Charlie Gibson's Gaffe, WAPO's Charles Krauthammer

[liberal N proud]

"At times visibly nervous . . . Ms. Palin most visibly stumbled when she was asked by Mr. Gibson if she agreed with the Bush doctrine. Ms. Palin did not seem to know what he was talking about. Mr. Gibson, sounding like an impatient teacher, informed her that it meant the right of 'anticipatory self-defense.' "

-- New York Times, Sept. 12

Informed her? Rubbish.

The New York Times got it wrong. And Charlie Gibson got it wrong.

There is no single meaning of the Bush doctrine. In fact, there have been four distinct meanings, each one succeeding another over the eight years of this administration -- and the one Charlie Gibson cited is not the one in common usage today. It is utterly different.

He asked Palin, "Do you agree with the Bush doctrine?"

She responded, quite sensibly to a question that is ambiguous, "In what respect, Charlie?"

Sensing his "gotcha" moment, Gibson refused to tell her. After making her fish for the answer, Gibson grudgingly explained to the moose-hunting rube that the Bush doctrine "is that we have the right of anticipatory self-defense."


Wrong.

I know something about the subject because, as the Wikipedia entry on the Bush doctrine notes, I was the first to use the term. In the cover essay of the June 4, 2001, issue of the Weekly Standard entitled, "The Bush Doctrine: ABM, Kyoto, and the New American Unilateralism," I suggested that the Bush administration policies of unilaterally withdrawing from the ABM treaty and rejecting the Kyoto protocol, together with others, amounted to a radical change in foreign policy that should be called the Bush doctrine.


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/09/12/AR2008091202457.html?sub=new

[marshall]

1. Charlie is not the brightest bulb in the box

That's for sure. But isn't that why Palin chose him?

[liberal N proud]

3. Why Palin's handlers chose him.

I don't think she has a clue about the national stage.

[elocs]

2. It would have been reasonable to think that with Palin's coaching for the interview

she might have been informed as to what the McBush people believed their definition of the Bush Doctrine might be. Evidently there was no anticipation that such a question might be asked.

[blogslut]

4. Yuh huh

Whatever, Krauthammer. That fact is that the woman had no idea what Gibson was talking about. But you go ahead and tell yourself whatever you need to keep looking in the mirror.

[hlthe2b]

5. Oh, for God's sakes... Why buy into this RW spin?

It wasn't Charlie GIbson who was clueless. She had NO idea what Gibson was talking about-- the foundation of this administrations' foreign policy for 7 plus years and the basis upon which he launched illegal war in Iraq.

What are some DU posters (those responding to the original post) thinking, buying into KRAUTHAMMER? GEEBUS!!!!!!!!!!!

[liberal N proud]

10. Not bying it.

Read the last paragarph of the article, It is the tell...

Yes, Sarah Palin didn't know what it is. But neither does Charlie Gibson. And at least she didn't pretend to know -- while he looked down his nose and over his glasses with weary disdain, sighing and "sounding like an impatient teacher," as the Times noted. In doing so, he captured perfectly the establishment snobbery and intellectual condescension that has characterized the chattering classes' reaction to the mother of five who presumes to play on their stage.

[predfan]

6. Simply for the sake of time, shouldn't we just go ahead and let Krauthammer

and Kristol ( the neocon, not the hamburger chain) and Wolfie and Cheney go ahead and select the President, eliminate us riffraff?

Isn't it truly insulting, as a citizen and taxpayer, that the Republicans put forth an unqualified candidate and then tell the country so what?

[xxqqqzme]

7. '...that

should be called the Bush doctrine...' (Emphasis added) Except it WASN'T, you warmongering, dumb ass...the * doctrine was, is and will be remembered as a preemptive strike against another sovereign nation who is ONLY perceived, by other warmongering, dumb asses, as a threat to corporate America.

Thee were 4 adults, over 30, in the room when that question was asked. My daughter, 37, who is not a political junkie, even knew what it was.

[Honeycombe8]

8. Ha! He cites Wikepedia? That's desperate when he cites THAT! He's speaking to stupid people.

As a writer, he KNOWS that Wikepedia is junk and invalid as a source of anything.

[eShirl]

11. besides, he's probably the one who put it there

[a la izquierda]

19. My students know not to cite Wikipedia.

Sauerkraut's citation on that nearly had me spitting my coffee all over the keyboard!!!!!!! Oh lord, what a moran.

[Nedsdag]

29. Mine too!

What a coincidence!

[yourout]

9. I call it....preemptive war.

[symbolman]

12. Actually I was glad to see that you can WRITE TO THIS IDIOT

on the web page I was at there was a link to open up your mailbox and write him a little note.. I was so tempted, but I have trouble talking to STUPID PEOPLE without getting mad and calling them FUCKING IDIOTS, like Krautslimer..

