SNOW: "Nobody Has Been More Diplomatically Active Than We Have" on ME

[AtomicKitten]

from http://www.thinkprogress.org/
Snow: ‘Nobody Has Been More Diplomatically Active Than We Have’ On The Middle East Peace Process

This morning on the Today Show, White House Press Secretary Tony Snow tried to argue that “nobody has been more diplomatically active than we have” in the Middle East, citing all the phone calls White House officials have made in recent days:

watch it: http://images1.americanprogress.org/il80web20037/ThinkProgress/2006/snowmideast.320.240.mov




Real diplomacy requires more than just phone calls. Secretary of State Henry Kissinger famously went to the region and used “shuttle diplomacy” — meeting repeatedly with each party — to negotiate “disengagement agreements between Israel, Syria, and Egypt” following the 1973 Yom Kippur War. Similarly, in 1996, Secretary of State Warren Christopher spent “seven days shuttling between Damascus and Jerusalem” and successfully negotiated a “truce between Israel and Hezbollah guerrillas.” President Bill Clinton visited Israel in the midst of the 1996 terrorist attacks by Hamas to show U.S. support.

In contrast, the Bush administration has taken a “hands off approach,” and has derided diplomatic efforts as “naive and ineffectual.” Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice will be visiting the region next week, but will not be negotiating a cease-fire.

Full transcript below:

MATT LAUER: Alright, let’s talk about the Secretary of State. She’s going to travel to the region next week. Critics say it’s too little too late, what’s your response?

TONY SNOW: The critics got it wrong. The United States has been very actively engaged on the diplomatic front ever since the beginning of this. Secretary Rice has spoken repeatedly with leaders throughout the region. The President has been picking leaders and speaking with leaders who are not only in the neighborhood, but in the position to provide leverage and influence over the governments who are chiefly responsible for supporting Hezbollah, that would be Iran and Syria. He’s spoken with the King of Saudi Arabia, he’s spoken with the King of Jordan, he’s spoken with the President of Egypt, he’s spoken with the prime minister of Turkey. Every day the departments of state and defense are on the phone with colleagues throughout the region, every day the national security advisor.

So what I’m saying here is that people are talking about too little too late in diplomacy, they may not be keeping the scorecard. But the fact is, nobody has been more diplomatically active than we have.

[SteppingRazor]

1. ...

:rofl:

[pooja]

2. yeah ok.. so diplomatic.. Bush doesn't even know the

geography of the world... if he were to point ot Iraq, could he????

[Demit]

3. Snow is wearing his gangsta chic suit again, I see. n/t

[kenny blankenship]

4. If by 'diplomacy' you mean blitzkrieg- then yeah

yeah you Nazi fucks would certainly take the cake. No developed nation nor any previous US. Administration has "done more" than yours to the middle east, that's true.

[pinto]

5. This wouldn't pass even current, lax truth in advertising standards.

:eyes:

[Totally Committed]

6. Lying effing bastard!

And the MSM allows him to say this on-camera, and middle America believes him. Why? Because they don't balance it with a REAL Democrat talking TRUTH about the shocking absense of diplomacy in this Administration ANYWHERE -- let alone, the ME.

It's so frustrating!

TC

[Contrary1]

7. Your pic of Al and Tipper Gore

laughing has never been more appropriate.

[Sequoia]

8. Androids do what they're told. He's wired all right.