podesta-emails
-----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----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=5a6T
-----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK-----
*Main Topics:* McCain attacks Obama's dedication to the nation, McCan't keep
the time line straight, McCain struggles for spotlight
*Summary of Shift: *Osama Bin Laden's driver goes to trial. Dolly wreaks
havoc on Texas. Bush blames Wall St for economy; calls it 'drunk.' China
reports that it holds sincere wishes to talk with the Dalai Lama's envoys.
House passes a bill that offers nearly $3 billion to help people save their
homes and Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae. Speculation about whom McCain will
choose as a running mate continues. San Franciscans continue to push to name
sewage plant after George W. Bush. Barack Obama's time in Israel grabbed a
significant amount of airtime.
Highlights
1) CBS: McCain is unapologetic about his accusations that Obama would
lose a war to win a campaign
2) McCain's chronology mistake
a. MSNBC: Pfotenhauer claims McCain's criticism of the Iraq pre-surge
strategy resulted in a change of Defense Secretary
b. MSNBC: Olbermann attacks McCain mistake
c. MSNBC: Kagan dismisses the McCain mistake
3) CNN: Dana Bash summarizes McCain's attention-grabbing tactics
No clips
1) MSNBC: Olbermann reports that the McCain camp says Obama is not
dedicated to preventing another holocaust
2) CNN: Jack Cafferty asks, 'How much confidence do you have in John
McCain's ability to deal with Iraq?' amidst discussion of McCain's Iraq
timeline error.
3) FNC: E. D. Hill asks, 'How did media love shift from McCain to Obama?'
4) CNN: Robert Zimmerman calls McCain's appearance with Bush Sr. 'a
political rendition of grumpy old man.'
5) CNN: Ed Rollins: 'McCain had a terrible week. He should have
disappeared and not tried to compete.'
6) MSNBC: Giuliani discusses McCain's possible VP choices on Hardball
with Chris Matthews
Clips
Highlight #1
*McCain Lobs Attacks Overseas at Barack Obama *(ABC 07/23/08 6:42pm)
CHARLES GIBSON: Barack Obama may be out of the country but he's not been out
of range from attacks by John McCain. Day after day the republican candidate
has challenged Obama's domestic policies and being quick to point out his
inexperience in foreign affairs. [...]
DAVID WRIGHT: Senator I want to start by asking you about an extraordinary
statement you just made in that town hall meeting.
JOHN MCCAIN: So apparently Senator Obama would rather lose a war in order to
win a campaign.
WRIGHT: That's pretty strong language. Do you really think he's that craven?
MCCAIN: I think that it's very clear that Senator Obama has refused to
recognize that the strategy in Iraq called the surge has succeeded.
WRIGHT: But what you seem to be saying there is that it's all about personal
ambition for him and not about what he honestly thinks is right for the
country.
MCCAIN: I do not believe that any objective observer can conclude that the
surge did not work and he should know better if he wants to be
commander-in-chief and certainly behave differently as far as our presence
and our strategy in Iraq.
WRIGHT: But it sometimes seems, as an outside observer, that both of you
guys sometimes get stuck in the past. Senator Obama's kind of stuck in 2003
and whether the war was a good idea in the first place and you kind of seem
stuck sometimes in 2007 and whether the surge was the right strategy.
Shouldn't this debate really be about the future and where we go from here?
MCCAIN: Oh, you're exactly right. It's all about the future and the future,
in my view, we have succeeded, but it's still fragile.
WRIGHT: You yourself have said--
MCCAIN: *The point is that we are responsible for our records.* I was right.
Senator Obama was wrong. So therefore, *I think that I have more credibility
on what the future should be as opposed to Senator Obama* who, if he' had
his way, we would be very likely be involved in a wider war today.
WRIGHT: Charlie Gibson today sat down with Senator Obama in Jerusalem and,
as you can imagine, they talked a lot about the Middle East peace process.
How would that initiative look different in a McCain administration than it
would in an Obama administration?
MCCAIN: My policy and support for the state of Israel has been very
consistent. I visited there many, many times. I would be personally engaged
in the efforts to bring about a peaceful settlement between the state of
Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
WRIGHT: You've been touring here in the states, had the domestic states all
to yourself and yet, we're talking an awful lot about foreign policy. It
seems like the narrative of this campaign is being driven by whatever
Senator Obama does and that you're left to kind of react to that.
