Obama Recruits Baker, Kissinger to Push Senate on Arms Treaty Ratification

[Purveyor]

Source: Bloomberg

Nov. 18 (Bloomberg) -- President Barack Obama enlisted former top defense and foreign policy officials from Democratic and Republican administrations in a bid to push the Senate to ratify a stalled nuclear arms treaty with Russia.

James Baker, President George H.W. Bush’s secretary of state; Henry Kissinger, secretary of state under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford; and Madeleine Albright, President Bill Clinton’s secretary of state, are among the former Cabinet members who are scheduled to meet at the White House today to discuss the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty and its impact on national security, the White House said.

Obama and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev signed the accord in April. When the two leaders met at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum Nov. 14 in Japan, Obama said his “top priority” was winning ratification this year.

Obama’s push for a vote suffered a setback this week when Arizona Senator Jon Kyl, the chamber’s second-ranking Republican and one of his party’s leading voices on nuclear-weapons policy, said the issues are too complex to resolve by year’s end.

Postponing consideration of the treaty until 2011, when the Democratic majority in the Senate shrinks following Republican victories in the midterm elections, may make it more difficult to win approval of the treaty. Ratification requires a two- thirds majority in the Senate.

Read more: http://noir.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601070&sid=aOMViw_wTRf8

[ixion]

1. ah yes, more rethug appeasement

just freakin' ducky.

[Renew Deal]

2. The Dems are on board

They need 7 republicans

I know Lugar is going to vote for it. I think there are some others. I've read that Obama believes the votes are there.

[ProgressiveProfessor]

9. He lost key support already on the Repuke side...current meme is to wait until January

I really do not expect this or any other significant legislation to pass in the lame duck session. IIRC the equivalent/equal pay bill has already been stopped. It won't make it out of the house in the next session in any where near its current state.

[Pirate Smile]

7. Do you understand that we need 67 votes for this to pass? We have all the Democrats. What we need

are Republican votes.

What a crazy idea that the President thinks Republican foreign policy people could help convince Republican Senators to do the right thing.

DU has gotten really stupid lately with knee-jerk negative reactions to anything President Obama does.

I used to think we were the "reality-based" community. I no longer think ignoring facts and reality is primarily confined to the RW.

[ixion]

11. Fact: Henry Kissenger is a war criminal

So sue me if I don't like to work with war criminals.

[Renew Deal]

31. You don't have to

And the republicans he's working with don't agree with you.

[CBHagman]

49. Thank you.

Too few people are following nonproliferation and other issues that don't grab headlines but do amount to life-and-death matters.

[Cal Carpenter]

3. ROFL

[Hell Hath No Fury]

4. Kissinger. Fucking Kissinger.

:puke: Why not bring in Negroponte while you're at it??

[awoke_in_2003]

20. because credit for the original SALT treaty..

can not be given to Negroponte. Kissinger brought SALT, Baker brought START. I REALLY don't want to like this, but, dispassionately, it might be a good move.

on edit- got my arms treaty acronyms scrambled.

[Myrina]

5. Jebus Christmas Almighty, POTUS ...

:hurts: :wtf: :hurts: :wtf:

Does he know ANYBODY who hasn't been on the inside of all this country's downlow SHIT over the past 50 years???

[Moosepoop]

10. Why all the outrage?

Obama has scheduled a meeting to try to get the arms treaty ratified. Is that a bad thing?

The meeting includes the secretaries of state of past administrations. Is that a bad thing?

Yes, the meeting includes Kissinger and Baker, by virtue of the fact that most of our recent presidents were Republican and these were the SoS's that served under GHWB, Nixon, and Ford.

Bill Clinton's SoS, Madeliene Albright, will be there too.

So will Hillary Clinton, our current SoS.

The two SoS's from G.W. Bush's admin will not be there.

Carter's SOS is deceased.

As for non-SoS's, Richard Lugar will be there, but so will John Kerry, Joe Biden, William Cohen and William Perry (the last two being Bill Clinton's defense secretaries).

So yes -- President Obama DOES happen to know a few people who aren't from the "downlow shit" side -- and a number of them will be at this meeting, too. Fancy that.

[frazzled]

6. We should be applauding Kissinger and Baker if they ...

will help to get this treaty passed.

I'm getting really tired of knee jerk "team" reactions here. We should be FOR the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty, and anyone willing to go to bat for it, friend or former enemy, should be employed. The caving thing would be to capitulate to modern day political charlatans like Jon Kyle.

