US yet to talk with insurgents, says general (rummy lied?)

[leftchick]

http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=3&art_id=qw1119933904555B262

Washington - United States forces have not held talks with insurgent leaders involved in attacks in Iraq but may do so soon, the US commander in Iraq said in remarks that appeared to differ from those of Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld on Monday.

On Sunday Rumsfeld said meetings between US representatives and insurgent commanders "go on all the time".

Asked by a reporter whether US forces had met with "known leaders of the insurgency who have been involved directly in attacks against US and Iraqi forces", Army General George Casey said: "Not yet. Not, to the best of my knowledge, yet."

"We may start moving there, but the first thing we want to do is meet with Sunni leaders. And a lot of these folks claim they have leverage over the insurgents that we've yet to see realised, frankly," Casey said.

[Media_Lies_Daily]

1. Just another disconnect between Rummy and the real world.

[marmar]

2. They need to get their lies straight...

before going on TV. I thought that Republicans were good at lying in unison. Their ship really must be sinking.

:nopity:

[KlatooBNikto]

3. Rummy is talking about you and Gen.Abizaid,Gen.Casey? You are the,

insurgenets for daring to contradict the all knowing, omnipotent and all magnificent Donald Rumsfeld, Master of the Crypt.

[Supersedeas]

12. These meetings go on all the times--commonplace stuff really

[maddezmom]

4. jeebus...they are really losing control of their own spin

first they deny, then they admit, then they downplay and now it hasn't happened?

Iraqi president distances himself from US talks with insurgents
BAGHDAD - Iraqi President Jalal Talabani distanced his government on Tuesday from US talks with insurgent leaders, insisting they were strictly a US affair despite protestations from Washington that it was acting only as a facilitator.


“The Iraqi government has nothing to do with the negotiations with insurgents,” Talabani told a press conference marking the first anniversary of Iraq’s recovery of its sovereignty from the US-led occupation sovereignty.

... if the Americans are negotiating with them, it’s up to them.”

US Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld had confirmed on Sunday that US officials had held talks with insurgent groups, but he insisted that Washington’s role was limited to that of broker for the Iraqi government.

“The first thing I would say about the meetings is they go on all the time,” Rumsfeld told Fox News.
more: http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/focusoniraq/2005/June/focusoniraq_June192.xml§ion=focusoniraq&col=

[leftchick]

10. Islamic Army denies it as well...

http://siteinstitute.org/bin/articles.cgi?ID=publications61405&Category=publications&Subcategory=0

Islamic Army in Iraq Denies Alleged Negotiations with American Officials

The Islamic Army in Iraq, in a statement issued yesterday, June 26, 2005, denies allegations that members of its group have been negotiating with American military officials, and outlines several points concerning these “lies… to break the unity of the mujahideen and confuse them.”


Among their points, the group maintains that collaboration between American officials and the Iraqi government that “want to sell jihad and the mujahideen and their blood and large sacrifices in exchange for little benefits which Americans grant them,” is a “trick” to destabilize the insurgency groups. Any unauthorized “official work” or impersonation of the Islamic Army’s leadership, according to the statement, “will be duly punished.”


Further, the statement indicates that another purported American goal is to distinguish between Iraqi and foreign mujahideen; however, the group avers that: “all Jews and Christians in the whole world are not worth one drop of blood of a Muslim, Iraqi or not Iraqi.”

[MetaTrope]

5. What's the issue?

When the insurgent leaders are located right across the hall from the war planners in the Pentagon?

[salin]

6. Two points (one real, one glib)

real: The implication - if one buys the fact that he didn't lie - is that the Sec of Defense has no idea what is going on - either he signed off on such talks and no one has done it - or he doesn't know what people are doing and thus just makes assumptions. Not a good sign - even for those believers who want to believe that he and bushco don't lie and wouldn't intentionally deceive us.

glib: He wasn't lying - he views democrats as insurgents - and hell they talk to democrats every day - he just didn't add the statement left it implied "meetings between US representatives and insurgent commanders "go on all the time"....(for example I am talking with your right now...)

[Ganja Ninja]

7. They're lying like a deadbeat that just wants to ...

get rid of a bill collector. "The checks in the mail."

[maseman]

8. I thought a Republican talking point was...

...you cannot negotiate with terrosists? Boy, there are so many lies, half-truths, distortions and bullshiting involved with this administration they forget what is what.

[Ganja Ninja]

9. It's gotten to the point where they have to lie just to ...

get through the day so they say whatever. Negotiating with terrorists is probably just a wish at this point. These guys are desperate and probably think they can buy them off if they can just get them to the table. It was a public invitation.

[daleo]

13. If they shoot someone, it proves that person was a terrorist

If they negotiate with someone, it proves that person wasn't a terrorist.

[Patty Diana]

11. Would anyone here negotiate with these bush thugs

look at the filibuster negotiation