MCCAIN: It may seem like that to you. It doesn't seem like that to me. We're
gettin' very good crowds. We're doin' well in the polls. So I'm very happy
with where we are.
Highlight #2
*Pfotenhauer: Correct Chronology Does Disservice to US and Iraqi Military;
McCain's Challenge on Iraq Strategy Resulted in Change of Sec. of
Defense*(MSNBC 07/23/08 2:50pm)
ALEX WITT: […] When it comes to the war in Iraq, John McCain continues to
repeat two lines of attack against Barack Obama. [He] charges that his […]
rival is flat out wrong when it comes to a timetable for withdrawing troops
from Iraq and McCain accuses Barack Obama of being willing to lose a war in
order to win a political campaign. […]
Let's talk about the interview last night during which Senator McCain said
that the surge helped with the Sunni or Anbar awakening. However, in fact,
if you look at the historical details […] the surge […] began after that
Anbar awakening yet the campaign is still sticking by the senator's remarks.
[Witt reads campaign statement about error in interview.] Do you agree with
that?
NANCY PFOTENHAUER: I do agree with it and it's not just our opinion. If you
talk to General Petraeus or […] other military commanders or, if you even
talk to your colleague Joe Scarborough, they'll say there is no way the
awakening could have been successful if it weren't for the surge. The surge
effort is what made that possible.
*Barack Obama and his supporters can try to litigate what came first* *or
what was crucial but that's really an attempt to undermine the significance
and the impact of the American troops and their sacrifice and their effort
and that's something that does a disservice to the American military, men
and women that put your lives on the line as well as the Iraqis forces who
put their lives on the line, in order to fight back al-Qaeda.*
WITT: […] when you hear details […] and you see, 'Oh there's going to be a
question about the timing here,' and you know the media is going to get on
this to try to get the facts out correctly, how does that make you feel? How
do you approach then, dealing with things?
PFOTENHAUER: […] this is a 24-7 job, as you know […] we have a candidate who
is extraordinarily well versed, in these matters, and […] he's been on the
record for years, if you will, on them and so he knows a tremendous amount
about what's happened on the ground and *he has the judgment and the proof
is before the world right now*.
He has the judgment to make the right call like he did when *he went into
Iraq, came back, challenged his own president, demanded a change in strategy
*. *It even resulted in the in a change of the secretary of defense*, in
order to put his country's interest above his political interests and get to
a successful place in Iraq where we can now, all of us, be talking about
victory, if you will, rather than advocating the withdrawal and defeat that
Senator Obama did.
WITT: […] I am totally out of time, but, if you can give me a yes or no
answer on this. […] Will John McCain announce his VP choice this week […]?
PFOTENHAUER: I don't know.
*
**Olbermann Attacks McCain's History and Definition of the Surge in
Iraq *(MSNBC
07/23/08 08:04pm)
KEITH OLBERMANN: Which came first the surge or the surge? Apparently the
surge did. […] Senator McCain who yesterday wanted you to believe that the
surge predated the Sunni awakening in Anwar, now wants you to believe that
the surge started before President Bush said it did. If that is not
confusing enough, the presumptive Republican nominee would also have you
believe that the surge and the Anbar awakening, and the counterinsurgency in
Iraq are all the very same thing. In front of the cheese case, at the king
super market […] the Senator tried to clear up any confusion of when he
believes the surge actually began. […] It is worth noting that the vast
majority of surge troops went to Baghdad not to Anbar, and *the same Sheik
that MCCain claimed to Katie Couric that the surge was able to protect was
himself assassinated in September 2007 when the surge was at its peak*. But
let us return to our cheese case […]
JOHN MCCAIN: *First of all a surge is really a counterinsurgency strategy
and it's made up of a number of components*. And this counterinsurgency
was initiated, to some degree, by Colonel McFarland in Anbar province,
relatively on his own. When I visited with him in December of 2006, he had
already initiated that strategy in Remadi by going in and clearing in
holding in certain places. That is a counterinsurgency. And he told me at
that time he believed that that strategy, which is, "the surge", part of the
surge, would be successful. So, then, of course, it was very clear that we
needed additional troops in order to carry out this insurgency.
