Schieffer falsely claimed Clinton is "saying ... maybe the surge is working"

[Karmadillo]

http://mediamatters.org/items/200708260001?f=h_topic

Sun, Aug 26, 2007 1:00pm ET
Schieffer falsely claimed Clinton is "saying ... maybe the surge is working"

Summary: On Face the Nation, Bob Schieffer claimed that Sen. Hillary Clinton is "saying it looks like ... maybe the surge is working in the sense that there is less violence there." But as Media Matters for America has repeatedly noted, Clinton actually said: "We've begun to change tactics in Iraq, and in some areas, particularly in Al Anbar province, it's working. ... We're just years too late changing our tactics. We can't ever let that happen again."
On the August 26 edition of CBS' Face the Nation, during an interview with Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards and his wife, Elizabeth, host Bob Schieffer falsely claimed that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) is "saying it looks like ... maybe the surge is working in the sense that there is less violence there." In fact, as Media Matters for America has repeatedly noted, Clinton said in her August 20 speech to the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) that changed tactics in Iraq are "working" -- not President Bush's troop "surge" policy.

According to an August 21 New York Times article, Clinton actually said: "We've begun to change tactics in Iraq, and in some areas, particularly in Al Anbar province, it's working. ... We're just years too late changing our tactics. We can't ever let that happen again." The Times also reported that "ides to Mrs. Clinton said her remarks that military tactics in Iraq are 'working' referred specifically to reports of increased cooperation from Sunnis leading to greater success against insurgents in Al Anbar Province." And according to an April 29 Times article, the progress in Al Anbar "began last September" -- months before Bush announced his plan to increase the number of troops in Iraq.

Moreover, Clinton's statement to the VFW that the changed "tactics in Iraq ... particularly in Al Anbar Province" show "it's working," is not new, as Media Matters has also noted. The New York Daily News reported on August 23 that she made similar comments about the Al Anbar province in March: "Camp Clinton insisted she was talking only about a limited improvement in Anbar, linked to better relations with tribal leaders -- a claim she made to the Daily News in March." Clinton was also quoted in a May 7 New York Observer article saying, "We are making some progress it turns out, in what is called Al Anbar province against al Qaeda and the reason we are is that our military leaders have learned a lot in the last several years there and they have made common cause with some of the tribal leaders, who don't like Al Qaeda any more than we do because Al Qaeda is also going after them."

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[papau]

1. Face the Nation's Bob Schieffer is a right winger who has no problem repeating GOP themes n/t

n/t

[pretzel4gore]

2. rightwingers have no place in media...

not for a generation at least. it's bad enough when left liberal media folks stretch the truth, but as it's generally in the interest of the powerless man versus the mighty few, leftwing dishonesty can be fought fairly, with give and take acceptable over time. The same doesn't apply to the right. They want to destroy meaning of words, trust in basic principles and the very currency of debate. They waana divide and conquer fractious communities, exploit disagreements in democratic societies, to entrench police power at all cost...they wannna destroy life itself. they are evil.

[Karmadillo]

3. Media Matters and the Daily Howler have tracked some of Scheiffer's GOP work

http://mediamatters.org/items/200512030003

http://www.dailyhowler.com/dh121303.shtml

FARM DAZE! Schieffer lied about Farmer Gore—and showed you the soul of your “press corps:”

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 13, 2003

A TEXAS CHRISTIAN: Incredible. Your “press corps’” outrage about Gore’s endorsement only built as the week went along. Late yesterday afternoon, Bob Schieffer appeared for a regular spot on Washington news giant WTOP. Try—try as hard as you can—just try to believe that he said it:

SCHIEFFER (12/12/03): I think that this thing, this Gore thing, I think is rather interesting in that perhaps it tells us more about Al Gore than it does about this campaign. I find it just remarkable that he would basically stab his old running-mate, Joe Lieberman, in the back in order to get himself back in the game. Because that’s clearly what he’s trying to do here is—now once again, Al Gore, who has either sought public office or held public office all his life, sees a chance, one more chance, to get back in the game. I guess his analysis is that if Dean wins, then he’s a king-maker; if Dean doesn’t win, then he’s serving notice to Hillary Clinton you’re not going to have a free run at this thing in 2008, I’m going to be right there again. It’s very interesting—we’ve seen Al Gore change his story, we’ve seen him change his persona, I remember in the 2000 campaign when he showed up at Face the Nation dressed as a farmer! I remember when he changed his—he was going to get out of the blue suits and stuff. Now it seems he just as easily changes his friends. I don’t know what impact this is going to have on Howard Dean but I suspect it’s not going to have a good impact on Al Gore.
We’ve tried to tell you about Schieffer before, but some in HOWLER NATION have resisted. We do suggest that you access the link and listen to the great man yourselves.

Schieffer maintains the demonology that has driven this ludicrous story all week. According to Schieffer, Gore “stabbed his old running-mate, Joe Lieberman, in the back” when he endorsed Howard Dean. Schieffer speculates wildly about why Gore did it—and fails to mention the reason Gore cited. (At one point, he says that Gore’s motives are “clear;” one sentence later, he “guesses!”) And then, of course, the point of it all: Schieffer engages in ugly ruminations about Gore’s deeply soiled character.

So you can see how disturbed—and corrupted—the Bob Schieffers are, let’s review his one original statement. “I remember in the 2000 campaign when he showed up at Face the Nation dressed as a farmer,” Schieffer says, near the end of his rant. If you listen to the tape, you won’t hear a wrinkle of humor in Schieffer’s voice. Indeed, Schieffer seems indignant to think that Gore would have done such a thing.

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