So, Obama's Priority is War. Not jobs, not the deficit, not

[grahamhgreen]

corporate corruption, not Wall Street reform, not CEO pay and the disparity between the rich and poor, not 'fixing' Obamacare, not helping grannies, not transforming to a green economy, not ending the costly trade agreements.

No, he's finally gonna stand up for something:

Perpetual War


Talk about screwed up priorities! Wow.

[Victor_c3]

1. The only major events that seem to be remembered in history are wars

So, if you want your name to last forever in the history books, wage a decent war with lots of killing and maiming and you're in! I guess Obama is just more interested in doing something that'll be remembered for eternity than doing something that'll actually move our country forward.

Hey, I think that'd be a great campaign motto. "Forward". Somebody should run with that...

[ThirdWayCowplop]

3. So what War did MLK start?

[Victor_c3]

6. His name is only 50ish years old

In 1,000 years will more people be able to tell you who Hitler was or MLK? I'll put my money on Hitler.

[sabrina 1]

15. So is it better to be remembered as a mass murderer than not remembered at all? Is that the

question?

The answer to that question is simple.

[Victor_c3]

42. It depends on the person and what their motives are

I'm not saying that it is better to be remembered as a murderer, I'm just saying that it is the case. Eras and major shifts in history are marked by wars and mass killings.

Now, if Obama was actually trying to be remembered for something positive or for actual progress would our peace prize winning president be fighting as hard as he is for a war or would he be pushing for something like socialized medicine?

I hate to admit this, but Obama has been a huge disappointment to me. The major things I hated bush for, Obama seems to be perpetuating or expanding. I'm sure he is better than the McCain and Romney alternatives, but only marginally and I'm still seriously disappointed nonetheless.

[mazzarro]

49. True That! -- n/t

[Phlem]

101. I hear you brother.

I'm right there with ya.

-p

[JDPriestly]

114. So, Aristotle and Socrates and Jesus and St. Francis and Mary and Martin Luther and

Galileo and Da Vinci and Jane Austin and Charles Dickens and Bach and Beethoven and Pasteur and those who are creative and curious and innovative like Thomas Edison or those who inspire our best values just don't count?

I don't remember the names of the political leaders of Greece that well, but I do remember the names of those who wrote the great literature and histories of Greece. So, may I disagree with you?

I agree that Obama is something of a disappointment. I thought he would be far more progressive in his second term. Instead, he seems to be acquiescing to the pressure from the right. It's really a shame. He could be accomplishing far more if he stood boldly for positive things and stopped just reacting to the Republican negativity. I think he has tried at points, but he always seems to get lost in his defense strategies.

[HardTimes99]

18. That is a really depressing prediction (but unfortunately possible) - nt

[n2doc]

11. Or for that matter, Martin Luther n/t

[HardTimes99]

19. Who was "Marin (sic) Luther" again? Was he the

person responsible for naming Marin County, CA?

[n2doc]

22. Autofill got me n/t

[rhett o rick]

91. Why dont you get brave and make a statement in lieu of using innuendo via question? nm

[Scootaloo]

100. Well, he didn't start a war, but a war finished him

[Vinnie From Indy]

20. Jesus would disagree!

Cheers!

[HardTimes99]

24. Well, there are those of us who remember fondly that little temper tantrum

with the money changers.

[warrant46]

61. It was the "Wrath of God" on a smaller scale

Rather than the larger temper tantrum, which resulted in the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah

[A Simple Game]

46. President Obama is already going into the history books.

I would hope he could add some positive passages to his page in history instead of a war.

[jakeXT]

62. It was the motto of Erich Honecker in East Germany "Always forwards, never backwards.” /nt

[mattclearing]

2. You could say he's trying to create jobs in the only sector Republicans support. n/t

[warrant46]

21. And Hillary according to the morning news is about to throw her support

for this non Iraq idea. For her sake I hope the "Idea" works out for both of them, because if it doesn't there will be hell to pay.

