Kristol Plays Mind Reader and Gets It Wrong
21 October 2008 8:52 am by Taylor Marsh
BY TAYLOR MARSH
Bill
Kristol has a bone in his mouth and he’s not letting go. He thinks he’s
on to something. He also thinks he can read Joe Biden’s mind.
In other words, Biden is forecasting inaction by Obama in the face of testing
by a dictator. I suspect he’s right in this forecast. McCain might want
to clarify this point. It’s not just that Obama’s own running
mate expects an international crisis early in his presidency. It’s not
just that Obama has a weak foreign policy record. It’s that Biden himself
expects what will appear to be a weak response from Obama to testing by a
dictator.
There’s one large problem with Kristol’s rambling, besides the face that he leaves out the central quote of Biden’s comments. He forgets the central theme
of Biden’s remarks too, which came at a fundraiser that was supposed to be closed,
no recordings. Kristol doesn’t even mention it in his column. There’s a reason
for that. It explains everything without having to depend on Kristol’s intuitive
mind reading.
Biden did warn of a time of testing for the new president. As I explained yesterday,
since asymmetrical threats became our primary concern, this has been our reality.
From Bush 41 leaving office, then having the first World Trade Center bombing
just months after Clinton took office, to George W. Bush and 9/11. What Biden
says is that when the challenge happens our adversaries will “find
out this guy’s got steel in his spine.”
There is no way that Biden is implying “inaction.” In fact, he’s
saying out right he knows Obama and they will likely be surprised to find out
he cannot be rattled, that he’s sure footed, calm and doesn’t scare easily.
Obama’s “got steel in his spine.”
Kristol conveniently makes no mention of the mess the Republicans have made of our foreign
policy in the last 8 years. That the Iraqis are currently bickering about the
new agreement, with parliament not so sure they like the deal. That Afghanistan,
a war we had won, is now once again lost. That Pakistan is pulling apart. That
Russia knows how weak Bush is and is flexing her muscles because of it. With
Bush having telegraphed long ago that he looked into Putin’s eyes, seeing his
soul, which was the first sign of just how clueless Bush was about Putin.
Biden was sending a warning. I know some think it was not a good thing to say what he did,
but someone had to say it. Bush is leaving this country vulnerable in any manner
of ways. Our alliances are weaker than they’ve been in decades, our military
is stretched too thin, our economic security is in danger, with our dependence
on others at an all time high. Anyone thinking the next president won’t likely
be challenged in a direct way is delusional. Preparing people for it is important, in my opinion.
So, here’s to hoping Obama’s “got steel in his spine.” Considering
the foreign policy and national security nightmare Bush-Cheney will hand Obama-Biden,
if we win this election, he’ll need it.
