Then lets speak the ENTIRE truth, shall we?
When McCain and Palin appeared at a rally whereby she stated Barak agreed with the surge, she took it completely out of context. But, hey, cut her a break, she only read what was handed her.
I never thought I'd hear O'Reilly actually ADMIT that al Qaeda showed up in Iraq after the illegal and immoral invasion into Iraq, but, he did. He qualified the question to Barak with the statement, "...the Al Qaeda came there after we invaded, as you know....". Do you believe that? Bill O'Reilly actually ADMITTED as a lead in to a question with Barak that al Qaeda did not exist in Iraq before the Bush/Cheney invasion.
Is that what Palin said? No. She structured her words as if Barak Obama were making a new revelation. That isn't what Barak did. He praised the 'work' of the USA soldiers in the field. He didn't agree that the surge was a good idea, but, he stated due to the good work of the soldiers under orders, there was a 'quieting' of the area.
That is what he said. As a side note, there were a lot of civilians killed in Iraq, so just because there was an increase in troops that resulted in lesser street violence, doesn't mean it was achieved in a way that benefited anyone except Bush/Cheney and the USA military in reducing casualities. That is for history to tell after the USA is deployed out of Iraq.
As a matter of fact The Surge was an abject failure when it is noted that the political circumstances of Iraq, which was supposed to blossom with The Surge, is still in shambles. Okay? As recently as a few days ago, the Iraqi military was chased out of Kurdistan. So The Surge is a failure in the goal it was supposed to obtain.
But that isn't what completely astounds me about this revelation.
...All right. Let's go to Iraq. I think history will show it's the wrong battlefield, OK? And I think that you were perspicacious in your original assessment of the battlefield.
OBAMA: I appreciate that.
O'REILLY: I think you were desperately wrong on the surge, and I think you should admit it to the nation that now we have defeated the terrorists in Iraq, and the Al Qaeda came there after we invaded, as you know. We defeated them.
OBAMA: Right.
O'REILLY: If we didn't, they would have used it as a staging ground. We've also inhibited Iran from controlling the southern part of Iraq by the surge, which you did not support. So why won't you say, "I was right in the beginning. I was wrong about that"?
OBAMA: If you listen to what I've said, and I'll repeat it right here on this show, I think that there's no doubt that the violence is down. I believe that that is a testimony to the troops that were sent and General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker. I think that the surge has succeeded in ways that nobody anticipated, by the way, including President Bush and the other supporters. It has gone very well, partly because of the Anbar situation and the Sunni awakening, partly because of the Shia military. Look...
O'REILLY: But if it were up to you, there wouldn't have been a surge....
What is completely obvious is that Reilly admitted the war into Iraq was wrong. Completely and without reservation, the war was wrong. How did he admit that? By stating the circumstances in Iraq worsened with the arrival of al Qaeda after Bush/Cheney invaded a country that was of no consequence to the national security of the USA.
Now, come on. If O'Reilly is willing to state al Qaeda manifested after the invasion, he is also admitting there was a lot wrong with that invasion, including anarchy, ethnic civil wars and we could go on and on. Reilly admitted Iraq's circumstances got worse.
What does that mean?
That means Barak Obama's vote against the invasion is profound. McCain voted to wage an unnecessary war that even O'Reilly admits worsened the circumstances of the Iraqis after the invasion.
Simply put.
Barah Obama has far more insight into foreign affairs and especially where it comes to war.
McCain and Palin owe Barak Obama an apology for victimizing him for his depth of insight in his vote to oppose the invasion.