My picture of Iraq will always be Graner and his crew grinning over a few dead corpses

[HardTimes99]

26. My picture of Iraq: Bush standing under the "Mission Accomplished" banner. I go

in for irony and Pyrrhic victories and the like.

[warrant46]

33. That picture also comes to mind as the

Drivel of an idiot who is still drunk over his accomplishment

Hell the clown even dressed up as a Warrior



And promptly forgot like a "novice" to release the leg straps of his parachute harness so---

we could admire his "junk" in a "full frontal" shot

Any one who has ever flown aircraft with ejection seats was not impressed by his "prowess"

[HardTimes99]

27. That, my friend, is a brutal take-down - nt

[mattclearing]

111. Glad to be of service. ;) n/t

[Democracyinkind]

4. Here's me hoping that this isn't true.

It sure looks that way, though.

[LuvNewcastle]

5. He's pulling out all the stops.

I don't think he's been more determined to get the approval of Congress and the public. Some are saying that he's going to do it even if Congress votes against it. He's risking impeachment over this. I think the whole thing stinks to high heaven.

[HardTimes99]

28. Cali said it best a couple days ago: Obama is beaching his presidency upon the

rocks of Syria.

[LuvNewcastle]

41. That's eloquent; leave it to Cali.

[John2]

32. It is not just Obama,

but his real constituents seems to be Wall Street, corporations and the neocons. The Jewish Lobby supports this War also. I don't see the media criticising it either, they seem to be criticising him for not getting the American people behind this War. This War will help the groups, that I have named in this country. Obama even tried to get CPI, and claimed the American people have to accept compromise on Entitlements. I think President Obama consideres himself, part of the privileged and elite in this country. John McCain and some of the media pundits talk as if it was a mistake for him to go to Congress. If you listened to some of them, representatives have no right vote as their constituents want.

I think this is their War and not mine. To be frank, I don't believe their evidence either and think they could murder people for their own selfish interests too. People think these people are not capable of lying and even murdering innocent people to get what they want, but it has been shown to happen numerous times. I don't think their main interests were the use of chemical weapons but it was a ploy for an excuse to carry out a War in Syria, that Americans wouldn't agree with. Putin just called John Kerry a bald faced liar.

CNN over the weekend challenged a California representative who decided to go along with her constituents, and CNN tried to use General Pretrateus as credibility for an attack on Syria. Remember the same Petraeus in charge of the CIA during Benghazi. Why are the American people soft and want call a spade a spade? Most of the people running our Government are liars. It is a corrupt Government but Americans don't want to face the truth about their Government. They are afraid of being called a traitor. Well, I'm not. I think these people have betrayed us, and many need to be remove from politics and sent back to civilian life. Kerry, McCain, and Graham should all be retired. I hope the Democratic Party gets some new blood to challenge the old establishment. Obama is turning out to be a big disappointment. I'm a Black man and am not afraid to say so. I voted for this man twice and believed in him. I'm a veteran too. To be clear, I despise the Allies he choose to walk with and definately despise the Syrian Rebels. I'm more offended by their atrocities and I don't like a traitor like Idriss. As a soldier, I would never take orders from that coward.

[Dustlawyer]

39. We fight to take away the control the shadow government has over our politicians!

The way to do this is massive protests for only 1 issue, COMPLETE CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM (CCFR)!!! This would include Publicly Funded Elections. We take away the bribe money! We fight until we win. Then we bust up Wall Street Banks and the media conglomerates. We enact stiff penalties for the MIC in their contracts with the government. Use the corporate death penalty on corporations like BP. You would see many of our problems get solved because the Representatives would again be responsive to the people!

Lets take to the streets!

[dreamnightwind]

85. That's right

and until we pull it off (CCFR), we'll lose far more battles than we win, no matter how hard we try.

It won't be easy, we may even fail, but it's the one fight worth everything we've got.

[LuvNewcastle]

40. I agree that it's not just Obama; he's just the face of

the pro-war crowd. They're all hellbent on doing this, regardless of whether or not we support it. He has been such a disappointment; I have finally lost what little political innocence I had thanks to him. I think a lot of people feel like we do, and it's high time that the people forget some of their differences and work together to stop this madness. If we could just remove corporate influence and big money from our elections and keep our politicians honest, we would be able to fix most of our problems.

