Clinton In Nashua : "After 9/11, I would never have taken us to war in Iraq"

[ariesgem]

In Nashua, Hillary skates on the edge of Iraq revisionism:

"After 9/11, I would never have taken us to war in Iraq," she said. "I would have stayed focused on Afghanistan because the real threat was coming from there."

Now, that's probably true in the literal, alternate history sense: As president, she wouldn't have taken the U.S. into war. But it also revives a conversation that had flagged, about her initial vote for the use of force.

UPDATE: Obama spokesman Bill Burton takes a shot:

Hillary Clinton may try to rewrite history, but it's hard to believe she didn't know what would happen after she voted for a resolution with the title ?A Resolution to Authorize the Use of United States Armed Forces Against Iraq.? While Hillary Clinton continues to make the same kind of attacks that voters are rejecting, Barack Obama will continue telling voters about his consistent opposition to the war in Iraq from the start, and his plan to bring our troops home.

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0108/Back_to_Iraq.html

[DS1]

1. What a gagtastic spin

God, I can't stand fucking liars like her.

[Maven]

2. ???

"While Hillary Clinton continues to make the same kind of attacks that voters are rejecting, Barack Obama will continue telling voters about his consistent opposition to the war in Iraq from the start..."

How is what she said an "attack?" HE'S the one attacking!

Unbelievable.

[jenmito]

9. He's talking about her attacks in the last few days up to today.

Not that particular comment.

[Cha]

16. NOt in this statement, harvey..

hillary has been slinging mud for awhile now..please try and keep up.

[Maven]

19. I'm keeping up fine.

The statement by Burton was an attack...he basically called Clinton a liar and in the same statement denounced Hillary's attacks.

Regardless of what statement he happened to be referring to, it's hypocritical of him to claim the moral high ground and then do exactly that which he accuses his opponent of doing.

[Cha]

28. hillary is a liar and

I'm glad it's getting out there.

[Joe the Revelator]

33. Telling the truth isn't "attacking". Hillary can't just make shit up and...

expect not to be called on it.

[Maven]

39. You mean like the pharamaceutical lobbyist debacle?

I'm just saying, you do discredit to your own cause by practicing a double-standard.

Both sides have unclean hands as far as I'm concerned.

[Joe the Revelator]

41. Wheres the double standard?

Having a former lobbyist advising you or having a guy REGISTERED to lobby for you as a co-chair is not a big deal to me.

Voting for the IWR then trying to lie about it, that IS a big deal, and it should be to any anti-war progressive.

Lobbyist don't bother me, war does.

[Evergreen Emerald]

3. He is spinning. Read her speech before the IWR vote

And how dare he, as he continues to support the war.

[ariesgem]

21. At the very least, she blurred the line with her support of her IRW vote by connecting 911 with Iraq

April 2004: Larry King asks Clinton whether she's "sorry" that she voted to authorize the use of force in Iraq.

"No," she says. "I don't regret giving the president authority, because at the time it was in the context of weapons of mass destruction, grave threats to the United States, and clearly, Saddam Hussein had been a real problem for the international community for more than a decade. What I regret is the way the president used the authority."

King asks Clinton if she's "frustrated" or "rethinking" her vote on the resolution.

"No," she says. "I believe strongly that after 9/11, we have to be prepared to take action to protect our country, to protect our friends and allies, American assets around the world ... Now that we're there, we're going to have to make the best of it. I think it could have been handled differently ... For the life of me, I don't understand how they had such an unrealistic view about what was going to happen."

http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0404/20/lkl.00.html

[Proud2BAmurkin]

4. I would bet my life Hillary wouldn't have gone into Iraq and neither would most D's who voted IWR

.

[incapsulated]

8. Thank you

I don't forget those who voted for IWR but I don't for a second imagine they would have decided to go into Iraq on their own, either. Not the dems.

[Proud2BAmurkin]

10. Agree, it's really two separate issues, voting for IWR vs initiating the war nt

nt

[AtomicKitten]

11. Of course not, but that doesn't explain why they gave Junior a blank check.

Trying to rewrite history is a Hail Mary pass.

[Arugula Latte]

Well, then why didn't she stand up and scream out: "THIS IDEA IS NUTS!!!"

She has the megaphone as a U.S. Senator, and she didn't use it. She went along so the media wouldn't call her a "terrorist lover."

And her phony-baloney stances on the issue have come back to bite her on the ass.

[DemCam]

43. I would, too, Proud2BA

Her vote on the resolution has nothing to do with what she
would have done if she were at the helm. In fact, GW et. al.
are probably the only folks on the planet who would have used
the trust of the American people to do such a thing...may they be
very, very warm and uncomfortable for eternity for having done so.

[BlueManDude]

44. Agreed. Equating a YES vote with doing exactly what Bush did is ignorant.

[zulchzulu]

5. She should just say: Hi everybody. I think you're all stupid

Is she on acid now?

So she would have never gone to Iraq, even though she voted to go into Iraq. Wow, her pupils in her eyes look huge!

[Dems Will Win]

6. This is the dumbest thing she's done the entire campaign - and that's saying A LOT

IT makes her war vote the issue the day before the vote!

What a political dope.

[aquart]

7. That's true.

She wouldn't, to begin with, have called it an act of war. That was a deliberate positioning and neither Bill nor Hillary would have said it. (Nor I think, ANY president not pre-determined to invade a non-belligerent nation for any available excuse.) So the trajectory of our response would have been completely different.

This isn't a rewrite. She would have handled it differently. There never would have been an IWR to vote on. Because the discussion wouldn't have come up. Afghanistan? That I can't say. I'm thinking tactical strikes. A war is just too damned expensive for a woman to waste money on.

