GORE TO BUSH ON IRAQ: "IT'S NOT ABOUT YOU"

[kpete]

Gore to Bush on Iraq: It’s Not About You

This morning on NBC, former Vice President Al Gore called Iraq the “worst strategic mistake in the history of the United States.”

VIDEO at:
http://thinkprogress.org/2006/12/06/gore-iraq-bush/

Full transcript:

GORE: The fact is, this is a very bad situation. Our country has to find a way to get our troops out as quickly as possible without making the situation even worse in the manner of our leaving.

LAUER: It’s described by some as cut and stay as opposed to cut and run. Does it do enough to acknowledge the results of the mid-term elections and the message voters sending this administration — if these are listened to, these recommendations?

GORE: Well, the report this morning is actually one of several studies. There is one in the Pentagon. There has been reportedly been one in the White House itself. They are all basically saying the same thing, Matt. This is an utter disaster. This worst strategic mistake in the history of the United States. We as a nation have to find a way, in George Mitchell’s words, to manage a disaster. But I would urge the president not to — to try to separate out the personal issues of being blamed in history for this mistake and instead recognize it’s not about him. It’s about our country and we all have to find a way to get our troops home and to prevent a regional conflagration there.

[BOSSHOG]

1. Sure Al, its not about me if anything about "it" is fucked up

The Iraqi debacle is your and Bill's fault. Hell I ain't done nothing wrong in the past 7 years.

[msmcghee]

5. As wrong and uninformed as your opinion may be . .

. . regarding Clinton/Gore's responsibility for the US being in Iraq - and I won't even go there - you are way off base implying that Gore's statement was an attempt to absolve himself from any responsibility.

He said that Bush should not dwell on his own (Bush's) legacy as being the most important factor to consider. That's a completely unrelated question to your attempt to attack Clinton/Gore.

Sounds like you have some issues. :eyes:

[acmavm]

6. I think he was being sarcastic there.

[RBS]

8. I think this was meant in jest....

If I'm reading correctly, BOSSHOGG was pretending to quote Bush. Quotations would have made the facetiousness easier to understand.

[newyawker99]

15. Hi RBS!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[SammyWinstonJack]

48. Or this;

:sarcasm: I got it, though.

[Throwing Stones]

10. Sarcasm?

I think Bosshog's had tongue firmly planted in cheek, no?

[Straight Shooter]

11. Welcome to DU, Throwing Stones and RBS.

You bet Bosshog was being sarcastic. He's a fav here.

:hi:

[MADem]

17. You were born without an irony gene, I see!

It's why I trot out this foolish :sarcasm: thing even when I'm posting something that is clearly sarcastic, ironic, or meant not to be taken at face value....'cuz ya just never know who will take it the wrong way on these here internets!

[noahmijo]

25. He's parodying bush obviously

:eyes:

[wtmusic]

26. BOSSHOG for Bush?

:rofl:

That'll be the day.

[LSK]

32. sarcasm

:rofl:

[SharonRB]

53. This was obviously sarcastic

I guess without the "sarcasm" smilie you didn't get that.

[Voltaire99]

81. You might want to read that again.

Your awareness of irony has, as you might put it, "issues."

[DWilliamsamh]

93. The word you are looking for: Sarcasm. (N/T)

[msmcghee]

12. Ooops!

Sorry I misinterpreted. This format doesn't carry sarcasm well. I've had several sarcastic posts missed myself. I now always use the :sarcasm: even when it seems totally obvious to me.

Cheers

[BOSSHOG]

43. No sweat my friend

I am almost a total failure when it comes to communicating sarcasm but I don't like using the emoticon thing. I'll succeed or fail with my words. I have the greatest respect for President Clinton and President Gore and If I had my way we would start with bush by recalling him to active duty, put him in uniform, confine him to a base and court martial him for desertion - for starters.

[ronnykmarshall]

45. I was gonna say ....

Has Bosshog flipped his lid????

Scared me for a minute.

[BOSSHOG]

46. Lid still intact Ronny

I hate bush and my hate is rational.

[liberalla]

88. "I hate bush and my hate is rational."

Oh, I like that! I feel the same way.