[Dustlawyer]

115. You are so right! The Republicans should want the same thing, they can't be happy with

their incumbents either! No one likes a rigged game!

[Carolina]

51. Rather sad

that in 2008, we voted for the anti-war candidate and now this.

BHO has never shown more determination for a cause than he has for this... Yes, it stinks mightily because we, the people will literally pay for this with blood and dollars.

[Alkene]

7. And it's one, two, three,

what are we fighting for?

Don't ask me, I don't give a damn;

Next stop is Viet Nam!

[cali]

8. I don't think perpetual war is his priority

but I do think that perpetual war is where the U.S. finds itself due to many reasons and that Obama is ineffectual at changing the dynamic.

[bvar22]

84. He DOES seem overly fond of the Perpetual WAR POWERS of the Unitary Executive.

That is not quite the same thing as "Perpetual WAR",
but still disturbing.

[dreamnightwind]

86. It's the priority of the people he listens to

MIC and corporate insiders all. The rest are just outside looking in.

[rhett o rick]

92. I think it's beside the point what he thinks. I believe The Powers To Be are "helping"

him make his decisions. Looks to me like the presidency is basically a figurehead.

[Nuclear Unicorn]

9. Dude, those things aren't even front page news anymore

Oh. Hey, wait a minute...

[another_liberal]

10. I have to agree.

I want to believe otherwise, but it is getting harder and harder to find any justification.

[gtar100]

12. If only this message could be communicated to him!

He's the one that needs to hear this more than anyone. I've come to expect politicians to fight for the status quo. I hate it but all the stupid decisions come out of Washington DC like a flood. It's where good ideas go to die. Obama held out great promises but the only things he really passionately fights for are *not* progressive ideals. Someone said earlier it may be because he wants to be remembered in history but I think if he lets another war start under him that is not about self-defense, it will be to his great shame.

He can say whatever he wants but at the end of the day it will be what he does that will define him. And so far his legacy is looking like just another greedy, corporate tool.

[Moostache]

13. Obama broke my heart...

Just like Fredo to Michael Corleone.

He is nothing to me now.
He has thrown in his lot with the enemies of peace and progress. He is just another empty suit doing the bidding of the banks and businesses that will profit from the killing of more innocent people as "collateral damage"...

I don't want to see him and I don't want to know him.
When he comes to pander to the voters, I want to know in advance so that I won't be there.

Biggest. Disappointment. EVER.

[99Forever]

14. We see his true colors...

... shining through.

Been obvious to some of us for a very long time. It's now blatant.

[PATRICK]

16. I think it is more

that this is an area where he can do things without Congress. More interesting that he is still courting them for this too.

That and the ease and success of remote warfare without boots on ground and doing enough to take credit for tipping several revolts in the Arab spring.

As for the rest one does get the impression he has a lot of enthusiasm for the wrong things and little action for the better. It is a very strong impression, as wrong as it might be.

[sabrina 1]

17. Imagine if he had fought this hard for the Public Option, imagine if he had stated that even if

Congress had voted against it, he had the right to overrule them.

What were the arguments back then? 'He's not a king, he's not a dictator'?

Well that argument will be gone IF Congress says no and he says yes, won't it?

[Marr]

55. +1

[leftstreet]

56. +1

[Recursion]

107. Well, given that he doesn't have a war or the public option...

... I'd say the results would be about the same.

[Jester Messiah]

23. So disappointed.

I really wanted to believe he was different. He's not.

[mrchips]

25. B.S.

The issue with respect to chemical weapons is genocide. A weapon that does not discriminate,I ate between military and civilian targets is used to eliminate everyone in a given area. That is what the Assad regime is attempting. If you are opposed to a response, the only kind that has the potential of being effective then you would be fine with the holocaust, Serbian annihilation of the Bosnians, and the tragedy of Rawanda.