Let's not forget that WHILE he's writing this shit, about 300 changes are being made to the Wiki ENTRY...

So, once again, it's RIGHT WING glory, being SLIMY while Rubbing it in someone's face.. it's all they do if they think they have any Power at all, and a lot of their power is IMAGINARY..

like this man who has a microscopic dick.. HEY, THAT's what I'll tell him, he won't listen to reason anyway..

"Dear Krautslimer, microscopic dick man.." :)

None of us should waste our time, reading, posting his garbage, or even writing to him, go take coke bottles back to the store instead, wash the car, more productive.. :)

[GreenEyedLefty]

13. Charles Krauthammer is astonishing in his hubris.

But one shouldn't expect anything less from the king of the neocons.

"the idea that the fundamental mission of American foreign policy is to spread democracy throughout the world"

In other words, to make the United States a world hegemon. Really? I thought foreign policy was about protecting American interests and encouraging cooperation and trade between nations, you know, in order to benefit both. I believe *that* is what Kennedy and Truman had in mind... NOT spreading "American-style" democracy. The irony is, ours isn't looking much like a democracy anymore thanks to the gutting of our Constitution.

What we have to fight is the idea that it is "snobbery and intellectual condescension" to dare to want a different and BETTER direction for this country.

[CTyankee]

30. If you go back 2500 years, you can find that Athens, at the height of its empire, said the exact

same thing, according to Thucydides, historian of the Peloponnesian War. That war, as we now so famously know, finished the Athenian empire and its strong (if flawed) democracy. Sparta, an autocratic state, sunk the mighty Athenian navy at Siricusa and the Athenian army had to fight their way back through Sicily to Greece.

You would think a guy like Krauthammer, with his vaunted "intelligence" would know his history a little better and refrain from the "spreading democracy" meme.

[City Lights]

14. Chucky Krummy is full of shit!

Someone here (sorry, can't remember who) noted that after Gibson questioned Queen Sarah on the Bush Doctrine, its Wiki entry had a spike in edits. Lo and behold, the cached version from 9-7-2008 has no mention of Chuckie Krummy. The asshole conservatives messed with it to help Sarah after she flubbed.

http://74.125.95.104/search?q=cache:IRgjjIF3Kz4J:en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bush_Doctrine+bush+doctrine+wiki&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us&client=safari

[malik flavors]

15. It doesn't matter how many definitions there are of the Bush Doctrine, she didn't know any of them.

She had never even heard the words Bush and Doctrine in the same sentence. Soo what difference does it make how many definitions there are?

[SDJay]

16. This clown conveniently kicks her first 'answer'

under the rug. Remember when the moron's initial response was 'his worldview?' Gee, it seems that this craptastic stab at a general answer doesn't fit any of these revisionist history 'definitions.' Gotta love selective reporting, and of course taking credit for his alleged 'contribution' to the vernacular by way of Wikipedia. Pathetic.

[Cogito ergo doleo]

17. The " * Doctrine" meaning is and will always be preemptive war

It's the common usage. The very idea of preemptive war caused collective shock to this country and will be forever tagged, "*Doctrine". Preemptive war has been the showcase of the * administration.

[falcon97]

18. The column by Krauthammer is one of the biggest

con jobs of the entire election season. He should be embarrassed. Wait, I'm sorry. I forgot who we are talking about.

[chitty]

20. Nice try Chucky K.

It's already out there.

[Politicub]

21. Krauthammer is a liar

and nothing but a pathetic water bearer for the GOP.

[Bread and Circus]

22. Even if Krauthammer was right, she didn't KNOW any version of the Bush Doctrine

She just tried to bluff her way through like a beauty queen.

[WinkyDink]

24. EXACTLY! SHE could have narrowed it in a way favorable to her understanding---but she had none.

E.g., Palin's response could have been: "Well, Charlie, in respect to the Kyoto Treaty, as Charles Krauthammer used the term,...."

[Terran]

23. He's living in a fantasy world

Even if he's right about the definition of the "Bush Doctrine" (what an oxymoron that is, anyway), all you have to do is look at the interview as a whole for ample evidence that Palin doesn't know anything about even basic governmental/political issues--like the way she utterly screwed up the answer to Gibson's question about entitlements.

[Barack_America]

25. Gibson offered Palin the simplest defintion...

And she still drew a blank.

[gulliver]

26. Casuistry from a reality relativist.

Krauthammer starts with the end in mind: Republicans must have power.

From that he reasons backward that Palin is not a simpering idiot. If she were, then Republicans would deserve to lose the presidential election.

She is.

Krauthammer is a reality relativist ass.

[Shakespeare]

27. Krauthammer is a deluded megalomaniac.

He's also a prick of the highest order.

[Orsino]

28. Krauthammer's obfuscating...

...and covering up for Palin's ignorance of any of those possible interpretations.