[buddysmellgood]

54. Now THAT really was sarcasm, wasn't it? "Greatest respect" my foot.

:sarcasm:


yuk, yuk, yuk

[ms liberty]

57. I got it immediately - of course, I've been on sarcasm overload for 6 years now!!

I don't like to have to use the sarcasm thingy either...

[Autonomy]

71. I read it wrong too

I read it as you attacking Gore. Whew. My blood pressure rose there for a sec. I probably needed it, though. So, thanks! :)

[dogday]

56. You bet your ass, old Bush would try to pin this debacle

on them as he has everything else.... What a miserable failure as a President and as a man.. He has no honor at all......

[smoogatz]

2. K&R

Tell it, big Al!

[kstewart33]

3. Wise words from Al.

Geez, imagine if 2000 had turned out differently.

[IntravenousDemilo]

59. Yes indeedy, if Gore had been allowed to assume office, 9/11 would just be the day after 9/10.

Of this I am certain.

[FiveGoodMen]

72. Me too!

[WiseButAngrySara]

89. Me Three! ....n/t

[Cascadian]

101. There is no question about it.

I am convinced that the attacks on 9/11 would have never happened. They would have been prevented and those guys would have been caught. I will even venture to say that we would even have dialogue with North Korea. The world would be 4 times more peaceful than it is now.


GORE IN 2008!


John

[Dhalgren]

4. But that is the problem in a nutshell (pun intended), isn't it?

Bush cannot think in any terms other than about himself. If anything is "not about him", then it cannot possibly hold his attention. Unfortunately, for all of us (re: the whole world), it IS about him. It always has been about him and not even his handlers realized it until too late. That's why Poppy has stepped in; he's seen this before...

[flordehinojos]

7. POPPY STEPPED IN BECAUSE HE WANTS TO SAVE THE BUSH FAMILY NAME.

NOT IRAQ, ITS INHABITANT, OR ANYTHING ABOUT IRAQI CULTURE. The bushes all are narcissistic vultures.

[savemefromdumbya]

28. It's about time all Bushes were locked up to stop ruining this country

[Throwing Stones]

20. "not about him"

Dahlgren, you totally nailed it about not holding his attention. I've always thought of * as arrogant and stupid, but I guess there's quite a bit of narcissism in there too. As other posters have pointed out, 41 stepped in not to save 43, but to save himself and the family's good graces with the power elite in the Middle East.



"Senator, when you took your oath of office, you placed your hand on the Bible and swore to uphold the Constitution. You didn't place your hand on the Constitution and swear to uphold the Bible."
~ Jamie Raskin

[Christa]

9. K & R

[bluerum]

13. The ME has been a regional conflagration on slow boil since

pre-WWI.

It is beyond belief that the squatter in chief actually expected to change that by killing a few hundred thousand Iraqis and destroying cultural and architectural icons produced over the centuries.

I think that his ultimate goal was to institutionalize the transfer of wealth and power into the hands of very specific economic and social sectors. Ie: big bidness and his fabulously rich friends and family. The war is pretext.

[AndyA]

14. Gore's statement is going to come as a shock to Bush.

Because in his mind, it has always been about him. What else could there possibly be? His Mommy told him so...

[Beam Me Up]

16. Gore is SO RIGHT. If you want to get down right technical, it is not only

not about Bush, it IS about the people who have USED HIM as an instrument. Yes, he went along with it but anyone with any sense knew from the get go that this man was not qualified to be the President of the United Sates. Or, to put it another way, his ONLY qualifications -- apparently the only qualifications that really mattered -- was his ability to get the 'ordinary guy' to identify with him in political PR AND his willingness to do whatever anyone with money and power told him to. THE WHOLE BUSH PRESIDENCY IS AN UTTER DISASTER -- has been and continues to be. But it isn't really about BUSH, it is about the politics of power and corruption that PUT HIM IN OFFICE and kept him there into a second term against the will of the American people. That is what it is really all about.

Al Gore, of all people, should know.

[diane in sf]

51. Bush's qualifications

consist of a recognizable name, a full head of hair and some neocon wetdreams.

[Chulanowa]

62. About that head of hair...

Am I the only person here who's enjoyed watching it go from a natural salt-and-peppery brown, to almost stark white? :)

[Beam Me Up]

79. eXactlY

:)

[Brazenly Liberal]

18. IT'S AL GORE'S FAULT

that I don't have a 2008 candidate yet. If he'd listen to Jimmy Carter and run, I'd be all set.