[HardTimes99]

31. Funny how you don't mention white phosphor (Iraq) or napalm (Vietnam). You're

the type of fellow who's just fine bombing on a hunch:

WASHINGTON — The White House asserted Sunday that a “common-sense test” dictates the Syrian government is responsible for a chemical weapons attack that President Barack Obama says demands a U.S. military response. But Obama’s top aide says the administration lacks “irrefutable, beyond-a-reasonable-doubt evidence” that skeptical Americans, including lawmakers who will start voting on military action this week, are seeking.

“This is not a court of law. And intelligence does not work that way,” White House chief of staff Denis McDonough said during his five-network public relations blitz Sunday to build support for limited strikes against Syrian President Bashar Assad.

“The common-sense test says he is responsible for this."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/white-house-working-to-rally-lawmakers-american-public-behind-obamas-push-for-syrian-strike/2013/09/08/66cfb932-1868-11e3-80ac-96205cacb45a_story.html

[Recursion]

106. Why mention WP or napalm when we're talking about chemical weapons?

Words mean things. For reasons that elude me, for about a century now it's been legal to burn people in war but not to poison them.

[obxhead]

43. Bullshit

If it was genocide America cared about we would be in dozens (more) conflicts around the world.

This has nothing to do with chemical weapons, genocide, or the children.

[blue14u]

108. ^^^AGREEED^^^

[grahamhgreen]

63. Send gas masks and atropine, make your case at the UN.

To start an illegal war of aggression is the worst choice.

But it's really about his priorities, they are not in line with Americans.

[tridim]

29. Makes sense...

If you ignore everything he has accomplished.

http://whatthefuckhasobamadonesofar.com/

Educate yourself and you'll look less foolish.

[obxhead]

44. damn

I keep forgetting that he got a puppy for the girls.

[tridim]

50. Yes, that's exactly the kind of response that makes you look foolish.

[obxhead]

65. one day I'll order a pair of those special glasses.

Obviously I'm the one that can't see clearly.

[tridim]

70. Good, then you'll be able to see past your fucking snarky, "puppy for the girls"...

and understand that Obama has accomplished more progressive goals in 6 years than all of the other American Presidents combined.

Until then, yes, like the rest of Neo-DU, you are blind. No idea why.

[obxhead]

75. WOW! you think Obama has done more than medicare, ss, and

A standard work week combined!

That's some good shit your smokin there.

[LittleBlue]

57. Lol I clicked on that link

His "accomplishment" was signing a bill. The bill passed by 2/3 congress, so it becomes law even if he didn't sign it. Most of these so-called accomplishments are bills he signed (omitting all the bad ones of course), basically just him performing acts demanded by his job.

Hey, I got out of bed and made it to work today. Accomplishment!

[sheshe2]

95. Thanks tridim!

[Just Saying]

110. People see what they want to see.

And there's really no debating with them.

[geek tragedy]

30. Only if you ignore his record out of a need to pout. nt

[elleng]

37. Thanks, geek.

[Botany]

34. Oh please!

President Obama is trying to deal w/ a really complex problem that has no
good answers.

[elleng]

36. Thanks, Botany,

[Botany]

52. In 2004 I met a couple of men that served on the Swift Boat w/ J Kerry

and this questioning of his character along w/ President Obama's and Chuck
Hagel's really pisses me off .... It is not like Obama and company wanted
this mess to be dropped into their laps.

This is a really complex problem w/no simple solutions.

[elleng]

54. Without that personal history,

pisses me off too, as if people have so little ability to rely on their own judgment about people, they allow themselves to be tossed to and fro, when difficult problems arise, and our elected leaders try to deal with them rationally.

[Botany]

60. How John Kerry got his bronze medal

When the Swift Boat under John Kerry's command came under attack
in Vietnam a mine when off in the river and one of the men was blown
into the water @ which point the boat started to take fire from both sides
of the river from the jungle. Kerry had the boat turn around to go back
to pick up the man in the river, he then had one man take charge of the
50 caliber machine gun to return fire, and then he crawled out onto the
front of the boat (which exposed him to the V.C. fire ...Kerry was wounded
in his shoulder by shrapnel which if it was just a few inches higher would
have hit his neck and killed him)and Kerry pulled the man up onto the boat
which saved the man's life.