*Prior to that counterinsurgency, prior to that, they had been going into
places killing people or not killing people and then withdrawing* and the
new counterinsurgency surge entailed going in and clearing a holding which
Colonel McFarland had already started doing. Then, of course, later on there
were additional troops and General Petraeus has said that the surge would
not have worked and the Anbar awakening would not have taken place
successfully if they hadn't have had an increase in the number of troops. *So,
I'm not sure, frankly, that people really understand that a surge is part of
a counterinsurgency strategy, which means going in, clearing holding,
building a better life, providing services to the people and then clearly a
part of that, an important part of that was additional troops *to help
ensure the safety of the Sheiks and to gain, regain control of Remadi, which
was a very bloody fight and then the surge continued to succeed in that
counterinsurgency.
REPORTER: when you say surge then you're not referring to the one President
Bush initiated, you're saying it goes back several months before then.
MCCAIN: Yes. And again, because of my visits to Iraq, I was briefed by
Colonel McFarland in December of 2006 where he outlined what was succeeding
there in *this counterinsurgency strategy, which we all know of now of now
as the surge.*
OLBERMANN: So, it was a secret surge. […]
CHRISTOPHER HAYES: This is really remarkable, right. This is a central tent
pole for McCain's vision for Iraq, what he is running on. Yesterday he
portrayed the fact that he does not understand what it is. Okay. *They
didn't choose the name the surge because it sounded cool, they weren't
naming a rock band, right? They chose the surge because it referred to a
surge or increase in troops, full stop*. It is distinctive from everything
else that happened in Iraq […]
OLBERMANN: So Senator Surge who is now Senator Secret Surge, to push back
against criticism that he didn't know when the surge began, he manages to
make this seem like he doesn't even understand what a surge is or what this
surge was. […]
*Fred Kagan Attempts to Dismiss McCain's Misunderstanding on the History of
the Surge* (MSNBC 07/23/08 08:04pm)
MIKA BRZEZINSKI: […] focusing on domestic issues after making a big gaffe on
the timeline of the Iraq war, I don't know if it was a big gaffe but it
happened. During a national TV interview, Senator McCain was asked about
Obama's stance that the surge was only one factor that led to reduced
violence. Senator Obama has also attributed improved security to the Sunni
Awakening and the Shiite government's crackdown on the militias. This was
John McCain's answer:
JOHN MCCAIN: Colonel McFarlane was contacted by one of the major Sunni
Sheiks, because of the surge we were able to go out and protect that Sheik
and others and that began the Anwar Awakening. I mean that's just a matter
of history.
BRZEZINSKI: *Here's the problem, the events Colonel Sean McFarlane was
involved in pre-dated the surge. Reports say he wasn't even in the Anwar
province at the time*. […] The McCain campaign has responded by saying: "
Senator McCain is correct. As General Petraeus has made clear, the surge is
the reason why the Anbar Awakening was so successful in tearing up Al Qaeda.
The surge strategy that was supported by John McCain and opposed by Barack
Obama was responsible for the reduction in violence we have seen over the
last year and a half. " *What do you make of this sort of timeline of
events in terms of what John McCain is saying about the surge and what he
attributes it to and does it match reality?*
FRED KAGAN: It absolutely does match reality. There is no question that you
would not have had the Awakening take form and expand in Anwar, and you
certainly would not have had the Awakening spread around into Baghdad and
south of Baghdad and throughout the country without the surge forces. And
there is no question about that. […] *I spoke with one of the very
prominent Sunni Sheiks in Anwar and I ran this very question by him and I
said you know there are some people that are saying the Awakening happened
independently of the surge and he said "what idiot said that".*
BRZEZINSKI: Ok I want to cover a lot of ground with you if I can. Columnist
Robert Novak is now saying that he was used by the McCain campaign. Can you
weigh in on this; Novak is now questioning the so-called scoop that a top
McCain aide gave him about him potentially announcing his Vice Presidential
pick this week.
KAGAN*: No I'm not a McCain spokesman. I am an expert on Iraq and I am happy
to talk to you about Iraq issues. […]*
BRZEZINSKI: What do you make over this gaffe, over the timing of the Sunni
or the Anwar Awakening?