[wryter2000]

23. It's early yet

I'm not worried that we don't have a candidate yet. I'm hoping Gore will run, but if he doesn't, we likely will have someone wonderful emerge in the next year or so.

Right now, we have lots and lots of investigations to get started. :evilgrin:

[goforit]

27. Nah... It's Clinton's fault.

[Mabus]

40. The advantage for Gore is

He can say whatever he wants without being held to the same standards as a bona fide and declared candidate. He can speak his mind without having it parsed and attributed to his message as a candidate. In the meantime, he's doing a bang-up job reaching out to the American public and communicating to us what he really thinks about a variety of issues.

One of the myths about Gore is that he doesn't communicate well with the "common man". I'll quote a fellow DU'er who is repeating this myth about Gore's inability to communicate effectively to anyone but the very educated.

Gore has a challenge in speaking and relating to the regular workin' man who may or may not know anything about global warming or even cares about it. He's more at ease with educated people, particular those who have college degrees on up.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=2821161&mesg_id=2827522

I believe otherwise. Gore continues to show that the above talking point doesn't hold water. I think he communicated very well this morning and he continues to demonstrate that he can speak to the regular working man.

fyi, on that other thread, my final post contained the following:

Whether you want to admit it or not, Gore connects with people.

Furthermore, let's look at what's going on with Gore now. He was one of the "GQ's Men of the Year," he's up for Time's "Man of the Year," his message about the climate crisis is the third highest documentary of all time (it passed "Bowling for Columbine" earlier this year), "An Inconvenient Truth" is up for an Oscar, he's got a best-selling book (his second on the topic), Britain asked him to be their consultant on climate change and he is a popular fundraiser. And that's just this year. For someone who doesn't connect well, he's certainly proven that he has broad appeal. http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=2821161&mesg_id=2846690

For some reason, my fellow DU'er never responded on DU but took my comments and miscontrued (spun) them into a personal attack on her and posted her complaints on her private blog at: http://bennycat.blogspot.com/2006/12/rw-spewer.html

[WinkyDink]

83. The difference is: Bush talks down to people. And the ignorant don't get

that he has nothing but contempt for them, as he's always saying, "The American people have got to UNNERSTAND."

Gore speaks AS THOUGH we are all educated, which is a sign of RESPECT.

[SharonRB]

55. You and me both

Run, Al, Run!!! PLEASE?????

[lovuian]

19. I really wish Gore would have been our president

Democrats need to follow Gore leads

The Oil Corporations, Bush,Cheney, Saudis, Haliburton KBR Carlyle and Rumsfeld

IT FAILED
YOU CAN"T GET WHAT YOU WANT

ITS OVER

[pansypoo53219]

22. considering the last 6 years,

HE WAS THE ONE WHO WAS SUPPOSSED TO WIN.
civil war? Lincoln.
WW2? FDR
9/11- Bush?!?

we were robbed of a great president by the 'supremes'.

[savemefromdumbya]

29. Gore theoretically IS our president

except that someone paid off the SC

[Jackpine Radical]

64. Sadly, Al didn't run for a second term.

I guess he's not President any more. Kerry must be.

[AlGore-08.com]

21. As always, President Gore speaking truth to power

:kick: :patriot: :kick:

[Uncle Joe]

24. I believe Al Gore just gave the most needed advice to Bush,

for the benefit of the nation. The question now is, will Bush listen? The suspense is killing us... literally.

[savemefromdumbya]

31. No, Bush is like one of those Duracell bunnies

he goes on and on and on. Hopefully his battery will run out soon.

[ClintonTyree]

77. Not likely....

Bush has spent his entire life surrounded by 'yes' men, people who prop him up, bail him out, tell him how great he is, cover up his mistakes, shower him with false praise and.....use him for their own purposes. He's a cardboard cut-out of a man, all form and no substance. The problem is, these people have him BELIEVING that he IS "that damned good". Of course there's not an iota of truth behind it but Bush believes it. They MADE him believe it. KKKarl Rove and others took the malleable Bush and made him what he is today. There isn't a bit of truth behind Bush, it's all pure bullshit but a large number of people BOUGHT the fantastic lie that is George W. Bush.