[Pirate Smile]

8. It is becoming an anti-President Obama message board.

Even when he is right, a huge group of people assume he is wrong.

[frazzled]

18. It's not even about Obama: it's about policy

No one is thinking anymore, just playing some kind of odd game of extreme sports.

In the end, we have more people here sounding like (and actually agreeing with) Ann Coulter on things than with rank-and-file Democrats. It's like mass hysteria, and frankly, I find it disturbing.

This discussion should be about the arms reduction treaty, not who's a war criminal from 40 years ago. Hasn't anyone seen Seven Days in May for chrissake?

[XemaSab]

39. If the President of West Germany (or East Germany for that matter)

had suggested bringing Goebbels into a cabinet meeting in 1955, what do you think the natural response would be?

[young but wise]

12. +1

Some people are so strange on this board.

[TwilightGardener]

13. Exactly--an important treaty, and some will still throw a fit because Obama

signed up the "wrong" people to help him pass it. Obama Derangement Syndrome--Not Just For Republicans!

[Name removed]

14. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[ProSense]

16. You forgot

some people believe Obama is Hitler.

[frylock]

17. i know the tyeabagger dumbnuts think that..

perhaps you could direct me to posters here who have stated that? now lets get back to the topic of obama hiring on international war criminals, shall we?

[awoke_in_2003]

22. Don't be silly...

he is Stalin :)

[leftynyc]

29. Does that make it a bad treaty?

Were you for it yesterday and now you're not?

[frylock]

15. yes, we should all be applauding the inclusion of war criminals..

lets all give him a big round of applause. fuck this shit anymore.

[Freddie Stubbs]

19. What war crimes have they been convicted of?

[frylock]

23. really?!

i'm not going to do your research on henry killinger. if it's important to you that obama not ever be criticized for his dumbass desicions, then i'll bid you a good day and a happy life.

[Freddie Stubbs]

24. He has never even been charged, let alone convicted of a war crime. In fact, he recieved the Nobel

Peace prize in 1973:

http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/peace/laureates/1973/press.html

[ronnie624]

35. I don't need a lawyer to tell me

that overthrowing governments, secretly bombing other countries, and murdering hundreds of thousands of people are crimes.

Convicted or not, Kissinger is a criminal. Declassified government documents show this conclusively.

[EFerrari]

46. What does that mean to you?

[awoke_in_2003]

21. as creepy as Kissinger is...

he can be given a lot of credit for SALT, and baker for START.

[Sherman A1]

25. Agreed & Well Said

In his shoes I would do the same. It's the GOP who are holding this up, I think these guys might be able to help just a bit.

[EFerrari]

33. Kissinger is Nixon's Cheney. He's not creepy, he's a felon. n/t

[awoke_in_2003]

57. Very true, E....

the problem with this country is that when crimes (at least in politics) are committed, the next group in decides to "move on to the future and put the past behind us". Worked for LBJ, worked for Nixon, worked for Bush. It is disgusting, to be sure. If just ONCE we held an outlaw president accountable- hoo boy, how things would change. But since that is not going to happen, as democratic politicians seem to be invertebrates, then let us use the republicans heroes against them. Thanks for responding :hi:

[Blasphemer]

54. Agreed

This is a case where enlisting the help of Republicans who are in a position to influence current members of Congress is most definitely a good thing.

[Blasphemer]

55. Dupe... nt

...

[jonnyblitz]

26. LMFAO@ Kissinger apologists on a "progressive" discussion

board!!

I seriously do believe I have seen it ALL now. :crazy:

[ProSense]

27. No one is apologizing for Kissinger

He is being recruited to convince Republicans to support a treaty that they oppose.

As much as you'd like the President to pretend that Kissinger has been convicted of war crimes, he hasn't been.

I find it hilarious that some of the very same people who lauded Jane Hamsher for joining with Grover Norquist are now attacking the President for engaging someone to help him push his agenda forward.

[displacedvermoter]

37. Jane Hamsher didn't invade Cambodia or

overthrow Allende in Chile, but she has criticized Barack Obama, so I can see that to you Kissinger and she are equally evil.

[ProSense]

45. Who the hell was comparing Hamsher to Kissinger? n/t

[frazzled]

28. LMFAO@anti-strategic arms reduction fans on a "progressive" discussion

board@@

I seriously do believe I have seen it ALL now. :crazy:

[leftynyc]

30. Even more fucked up is

that yesterday they were all for it and now that Kissenger is being recruited, it's obviously a bad idea. Morons.

