupid And See The BS.