I know you want her to be a lying liar. But she isn't. Not about this.

Our whole experience with the Clintons shows they would have built on the goodwill of the world after 9/11, NOT destroyed it by doing what everyone on the planet opposed except Cheney and George. If you say that isn't so then YOU are the one who's lying.

[Lucinda]

20. Exactly.

I doubt anyone else other than junior would have "created" the course that was taken.

[Cha]

12. THen WHY did she support

bushits agenda for 5 bloody years including the initial IWR that's she NEVER apologized for?

That shit won't fly, hillary. Fooking pandering after she has blood on her hands.

[Arugula Latte]

13. Oh, shut up Hillary. You are such a phony, and the voters see through you.

And that is why you are going down.

The argument that the IWR wasn't a vote to go to war is BOGUS. Everybody knew Bushco was going in. She helped ENABLE that. Now she wants it both ways. The vote she cast for her political expediency has come back to bite her on the ass.

[aquart]

30. Which is NOT what we're discussing now.

Since you have trouble focussing, perhaps a nap?

[Arugula Latte]

45. The argument that she wouldn't have initiated it is just bogus.

If she thought it was a bad idea, she should have said so. But she didn't. She went along with it.

I can understand why you're cranky, though...Hasn't been a good few days for Hillary supporters.

[jenmito]

14. And Bill said he was against it from the beginning.

You can't believe a word these two say.

[Windy]

22. and I've got a very nice bridge to sell you in brooklyn!

He made an ass out of himself with the inane comment. She is doing the same.

[jenmito]

23. I agree...

It's sad to see them go down this road.

[ingac70]

15. She is such a liar. n/t.

[Cha]

17. Oh that hillary...just a

fucking liar when get down to it..pandering, desperate mudslinging, hypocrit.

[Lucinda]

18. Seems accurate. Junior cherry-picked intel to get the result he wanted.

There is no reason to think Hillary or any other CIC would have done the same...

[wellst0nev0ter]

25. An Enabler Is An Enabler Is An Enabler.

She can run from her record, but she can't hide:

"If the most important thing to any of you is choosing someone who did not cast that vote or said his vote was a mistake, then there are others to choose from".

New Hampshire, Feburary 17, 2007

[Lucinda]

27. BS. NO Dem POTUS would have done what junior did.

I can't beleive you would think that any of them would. Amazing.

[Dr Fate]

29. She could have said "no" to "what junior did"- but she said "yes."

And maintained her support of the invasion until fairly recently.

If she was so opposed to Bush faking info and diverting defense efforts, then she could have said so and voted accordingly at the time that she is trying to turn back to now.

[wellst0nev0ter]

47. Yep If She's Not Renouncing That Vote

Because she is afraid of the neocons, how would she act when the neocons would have pressed her to fight O-Saddam Bin Laden?

[aquart]

32. But she's not talking about the IWR vote.

You, too. Naptime. Come back when you can focus.

[Dr Fate]

34. But we are. And she voted "yes", not "no." She DID allow the invasion of Iraq

She certainly didnt say "no" to it. I never heard her protest it or speak out against it before it happened.

Just because Hillary wants to somehow separate her "yes" vote to the invasion from the actual invasion itself doesnt mean everyone else will.

[wellst0nev0ter]

46. She Voted For The War. Deal With It.

When push came to shove, she didn't do the right thing. Hell, she didn't even read the intelligence reports necessary to do the right thing. If she was sincere about doing the right thing now, then what is the problem renouncing her IWR completely?

[Dr Fate]

26. Except Hillary didnt point that out. Instead she said "yes" to the invasion.

The average DUer pieced together the available legitimate and even mainstream news sources and figured out they were lying-certainly before the invasion, in fact.

Hillary voted "yes"- if she really was opposed to relying on fake info, she could have said so in a speech before a "no" vote. At the least, she could have retracted her position and pointed out this kind of thing before the invasion.

[Dr Fate]

24. Hmmm-a fib or a big stretch there-she voted "yes" to the Invasion.

If she wants to say she would not have invaded, then a "no" vote as opposed to her "yes" vote would make more sense...

[aquart]

35. Okay, is this some mass reading difficulty? A flaw in our school system?

Once again, Hillary is NOT discussing IWR. She is discussing what SHE would have done as president after 9/11. BEFORE IWR EVER WAS DISCUSSED OR THOUGHT OF BY CONGRESS. Her course would not have taken us to war.

Try to concentrate. You can read this correctly if you really try. Or perhaps there's someone you can get to help you.

[Dr Fate]

38. I would believe her if she had said "no" to the invasion instead of "yes" to it.

If she would have acted differently than Bush as Executive, then she would have said "no" to him in her vote, not "yes."

LOL! You say I have a comprehension problem, but I'm not the one who seems to be confusing the word "yes" with "no."


Please-Just because I dont buy the continuing spin on her "yes" vote doesnt mean I'm confused or that I dont know what she is trying to say.

[Joe the Revelator]

31. This, in a nutshell, is why I can't vote for Hillary Clinton

Every politician lies, her's are just amazing transparent and dangerous.

[aquart]

36. Because you don't understand a thing she says?

I definitely get that.

[Joe the Revelator]

37. I understand that she is a liar who also was a catalyst for the Iraq war

That part isn't hard to understand at all.

[Sulawesi]

40. With respect, suppose you are correct, if she was president she would not go into Iraq.

Now imagine she feels that way, but that George Bush asks for authorization to invade Iraq. I think she would say "no", but she said "yes". I think people are correct to be puzzled by her comments today. If things are different with hindsight, why not just say that?

[BootinUp]

42. Good for her. nt