Bush is a megalomaniac, a malignant narcissist. He is TRULY a sick individual and needs to be removed from office immediately. We can't 2 more years for this diseased cretin to leave office, he must be removed like a malignant tumor. NOW!

[Peace Patriot]

30. I am once again impressed with Al Gore's awesome ability to pinpoint the

problem, and also his psychological maturity, his steadiness. It takes a real adult to recognize the adolescent syndrome in Bush (the injured bully, the chip on the shoulder, the egomania), and to call him on it: "it's not about you."

Those words brilliantly sum up why 600,000 people are dead, why many others have been crippled for life by torture or injury, and how the deaths of so many helpless people--babies, children, civilians of every kind--could be turned into a joke by the President of the U.S. (--looking for the WMDs under the Oval Office rug), or how poverty vs. unconscionable wealth could be a joke to him (his constituency being "the haves and the have mores"), and how Bush can be so callous about both of these evils--the horrors of war, and the injustice of the wealthy. It's not about you. Bush is like a little bully boy kicking over an anthill for the fun of it. It's all about his godlike power, his bigness, his ego. The brilliance and delicate balance of the ants' organization, evolved over millions of years, doesn't interest him. And if the "ants" are human beings, and the "anthill" is a human city, that doesn't concern him either. The only thing of importance is his power to smash it. He's doesn't care how it works. He has no ability to create an anthill, or a city. No skill at all. Just power. Adolescent power and energy, writ large--writ large with the most destructive war machine in history. It's not about you.

I hope this is the last time that we permit a National Guard service shirker to gain power over our war machine--and the last time we permit our war profiteering corporate news monopolies to cover it up. It's not that military service is a prerequisite for high office. It most certainly is not. But failure at such service--for the reasons that Bush failed--spoiled little rich boy, into drugs and alcohol--is a red flag to deep character flaw. Both those who fought the Vietnam war, and those who refused to, out of conscience, were responsible people, interested in contributing to society, and aware of the importance of their own actions and of government policy. But someone who was born to privilege, and who had access to one of the best university educations in the country, who didn't take the war seriously, couldn't be bothered to think about it, and was handed a high commission in a safe service on a silver platter, and sloughed even that off, went AWOL (and, if he'd been an ordinary person would have spent the war in jail for it), is NOT AN ADULT.

It's not about you. It's about all the other people who are dying. It's about all the other people who are suffering. It's about something bigger than you. And Bush's inability to grasp this back when he was a sometime National Guard pilot never changed. It erupted again in his attitude toward executions in Texas (another joke to him), and has been symptomatic of his whole career. You can see it in his face in the "My Pet Goat" incident on 9/11. It's all about HIM. It's not about the children around him and their safety. It's not about other peoples' lives or about our country. It's about how HE should be reacting, his role, his game--and in that frozen moment, he reveals the emptiness of his soul, stuck in the mode of bully boy kicking over an anthill. No maturity. No sense of personal responsibility. Trying to figure out--or waiting to be told--how to capitalize on events.

An adult realizes that sometimes "it's not about you." (And a complete adult realizes that it's almost NEVER about you, i.e., an enlightened being.) Bush has never been able to perceive this, and can't now. Now it's all about his reputation, and his criminal liability. Gore is saying, "grow up." Well, Bush never will. But it tells us a lot about Gore. He's reached a point, in his own emotional and intellectual development, where he knows "it's not about him." It's about all of us, all of humanity, and our history, and the planet on which we evolved, and whether or not we are going to do ourselves in, as a species. One man cannot direct it, either way, for good or for ill. Human survival is a group project. Gore looks at the "anthill" and marvels. And he hopes that there will BE a history that some day tells the story of what fine creatures we are, who were able to see beyond our individual plight to the greater good.

He may be running for president. I don't really know. We could do worse, as they say (really, really worse). He seems to have the vision, stamina and a certain magic around him (the one who should have been president). He sure gives good speeches. I have been amazed at them--such laserlike penetration into national policy and the Bush Junta. He clearly has been thinking about it all. But maybe it's not so much a president we need, as a Designated National Adult (DNA--ha!) to inspire all of us with this new American philosophy: "it's not about you."

[Uncle Joe]

34. Bravo Peace Patriot! This post could be it's own thread!

:applause:

[donkeyotay]

38. This is so true, Peace Patriot -

"Human survival is a group project."

