Its Time for Clark to Go

Over the last week, General Wesley Clark decided to run his mouth. . He then dug the hole a little bit deeper with an obnoxious Facebook update of all things, and then tried, badly, to clarify whatever it is he may have meant.

Clark’s comments have backfired badly. They make Clark look really bad, while at the same time, reminding people how utterly unqualified Obama is for the Presidency.

Because in the matters of national security policy making, it’s a matter of understanding risk, it’s a matter of gauging your opponents and it’s a matter of being held accountable. John McCain’s never done any of that in his official positions. I certainly honor his service as a prisoner of war. He was a hero to me and to hundreds of thousands of millions of others in the armed forces as a prisoner of war. He has been a voice on the Senate Armed Services Committee and he has traveled all over the world. But he hasn’t held executive responsibility. That large squadron in the Navy that he commanded wasn’t a wartime squadron. He hasn’t been there and ordered the bombs to fall. He hasn’t seen what it’s like when diplomats come in and say, `I don’t know whether we’re going to be able to get this point through or not. Do you want to take the risk? What about your reputation? How do we handle it publicly?

SCHIEFFER: I have to say, Barack Obama has not had any of those experiences either, nor has he ridden in a fighter plane and gotten shot down. I mean…

So while General Clark’s comments make work out to McCain’s advantage in the long run anyway, Senator McCain decided to take a page out of Senator Obama’s playbook and demand that Obama dump Clark.

“I think it’s up to Sen. Obama now to not only repudiate him, but to cut him loose,” McCain said to a small group of reporters somewhere between Indianapolis, IN, and Cartagena, Colombia.

Tags: Barack Obama, Wesley Clark

11 comments July 1st, 2008

Do the Democrats Really Want to Go There?

Following up on Matt’s post below on Glora Steinem’s derisive comments, it appears Sen. Clinton’s campaign is now trashing Sen. McCain’s time in the military. Specifically, Wes Clark employs the canard that McCain’s experience as a fighter pilot and POW don’t alone prepare him to be Commander in Chief. I agree. That in and of itself doesn’t qualify Sen. McCain for the job.

Of course, there’s a few qualifications that Clark conveniently leaves out. James Joyner of Outside the Beltway Blog lays out some of them:

But McCain’s experience isn’t limited to that Clark had as a mere company commander in Vietnam; he rose to the rank of captain (equivalent to an Army/Air Force/Marine colonel) and did a tour as the Navy’s liaison to the United States Senate. He followed that with four years in the United States House of Representatives and another 22 as a United States Senator. He’s a former Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee and is now the committee’s Ranking Member.

Be sure to check out James Joyner’s full post  at Outside the Beltway Blog.

Tags: blogs for mccain, experience, Gloria Steinem, John McCain, mccain blogs, Wes Clark, Wesley Clark

10 comments March 3rd, 2008