[jonnyblitz]

41. awww, did you just imply i was a MORON?

I am so hurt. :cry:

[Name removed]

44. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[jonnyblitz]

43. yeah because Kissinger is the ONLY one who could do this.

keep SPINNING, it's HYSTERICAL. :D

[Renew Deal]

32. I don't think there are any Kissinger apologists here.

Most people here can synthesize that Kissinger=Bad, START=Good, Kissenger to Republicans=influence.

[riderinthestorm]

34. +1. Obama's best chance to get it passed is during this lame duck session

He's got to do it - 18 hearings on it alone in the past year! This Senate has had more than enough time to "study" the treaty, it's time to get it done. Obama has to move fast to do it, and obviously he's throwing ALL his chips on the table to force the Rethug bluff.

If they wait for the new Senate, it won't pass at all and frankly, that's not a good thing for the US whether you are a liberal Dem or rapid Rethug.

The purity tests here on DU are getting ridiculous.

[groundloop]

36. If the President could use Rush Limbaugh to help ratify this important treaty I'd say go for it

This treaty isn't going anywhere if it doesn't get ratified now. The President is doing the right thing to bring in republicans who are willing to help get it passed. It's just damned sad that the senate gop-ers are so partisan they can't see past their nose to vote on an important treaty. And I agree that it's a shame people here are criticizing the President for doing what it takes to get the treaty ratified.

[jonnyblitz]

40. yeah, whatever.

:rofl:

[Renew Deal]

42. Like I said

Most people

[Purveyor]

38. +1

[Yeahyeah]

47. Darn it! Obama, Kissinger and Baker just want to help people.

[marasinghe]

48. wow! smart guy. he's trying to disarm the reptiles with the old comedy routine.

since -
not prosecuting the bush, cheney, & rumsfeld gang failed to work,
bailing out the banking & health insurance sociopaths failed to work,
continuing clusterfucks in iraq & afghanistan failed to work,
- to convince the 'pukes he was a 'bipartisan'.

maybe getting them to laugh their asses off,
might move the repturds to vote for something.

[Pirate Smile]

50. Obama Forces Showdown With G.O.P. on Arms Pact

Source: The New York Times



WASHINGTON — Just two weeks after an election that left him struggling to find his way forward, President Obama has decided to confront Senate Republicans in a make-or-break battle over arms control that could be an early test of his mettle heading into the final two years of his term.

He is pushing for a vote on a signature issue despite long odds, daring Republicans to block an arms-control treaty at the risk of disrupting relations with Russia and the international coalition that opposes Iran’s nuclear program. If he succeeds, Mr. Obama will demonstrate strength following the midterm election debacle. If he fails, he will reinforce the perception at home and abroad that he is a weakened president.

“It’s really high stakes,” said Geoffrey Kemp, a former national security aide to President Ronald Reagan and a scholar at the Nixon Center, a research group in Washington. “I would say it’s the biggest gamble he’s taken so far, certainly on foreign policy.”

After months of quiet negotiations blew up this week, Mr. Obama on Thursday escalated ratification of the agreement, the so-called New Start treaty, into a public showdown, enlisting former Republican officials and assigning Vice President Joseph R. Biden Jr. to work on it “day and night.” An allied group, the American Values Network, kicked off a television and e-mail campaign.


Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/19/world/europe/19start.html?_r=1&partner=rss&emc=rss

[veganlush]

51. he needs to take it to the people, but sadly I think he won't.

[Arkana]

52. And how would you propose he explain it to the great unwashed masses?

The other landmark arms control treaties in our history were not accomplished after the President "took it to the people".

[veganlush]

56. I don't know, but he's got to try something.

sometimes you gotta do something bold and unexpected. The new GOP does it regularly. Their unprecedented use of the filibuster is an example of that. The use of single Senators blocking all different types of bills is another.

"The other landmark arms control treaties in our history were not accomplished after the President "took it to the people" "

things are different now. The repugunants are digging in with unpresidented resolve to destroy this President. His response so far has been business as usually. Maybe he should call a prime time press conference and explain it all with charts and graphs (Maddow could help with that) . He could show what they've been doing to secure "loose nukes" around the world. Rachel did a piece on it and it was impressive. A press conference would allow people who are not part of the choir to see the facts. That's very important. Something must be at least TRIED------something.

[laylah]

53. War criminal, Kissinger???!!!

OMG :puke:

[defendandprotect]

58. What's with Obama and Kissinger -- and Baker??? Wow ...!!