George is the least of our problems. He will have to live with himself, and personally I hope it's in hell. But the larger issue is the people George represented when he was "elected," the shortcomings of our own military-intelligence national security, the corruption of our political process, the lack of public education and real debate... point is that George didn't happen in a vacuum. I hope that the calls for unity and bipartisanship don't simply mean that the "left" should shut up, and the country will again ignore real problems in Washington. The charge that the left wants to "blame America first," has been used as an excuse for America to not take any responsibility for the situations that we have helped create.

[nam78_two]

41. Tru dat

:toast:

[stevietheman]

49. Great post! (deserves an award, it's so good)

You singlehandedly made the case for a Gore Presidency. Hopefully, the Gore campaign (to be) will take note of it.

Re: "Designated National Adult" -- this is what we used to call "Statesman". :)

[Admiral Loinpresser]

66. Ditto n/t

[calmblueocean]

76. Designated National Adult

So sad, so true.

[WinkyDink]

85. BRILLIANT! "He has no ability to create an anthill, or a city. "

What HAS Bush done that has been POSITIVE?
NOTHING. NOTHING.

He hasn't lifted our spirits or inspired us; he hasn't begun any national projects; he hasn't advanced the cause of any rights whatsoever; he hasn't spoken of, much less helped, the less fortunate of our country.

He isn't just the Decider; he is the DESTROYER.

And that is exactly how he likes it. What normal adult citizens view as disasters---Iraq, Katrina, and yes, 9/11---Bush views, from his sick infantile psyche, as successes. Death is his bench-mark, and he aims high.

[DWilliamsamh]

94. You should DEFINITELY top post this - It is v. good. (N/T)

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

33. Matt Lauer appeared to be prodding my true President into running in 2008.

Lauer kept pointing out to Gore, that if global warning was so important to him, wouldn't he do the best for the planet if he was President and able to make a huge difference.

President Gore said he had no intention and yet left the door open!

[RestoreGore]

52. And what is Matt Lauer doing regarding the climate crisis?

I swear, media people only see this as an excuse to prop up their own picks. That is not what this crisis is about. That ten year window looks awfully close to closing, and all people can do is talk about 2008, while the ice shelfs in Greenland melt NOW.

[musiclawyer]

73. Yes, I'm looking at the TV and say to myself

"This is a guy who's running" It's not waht he says it's how he says it. Door wide open, not just ajar. I hope he runs.

[RestoreGore]

92. I think he leaves the door opens because it is selling DVDs

Face it honestly, how many people even on this forum would even have gone to see his movie in the first place if they didn't think he was going to run? If he had come out in May before the movie premiered and said he was absolutely positively not running in 2008 or ever again, do you really think his movie would have brought in the receipts it did? It is actually SAD that he may feel he needs to do this just to sell his DVD in this country. However, it does seem to me that this is the mentality of many Americans... that unless you say you are running for President (in a system everyone says is toxic but still thinks is good enough for men like Al Gore anyway, especially if they would be running against Hillary Clinton to give them a show) your work doesn't count and you are a has been. What better illustration of that than in the blogosphere where it is only "speculation" threads that elude to him running and people taking his every move apart taking precedence over threads that actually discuss the work he is doing based on its merits?

[Uncle Joe]

97. I have to disagree, Fahrenheit 911 did well and nobody was expecting

Michael Moore to run for President. I believe the American are starving for the truth and Al Gore, more apparently to the people, as time goes by represents the truth.

I believe global warming to be the preeminent crisis facing humanity. I also believe no one on the planet today can do more to shape policy in a effort to avert this catastrophe than the President of the United States.

I am praying Al Gore runs for the Presidency in 08 because I believe no one is more qualified, deserving of the job and I believe the times are screaming for his leadership.

Some people may be nervous that global warming will be turned in to a partisan issue if Al runs, however I believe the issue is too big for that to happen. I believe anyone running, regardless of political party will have to address this issue in 2008. In that regard no one is better qualified to deal with it than Al Gore.

[RestoreGore]

98. I believe it is the people who have the power

" I also believe no one on the planet today can do more to shape policy in a effort to avert this catastrophe than the President of the United States."