Both Chuck Hagel and John Kerry have seen war up front and in person and
I am sure they along w/ President Obama did not want to have to deal w/
this mess.

Good People can be on both sides of this issue but these attacks on Obama, Kerry,
and Hagel really suck. They are not war mongers who wanted this problem.

[elleng]

83. Right, Right, Right.

[sheshe2]

97. Thanks Botany!

[elleng]

35. Bull shit.

[gussmith]

38. Just unbelievable

how this president can't get his priorities ordered. We don't expect him to do one thing at a time but where is his list of the five most important crisis of his presidency? How about, jobs, definitively ending wars, economy, immigration, energy. Then work on them rather than being the world traveler and compromiser-in-chief.

[mulsh]

45. yeah, Obama has been lobbying for jobs bills since he was elected and getting nothing but

obstruction from the other side. I guess you're right about war being his priority. I guess the countless times he's pleaded with congress to pass jobs bills were merely a smoke screen for his primary priority. thanks for being so insightful I knew I was missing something these past few years.

[liberal_at_heart]

64. He didn't fight very hard for the jobs bill. As soon as he came up against resistance he gave up.

The people of America got tired of the republican obstructionism. There was a window of opportunity. What did he do during that window? He talked to the American people about the need for bipartisanship and compromise, about "saving the viability of social programs" which traslates to "we have to accept cuts."

[grahamhgreen]

67. The best jobs bill would be ending the costly trade agreements - he's on the wrong side of that too.

Even so, he has chosen his Waterloo - war with Syria.

Or is he gonna talk about reigning in banks and Wall Street, on Tues?

[liberal_at_heart]

69. Trade agreements and wages are still big problems and I am not satisfied with Obama's answer

on either of those issues.

[SunSeeker]

99. But Jim DeMint said Obamacare was Obama's "waterloo."

I wish you and Jim DeMint would decide on a waterloo.

[Paper Roses]

47. Sad, isn't it. I'm so upset, there are no real words to express hoew I feel. n/t

[ehrnst]

48. But what's the best way to get this GOP congress NOT to approve something?

Put Obama behind it. Who turned it over to Congress? Obama.

I'll hold my judgement until he overrides Congress to make this happen.

[kenny blankenship]

53. War, and the Police State. Don't forget the Police State.

It's not forgetting about you. It's not forgetting ANYTHING about you.

[woo me with science]

66. +1

[great white snark]

58. Sad thing is this isn't the dumbest thing you've said.

You've outdone yourself sir!

[grahamhgreen]

68. You can't argue that's its not the priority of the month:)

[brooklynite]

71. UNREC

Point to evicende that the President has reduced his engagement in any other issue.

[grahamhgreen]

72. Evidence? His speech on Tuesday is about attacking Syria. That makes it his priority:)

[Martin Eden]

73. Not a logical argument

Our government can, and must, be able to take action on a wide range of priorities at the same time.

I strongly oppose military action in Syria. I would strongly favor spending an equal or greater amount of tax dollars and time to promote peaceful solutions.

I would not complain that peace is a priority over jobs, deficits, corruption, et al ... unless the initiative to promote peace actually was at the expense of other issues that should be a higher priority.

I expect my government to take action on foreign policy priorities without excluding other priorities in the process.

[grahamhgreen]

74. But war is the top of his list. His priority. He went to The G20 and lobbied for it, he's

On a TV tour lobbying for his illegal war of aggression, and he's addressing the nation about it.

That makes it his priority, which is not even on the top 20 list for Americans.

It's what we mean when we say, you have your priorities screwed up.

Lets get the war criminals here, before we worry about it over there

[Martin Eden]

78. "priorities screwed up"

His policy on Syria is screwed up, but priorities come into play only if action on one priority is negatively impacting progress on a priority that should be higher.

To make that case you'd have to show that Obama has delayed other priorities as a result of his current focus on foreign policy.

Did he postpone or neglect an initiative on economic recovery or some other important issue because of Syria?

