More on Maliki

[Hope And Change]

July 19, 2008
Categories: John McCain

More on Maliki

Marc Ambinder has an interesting exchange between the campaigns on the Iraqi prime minister, in which a McCain aide accuses Prime Minister al-Maliki of playing "domestic politics" — which, being a politician, he surely is. It's his job.

But aren't domestic politics just another way of saying "what Iraqis want"? Seems like it's tough for McCain to publicly reject Maliki's stance here, or to attack him for pandering to Iraqi voters.

ALSO: The Democratic Party sends out a 2004 McCain interview in which he appears to acknowledge that:

QUESTION: Let me give you a hypothetical, senator. What would or should we do if, in the post-June 30th period, a so-called sovereign Iraqi government asks us to leave, even if we are unhappy about the security situation there? I understand it's a hypothetical, but it's at least possible.

McCAIN: Well, if that scenario evolves, then I think it's obvious that we would have to leave because— if it was an elected government of Iraq—and we've been asked to leave other places in the world. If it were an extremist government, then I think we would have other challenges, but I don't see how we could stay when our whole emphasis and policy has been based on turning the Iraqi government over to the Iraqi people.


By Ben Smith 04:00 PM

http://www.politico.com/blogs/bensmith/0708/More_on_Maliki.html#comments

[Happyhippychick]

1. You're not suggesting that ol' McBearings is flip-flopping are you?

:)

[Hope And Change]

3. Of course not.Actually McCain is flop-flipping and not flip-flopping.

:)

[Happyhippychick]

4. Good one! May I steal that line for future use? I'll give you an asterisk if I do.

[Hope And Change]

5. Yeah!

[vaberella]

2. Flippity Floppity at his best. So does that mean we leave Iraq?