KAGAN:*I think that this is a trivial, I think gaffe is even too strong. I've
spoken with John McCain; John McCain understands the timeline and the cause
and events very clearly. What troubles me is that we are in here parsing
very precise words that Senator McCain might have said* and we are missing
the fact that Senator Obama's description of what went down in Iraq in the
last 18 months is just 180 degrees wrong. It's just wrong. […] So I think
focusing on this question of did McCain get himself tangled up in a sentence
or not is so microscopic an issue compared to the absolute false of the
vision of the last 18 months that Senator Obama and his supporters have been
describing that its hard to for me to believe that we are even having this
discussion.
[…]
ANDREA MITCHELL: […] What can the international community do to stop Iran
from coming a Nuclear power short of an attack?
KAGAN: *Well there is nothing that we can do short of an attack to force
Iran to give up it's nuclear program*. And so if Senator Obama is actually
serious in saying that he will not tolerate a nuclear arms race, at the end
of the day the only way you can make sure that doesn't happen is with an
attack. There are a variety of thinks that you can do short of an attack
and hope that it will work but hope is not a method here. We've got a very
much of an audacity of hope going on […]
Highlight #3
*Dana Bash Takes a Look at McCain's Attempts to Grab Your Attention* (CNN
07/23/08 7:23pm)
LOU DOBBS: Senator McCain today strongly criticized Senator Obama for
supporting a congressional ban on offshore oil drilling. *McCain said crude
oil prices dropped sharply after President Bush ended the executive ban on
offshore drilling and Senator McCain is absolutely correct.* Crude oil
prices have plunged more than $20 a barrel since the president lifted that
ban on the 14th of July. Crude oil prices today closing just below $125 a
barrel. […]
DANA BASH: Call this 'counter-programming.'
JOHN MCCAIN: We know that Americans are sitting around the kitchen table
tonight, figuring out whether they can keep their home or not.
BASH: While Barack Obama is overseas John McCain is trying to convince
voters back home he's working to ease their pain. He staged a photo-op, food
shopping with a Pennsylvania family, going out of his way to show and tell
he gets it.
MCCAIN: The price of a gallon of milk just went over $4 a gallon. Renee said
that that was the highest she had ever seen it.
BASH: At a town hall he even suggested the price of oil is down because of a
controversial White House decision he supported, lifting the federal ban on
offshore drilling.
MCCAIN: The President of the United States announced […] a week or so ago
that we would be lifting the moratorium on offshore drilling. The price of
oil dropped ten dollars! We need to drill offshore!
BASH: But talking pocketbook politics is only half of McCain's
double-barreled strategy while Obama is abroad. The other, trying to keep
Obama from bolstering his foreign policy credentials this week by pounding
away on his Iraq plans.
MCCAIN: He is in favor of unconditional withdrawal. An unconditional
withdrawal, my friends, without paying attention to the facts on the ground
could lead to our failure.
BASH: Republicans frustrated with Obama's overseas spotlight are trying to
be clever in getting their message out. The Republican National Committee
will run these radio ads in Berlin while Obama is there.
RNC RADIO AD: When our military needed necessary resources, Barack Obama
failed to stand up.
BASH: But, not that Berlin. The towns of Berlin in three battleground
states, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, and Pennsylvania and *the McCain campaign
is resorting to sarcasm to get attention, handing out fake French press
passes, dubbing the McCain media, 'The JV Squad, "Left Behind to Report in
America."'*
Another Way McCain advisors know they'll get attention is to tease the media
on McCain's search for a running mate. The plan was to do that by going to
New Orleans to meet with someone on the VP buzz list, Louisiana governor,
Bobbi Jindal, but it didn't happen. The trip was cancelled because of bad
weather.
--
Jacob Roberts
PAO
208.420.3470 (c)
--~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~
You received this message because you are subscribed to the "big campaign" group.
To post to this group, send to [email protected]
To unsubscribe, send email to [email protected]
E-mail [email protected] with questions or concerns
This is a list of individuals. It is not affiliated with any group or organization.
-~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
ℹ️ Document Details
SHA-256
aa58c206b6c8c1e089a5c8dc17277f04345fa1df7c583c197a9feabf75a78028
Dataset
podesta-emails
Document Type
email
Comments 0