Then why didn't people demand this be a main issue in the last election that was only a couple of years ago? Did you write to John Kerry to tell him that? From what I have seen, it would seem that many do now use this issue just to try to get Al Gore to run against Hilary Clinton. Why should he risk another mudslinging sound bite campaign which would have to have him stray from his message on climate change just to risk losing? There is no guarantee he would win, and no guarantee this issue would be number one as him devoting too much time to it as a candidate would have people being turned off to a one issue candidate.

No, as a free man out here able to devote all of his time now to changing minds and enacting policy without having to be constricted, he will achieve progress on this much faster than changing in midstream. And I disagree that the president of this country has the most power. Other countries are doing MORE than we are now because it is the PEOPLE who are taking over the reigns of power on this issue by making changes in all facets of their lives and leading government to changes, not the other way around.

And also in this country, states and cities are coming forward to pledge to Kyoto WITHOUT any president's help. It can happen one person at a time, but of course, rooting for Al Gore to run makes it easier. However, without an informed citizenry to apply pressure you cannot get Federal policy through because it won't be demanded on a scale large enough to warrant it. That is why it is crucial to now support the grassroots effort of getting that enlightenment to citizens first, and at the pace this country is going that will not be done by 2008.

[Uncle Joe]

99. I believe in people power as well, one of the main reasons, I love the internet.

I believe it to be the vehicle for true synergy, however I was not speaking of the plural so much as the singular.

" I also believe no one on the planet today can do more to shape policy in a effort to avert this catastrophe than the President of the United States."

I do believe there are exceptions to this rule as in the case of Martin Luther King, however more often than not the President sets the policy. Can you imagine how much happier we would be if George W. Bush believed in fighting this looming catastrophe as Al Gore does instead of being bought out by the energy corporations?

Today, I believe global warming to be an issue which stands on it's own thanks in large part to Al Gore's work and the grass roots will carry on. Just the other day, Bush's own EPA had scientists coming out stating their views had been stifled. The mass corporate media which trashed and slandered Al for so long is reporting more on this issue as a real threat as well. The cat is out of the bag regarding global warming, except with a few bought and paid for flat earthers such as Inhofe.

Personally, I wanted Al to run in 2004 as well, but I respected his decision not to, the same holds true for 2008. I have no idea how Hillary came in to this conversation, this has absolutely zilch to do with my support for Al Gore? I believe Al Gore to be the best qualified and needed President regardless of anyone else in the race man or woman.

[Supersedeas]

35. Spot on: did Mutt Lauer cough up a lung?

[Pacifist Patriot]

36. Wow, imagine a president who can not only pronounce 4 syllable words...

but uses them properly.

[The Count]

37. The worst thing anyone can tell Jr. On ANYTHING.

Snap!

[gasperc]

39. indeed, he'll probably do the opposite now

Bush's petulant ways, he's probably one nervous refles away from nuking the region

[RestoreGore]

42. I hope Mr. Gore calls for his Impeachment

It should follow in line with his speech of January 16.

[Jennicut]

44. I love having Gore as our DNA

He is definately one of the few Designated National Adults speaking clearly and with conviction. If Gore does not run in 2008 at least we have him speaking to the American public about some of worst problems we face today. This just shows everyone the huge difference between Chimpy and Al. Chimpy is celf centered and delusional while Al is selfless and thinks deeply about our future and our children's future. They could not be more opposite. Anyone who thought there was no difference between them in 2000 is sadly mistaken. I am taken aback by how much more mature Gore is then Dumbya. Its like an adult chiding a child. I guess I shouldn't be so surprised, it reminds me of the SNL skit back in 2000 when the elcection results were in doubt. SNL was joking about what if there was a co-presidency and the two men had to share power. Al was the serious responsible one and Chimpy the irresponsible village idiot. It was hilarious but sad as well because it was soooo true!

[lebkuchen]

47. We lost ten soldiers today, and Lauer wants to focus on slogans

Wouldn't he be better off doing the "Happy Birthday" messages to octagenarians?

[pat_k]

50. Enough empty rhetoric Al. Challenge Congress to impeach-- NOW!

From my post to Jcrowley's
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=364&topic_id=2868789&mesg_id=2868789">Jesse Jackson: Congress must insist Bush isn't above law
(Recommend that others go and Kick & Recommend)

. . .
Jackson misses the mark on a critical point -- a point that reflects the confusion and rationalization that is sabotaging the fight for impeachment. Rather than asserting that Congress has a duty to impeach and make the case, he asserts that they have "a duty to investigate Bush's claims to be above the law."