If you have evidence that he did, then you'd have a valid argument regarding priorities.

However, what I've seen is that he's been thwarted by the rethug House on every legislative initiative. If Syria wasn't an issue, would he be making progress in getting economic legislation passed?

Sadly, I think this business with Syria will damage his presidency and diminish whatever political capital he has, which very well could negatively impact his chances for making progress on other fronts during the remainder of his presidency.

But that's more a measure of how screwed up he is on Syria, not a matter of choosing priorities. If he firmly believes action on Syria is vital to American foreign policy goals he would be remiss in not pursuing that, though it's pretty obvious we both agree it's a big mistake on his part.

[grahamhgreen]

79. When I look around, all I see is evidence of neglected and delayed priorities,

Declining wages, outsourcing of jobs, Detroit bankrupt, NSA spying, drone attacks, perpetual war draining our treasury, attacking social security, extending tax cuts for the rich, the disparity between the rich and poor, lack of free education.

And what is he trying to sneak through while we're all focused on Syria - the TPP, a costly trade agreement that will not only cost us jobs, but our sovereignty.

As far as I'm concerned we should not be wasting congresses time on an issue that doesn't help our country.

As far as our foreign policy goals, if he thinks that attacking another country in violation of the UN charter is one of our goals, he's mistaken.

[shenmue]

76. Sigh

Some people make up their own narratives, and don't let little things like nuance or facts intervene. He said nothing of the sort, but the anti-Obama folks can't handle that he's about to work with Russia to fix it without war, so.... sorry you didn't get to bust a gasket condemning an imaginary version of him again. Too bad you're going to get the peace you asked for. What will you pretend to want next?

[grahamhgreen]

77. Wait, now you want to do the double speak and say that Obama's been lobbying for peace? He

wanted to send peace missiles to Syria????

Sorry. Just aint true.

But now, he can use the speech on Tuesday to address cutting the bloated military budget!

Or maybe addressing one of these:

[CakeGrrl]

80. A very simplistic, ignorant statement.

Spoken like someone who has no clue what the President does if MSNBC doesn't tell them.

[grahamhgreen]

89. Really? Then what is his priority, then?

[Bobbie Jo]

81. Good God

Must. Feed. The Perpetual Outrage Machine.

Unfucking real.

[B Calm]

82. +1

The drama around here now days. . .

[grahamhgreen]

88. Really? Then what is his priority, then?

[Egalitarian Thug]

90. What, no reply? I'm shocked, shocked I tell you. n/t

[Bobbie Jo]

94. ?

WTF is your deal? I'm right here.

[Egalitarian Thug]

96. With no reply, of course. n/t

[Bobbie Jo]

98. ..... as opposed to this

brilliant contribution?

Tag along elsewhere.

[Bobbie Jo]

93. If I thought for one second

you were the least bit interested in an actual response, you'd get one.

You (and your tag team partner below) have shown your collective asses here a time or two.

[indepat]

87. TPTB can't worry about piffles when a despotic tyrant needs to be taught a lesson

[Kolesar]

102. Have you even read a newspaper in the last five years?

Your post betrays an embarrassing ignorance about current events and civics.

[blkmusclmachine]

103. Wait til BHO gets his 30,000 Drones flying by your house.

You'll think TWICE about your criticism, comrade.

[Kolesar]

104. The guy gives us one more nonsensical nonsentence

You must be proud. Is it half time on the game?

[BeyondGeography]

105. Quelle drivelle

[DeSwiss]

109. In all fairness.....

...they can ''do'' war waging. It's the other stuff that's hard.

- You know, waging peace.

K&R

[Rosco T.]

112. What unmitigated bullshit.

[Summer Hathaway]

113. If Obama's priority is perpetual war

he's obviously not done well in achieving his goal, has he?

Do you honestly think that merely posting this kind of tripe makes it true? Or even remotely based in fact, by any stretch of the imagination?

I almost feel sorry for people like you. You just keep howling at the moon, hoping in vain that someone - other than your fellow howlers - will take you seriously.