CosmicRocker

WASHINGTON - Republican John McCain raised the specter of a nuclear Iran in a speech to a pro-Israel group, once again chastising Democrat Barack Obama for his willingness to meet with leaders of Iran and other U.S. foes.


McCain has criticized Obama for saying in a debate last year that he would meet leaders of Iran and other U.S. foes without preconditions. The Arizona senator argues Obama is naive and inexperienced to think that such a meeting would yield progress.

"It's hard to see what such a summit with President (Mahmoud) Ahmadinejad would actually gain, except an earful of anti-Semitic rants, and a worldwide audience for a man who denies one Holocaust and talks before frenzied crowds about starting another," McCain told the American Israel Public Affairs Committee.

He criticized Obama for seeming to suggest that Iran is trying to develop a nuclear program because the U.S. refuses to engage in presidential-level talks. McCain said the Clinton administration in particular tried to engage Iran for two years, even lifting some sanctions, to no avail.

"Even so, we hear talk of a meeting with the Iranian leadership offered up as if it were some sudden inspiration, a bold new idea that somehow nobody has ever thought of before," McCain said as dozens in the audience laughed.

His campaign said he was referring to Obama's comments in an interview last month with Fox News: "Iran is stronger now than when George Bush took office. And the fact that we have not talked to them means that they have been developing nuclear weapons, funding Hamas, funding Hezbollah. We have had no impact whatsoever as we pursue our policies."

Obama's campaign said Monday that McCain supports an Iraq war that has made the U.S. and Israel less secure.

"He promises to continue a war in Iraq that has emboldened Iran and strengthened its hand," Obama spokesman Hari Sevugan said. "He promises sanctions that the Bush administration has been unable to persuade the (United Nations) Security Council to deliver."

In his speech, McCain called for measures aimed at increasing pressure on Iran, such as severely limiting Iranian imports of gasoline, targeted sanctions such as denying visas and freezing assets and a worldwide campaign to divest from companies doing business with Iran.

McCain called for financial sanctions on the Central Bank of Iran, which he said aids in terrorism and weapons proliferation, and he criticized Obama for opposing a measure to designate Iran's Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organization responsible for killing U.S. troops in Iraq

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CosmicRocker

so here we have it.McCain wants MORE pressure, and no meeting.
Obama want's meetings without pre-conditions.

Why not set up meetings, with pre-conditions, and an agenda?


The pre-conditions could be Iran withdrawing funding for Hamas,
or promises to not continue to weaponize their energy program, by allowing UN inspectors.

But McCain's wacky ideas of MORE pressures, and NO meetings, is far worse than Obama's ideas.

They are both off the mark - but Mccain's ideas are COUNTER_PRODUCTIVE,
and only lead to MORE hardening by both sides.

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babylonDon

This was the most frustrating aspect of the 'obliterate' statement. Playing to your audience, is a politically expedient move. Nothing new there.

Talking tough is all well and good, and it's been a sadly effective method for Bushco. It's hard to argue with results.

But if Iran is the loose cannon Hill and John portray them as, why do they keep threatening them?

Squeezing them into a corner is bad policy for the future. Boasting about your willingness to do so, and talking in absolutes, is ridiculous and irresponsible.

Why don't they realize the unnecessary foolishness of taunting this country, on the world stage?

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winthrop

Does Iran even have any interest in a meeting with the U.S. government?

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slowhand

Here is McCain going on about Iran, directly after the short Bill Clinton clip

McCain is a fucking idiot!!

ABC News

CosmicRocker

Iran STILL threatens the region, still is intent on hardening the Shiite Crescent.
Iran can STILL start up their weaponization program that we think has been suspended - but as we know INTEL is not hard and fast.

Hillary was making a statement that if Iran has nuclear ambitions - they will be countered by an umbrella of the Gulf,
and Israel by the US.

It wasn't threating to annialate in a vaccum - but if Iran launched a first strike !!! what else makes any good policy?

Further her plan would also help non-poliferation, as the threatened states would not have to develop their own program.

McCain's "plan" ?? more wacky even then BushCo, if that is possible.

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babylonDon

Good question. I imagine there are some issues,they'd like to discuss.

Even if they don't want to, it works in America's favor, to at least make the overture. If there is conflict afterwards, you've at least demonstrated an effort at peaceful negotiation.

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McCain '08: 'He'll Get Those Kids Off Your Lawn'

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poetrychic

this has been explained thoroughly in the other thread...but for shits and giggles, let's just use your supposition that the next president continues bush's policies of making a country jump through hoops before we'll even sit down at the table with them (also known as pre-conditions), in your example above iran must withdraw funding for hamas (though last night you said hezbollah) before we'll even agree to talk with them...and using this supposition, what happens when iran says "NO!", because they won't be bullied and they won't be dictated to in order to even come to the table, then what happens? tensions grow, no one ever talks, anti-this and anti-that sentiment grows stronger and everything escalates into who knows what...

is that the type of scenario you're imagining our president bring upon our country? because that's what happens when you keep playing school yard bully and no one listens on either side...and you better believe that as this country's infrastructure becomes weaker due to a horrible economy etc. that we are going to have increasingly less and less leverage to use against our "enemies" in order to secure the path the united states wants to take, the only real thing we would have left is threat of a nuclear option, and someone will call our bluff...if that happens, in order to save face we would have to use the bomb again, against someone, and you can bet that would create a shitstrom like no one else's business...

is that what you're wishing for?

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babylonDon

Her plan was never the issue for me. And I expect you can perceive how the obliterate line played in any foreign media, that's not sympathetic to the U.S. right now. And as an experienced blah blah blah, she had to know that. And she deemed muscle flexing for her own political gain to be worth it.

I disagreed then. I disagree now.

As far as that being your policy? That's one you whisper, it's not one you yell.

It's like challenging a guy to a fight in a bar. If you let him know you're willing to kick his ass, between you and him? He maybe stops doing whatever it is that's pissing you off. But if you yell at the top of your lungs that you're gonna kick his ass, and you don't let up? You're not giving him any options.

Which is fine, if all you wanted to do was get in a fight.

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McCain '08: 'He'll Get Those Kids Off Your Lawn'

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ibex

Iran is full of people who actually despise the Islamic regime, the stagnantion of their economy and some of the more barbaric policies such as state sanctioned honor killings of women and gays but the ever looming threat of an American attack or invasion unites the populace behind the clerical government. A Clinton or McCain presidency would make an already bad situation worse. Obama is right on target by counter attacking McCain's foreign policy credentials. I would be curious to find out what "preconditions" would have to exist for a meeting between Iran and the US? What preconditions, if any, did Nixon and Kissenger impose upon the Chinese in 1972?