WRT impeachment, we are long past the need for "investigation." The case has been clear, compelling, and complete for years.

As his commentary makes crystal clear, Bush and Cheney are committing their war crimes and conducting their criminal domestic surveillance program in plain sight. Jackson, like all the others calling for "investigation," fails to tell us WHY they should not immediately move to impeach for these criminal abuses of power or WHAT an investigation could possibly uncover that would be more egregious than the high crimes already proven in the public record.

The Constitution is under attack. Members of Congress are sworn to defend. They are armed and ready. It is time to draft Articles of Impeachment and make the case. Continued and unnecessary delay is dereliction.

Other committees will proceed with broader investigation and oversight -- but those investigations must be independent of impeachment. If they turn up acts they wish to add to the articles, they can resolve to add them. As long as the committee assigned juridiction over impeachment (select, judiciary, whatever) rejects any that unnecessarily complicate the case, no problem.

Members of Congress are betraying their oath and betraying the nation. Our task is clear. We must challenge each and every one to act NOW and take up the fight by introducing or co-sponsoring Articles of Impeachment.

[Disturbed]

61. The simple, short Impeachment of Bush and Cheney.

Thirty two Violations of the FISA Law. No investigation required. Impeach in Jan. '07!

[Warren DeMontague]

70. That's why I'm proud of soon-to-be Speaker Pelosi for not giving in to the media noise

trying to get her to keep Harman in the Intel Chair.

We need someone who will ask the tough questions about that business. Harman wasn't it.

[Warren DeMontague]

68. Wow. Nice try hijacking the thread. But that's completely off the subject.

I guess there's just no pleasing some people.

[ms liberty]

58. I regret that I have only one Recommend to give for my President...

on this thread.

Please Run, Al!

[IntravenousDemilo]

60. BUSH TO GORE: "No, don'tcha unnerstand? It IS about me. Everything is always about ME! MEE! MEEEEE!"

The fucking narcissist...

[elocs]

63. For those of us with dial-up and video challenged, thanks for the transcript. n/t

[mentalsolstice]

65. I can't blame Al for hesitating...

...what sane person would want to inherit Mad King George's mess. I think he hesitates, as he wants to see what happens in Iraq over the next several months.

K&R

[earth mom]

67. Gore is spot on-except * doesn't understand anything because it's ALL about him. nt

[SpiralHawk]

69. "OH, are you really sure it's not about me?" - Commander AWOL

[Faygo Kid]

74. Gore 2008

I believe he is our best chance to turn the tide, if it is not too late already, on a host of issues and hope. Bush over Gore 2000, however it happened, is the worst thing to happen to this nation in our history. It's like the assassinations in the 1960s - only perhaps even more profound.

[Towlie]

75. Al Gore is wrong about Bush

Gore says, "I would urge the president not to — to try to separate out the personal issues of being blamed in history", but Bush doesn't care about how historians will judge him. Remember what he told Bob Woodward:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&rls=GGGL%2CGGGL%3A2006-16%2CGGGL%3Aen&q=bush+history+%22We%27ll+all+be+dead%22&btnG=Search">Asked by Woodward how history would judge the war, Bush replied: "History. We don't know. We'll all be dead."

[Zambero]

96. History will judge Bush long before he goes to meet the devil

History will indeed judge him before his current term expires, no small accomplishment!

[civildisoBDence]

78. DUHbya wanted this war like a child wants a toy

Iraq is his little sand box.

Newsprism

[KatieB]

80. Gore 2008!

[Apollo11]

82. Want more Gore?

It's good to see Al Gore speaking out on Iraq again, after he has spent several months focused on getting across his message about the climate crisis.

Iraq is another issue where Gore has been right all along, and was one of the first senior Democrats to speak the truth.

If you want to learn more about what Al Gore is doing and saying, and share ideas on how to help him enter the race for 2008, check out these sites:

www.algore.com
www.algore.org
www.draftgore.com
www.draftgore2008.org
www.patriotsforgore.com

In Gore We Trust :-)

[RestoreGore]

Why is everything only about 2008 CAMPAIGNING to you?

REAL PEOPLE are dying in Iraq as you hawk 2008 yet again. Do you think everything the man says is just for 2008? And please, once again, take my website Patriots for Al Gore off your list please. It is not a political speculation website, and I respect Mr. Gore's words regarding him not having any plans to run and am not harrassing him about it. I think he knows what he is doing. Perhaps we could actually get something done NOW if people weren't so obsessed with 2008. There are other things going on in this world now that we must pay attention to, and since so many Democrats seem to think it is OK for Bush to stay in office until January 2009, I suspect there will be plenty to deal with in the interim. Iraq is not just something to be used as a campaign slogan.

[RestoreGore]

91. Why is everything only about 2008 CAMPAIGNING to you?

REAL PEOPLE are dying in Iraq as you hawk 2008 yet again. Do you think everything the man says is just for 2008? And please, once again, take my website Patriots for Al Gore off your list please. It is not a political speculation website, and I respect Mr. Gore's words regarding him not having any plans to run and am not harrassing him about it. Perhaps we could actually get something done NOW if people weren't so obsessed with 2008. There are other things going on in this world now that we must pay attention to, and since so many Democrats seem to think it is OK for Bush to stay in office until January 2009, I suspect there will be plenty to deal with in the interim. Iraq is not just something to be used as a campaign slogan.

[Tennessee Gal]

84. Use of the "I" word

It has long troubled me how many times George W. Bush uses the "I" word every time he speaks publically. It is a sure sign of his narcissistic self-involvement. It's all about him. To hell with us.

Narcissism: Excessive love or admiration of oneself. A psychological condition characterized by self-preoccupation, lack of empathy, and unconscious deficits in self-esteem.

It is amazing that his speech writers and/or advisors have not advised against this.

Bush is an egomaniacal, arrogant twit.

Of course that is just my opinion based upon observation.

[fooj]

86. It feels comforting to know that there is an adult in the room.

I'll crawl across broken glass for the guy. I have my fingers crossed. Time to take your rightful place as President. We are in deep shit, sir.

[cassiepriam]

87. Bush is a narcissist, everything is about him. He is the center of the universe. nt

[WiseButAngrySara]

90. k(pete)nr! And a big kick for President Gore. ....n/t

[vote 4 democracy]

95. Bush has no way to retalliate

Narcissists are insecure bullies. They abuse their spouses/families (while lying to, grinning at and joking around with the neighbors)like Bush has abused this country while bending over backwards to look like a good guy with morals. The first neighbor to put their foot down and they lose their cool.
Narcissists need anyone who they perceive "undermines" them or takes their spotlight to "shut up with their reality". Have you noticed that Bushco hasn't really responded to any of Gore's comments? Do you think they realize that if they did respond people would see the cracks in their logic and their underlying motivations? Do you think Gore is pushing them to show their true character? Aside fromt the fact that obviously what Gore's saying is true . . . he is playing this like an amazing psychological poker player (whether wittingly or not - though I suspect he realizes what he's doing).
The neocons all have this mentality of bullying people into shutting up eg the incident with Bolton and the reporter who called him on the fact that the PNAC originated the idea of the new Pearl Harbour and the Iraq war in 1996. His first response was to find out who she was and where she was from to attempt to scare her.
They can't do this to Gore because he has nothing to lose anymore and they know it. Who knows? I believe this could happen to Kerry some day too if he gets past some of his insecurities. Bullies pick on the ones who will cave and Kerry did after his "botched joke". He allowed them to make it bigger than it was with his reaction.
If they push Gore again he will spill all the beans and they're afraid of him. THIS is the man they don't want to run for President again. They know he can beat them because he already has.
I'm all for a woman president or an African American president or both . . . but they WANT Hillary and/or Obama to run because they know they can beat them on those issues alone . . . BUT There's nothing they can do to Gore anymore. They did their worst and he came back punching and that will scare a bully every time. Now THERE'S a man with integrity. That's what this country needs. RUN AL RUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We're begging you!!! I have to believe he will because there's no other way out of this mess.

Edit: grammar

[Cascadian]

100. Gore has to run for President again.

I really wished all of the Democratic nominee prospects would call for the immediate withdrawal of our troops. This convinces me more that Al Gore is the man and this is his time!


John