McCain Falsely Claims the Iraqi Prime Minister Has ‘Condemned Hezbollah’
McCain Falsely Claims the Iraqi Prime Minister Has ‘Condemned Hezbollah’
Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki has repeatedly refused to condemn Hezbollah for its role in initiating the Lebanon-Israel conflict. Yesterday, in a press conference with President Bush, he “criticized the ‘damage and destruction’ caused by Israeli attacks but said nothing on Hezbollah’s role.†Other Arab states, including Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Egypt, have condemned Hezbollah for its role in initiating the conflict.
Sen. John McCain appeared on Fox this morning and falsely claimed that Maliki has “condemned Hezbollah.” McCain said that, as a result, Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) and others who have criticized Malaki for his position on Hezbollah are “not qualified to lead.” Watch it:
Transcript:
FOX ANNOUNCER: I want to change gears for a minute because the Prime Minister of Iraq, of course, is in the United States, met with President Bush yesterday. He’s going to be speaking at the joint meeting of Congress later on. There’s been a lot of turmoil about this in the last 24 hours regarding Democrats, some saying they’re going to protest this because of the Prime Minister’s comments, or lack thereof, about Hezbollah as a terrorist group. What do you think about the potential protests of this meeting?
SEN. JOHN MCCAIN: Well, we’ve got a conflict going on in Iraq where the United States is fighting and doing everything that they can to help democracy evolve there. The Prime Minister of Iraq and others have condemned Hezbollah and say they do not support them. So, if you want to have our effort in Iraq impaired by this situation, go ahead, but I think the Democrats are proving again why they’re not qualified to lead.
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Attaboy, Johnny — don’t let the facts get in the way of your spin. Gee, ya think McCain’s trying to get the repug nomination for prez or something??? Must be hard to wallow through the slime with his new-found (or is it newly re-found?) wingnut friends.
July 26th, 2006 at 11:11 amNuri al-Maliki is Shia. There’s no way he’d condemn Hezbollah.
War and Piece
July 26th, 2006 at 11:12 amMcCain is a disgrace to all the service people out there! Didn’t he learn anything in that Vietnamese jail? Party before country? What a shame!
t-mac
July 26th, 2006 at 11:13 am…McCain is just another Yesman for BushCo. Did we really think anything else?
July 26th, 2006 at 11:15 amTo save time and energy, as McCain no longer deserves much of either, the posts from this thread and the one below about McCain can be combined.
July 26th, 2006 at 11:16 am#6: Saint McCain lied to attack someone in the Democratic Party? I refuse to believe it. He’s a straight-talkin’, straight-shouton’, never-tell-a-lie kinda guy.
July 26th, 2006 at 11:18 amYou should have seen McCain on the Daily Show the other night. Not much of the “straight talk express” was evident.
July 26th, 2006 at 11:26 amLike a Talking Krusty Doll, McCain’s switch has been turned from “good†to “evilâ€.
July 26th, 2006 at 11:33 amI used to think I would vote for McCain if he got the Republican nomination, but I’ve lost a lot of respect for him lately. If he’s planning on a presidential bid, I don’t know why he would support Bush and the war so much, as unpopular as they are.
July 26th, 2006 at 11:33 amThe Congress has gone crazy over defending Israel’s heinous vicious attack on Lebanon! It is rediculous that McCain and Pelosi defend the slaughter of civilians > most of them children > shame on them, and every member of the Senate, plus 410 fools in the House!
July 26th, 2006 at 11:38 amA little known fact about McCain while he was held as a P.O.W for those 5 1/2 years is that the Viet Cong implanted a second mouth in the the back of his head, McCain has made good use of it ever since.
July 26th, 2006 at 11:42 amWonderful! This will help to enhance our credibility in the world. Thanks Helper!
July 26th, 2006 at 11:54 amJoe Liebermans choice for the Presidency, John McCain throws the DEM party under the bus ……..
Score another shot against your nomination Joe……
July 26th, 2006 at 11:57 amYea McCain laughed it up with Jon Stewart. But he didn’t answer ANY of the pointed questions Jon asked him, and re-asked him & he still refused to answer.
What is it that I used to liek about the guy? He’s bent all over himself waiting for the next bushco/neocon proctological exam and he’ll dutifulyy ask for more. What a good lil pawn. Let’s make him our next republithug Presdiential nominee.
July 26th, 2006 at 11:58 amSo, if you want to have our effort in Iraq impaired by this situation, go ahead, but I think the Democrats are proving again why they’re not qualified to lead.
I wish the media would do its job and confront any politician or candidate for criticizing a political party as a whole (as McCain does here) unless the criticism goes directly to a stated platform that the party has articulated. That way, the politician or candidate would have to “name names” and be more accountable. And then, the criticized person could respond directly. We need to lift the veil and become more transparent.
July 26th, 2006 at 12:04 pmIt’s all been said over and over, John McCain sucks. That is anything he thinks will get him to be prez. How can a Naval Accadamy grad be so dumb.
July 26th, 2006 at 12:04 pmisrael is to be condemned, chuck schumer and hillary clinton and nancy pelosi can all go play with themselves…
July 26th, 2006 at 12:07 pmIscarius -
You should get out more. McCain has been a whore for awhile. (Which is not to say that one can’t respect a whore, but I don’t think that’s what you intended).
t-mac -
July 26th, 2006 at 12:13 pmIt’s not “party before country” for McCain, it’s “winning election before honor”. Of course, there seems to be a lot of stuff like that going on these days, what with Arlen “Cheney’s Bitch” Specter talking big, then weaseling out of any substantive action.
McCain’s public comments lately have been disgraceful. Bush slaps him directly in the face when he put a signing statement on McCain’s own bill and McCain still supports him.
July 26th, 2006 at 12:17 pmNow McCain is lining up with the radical wing of the Republican party and declares Maliki has denounced Hezbollah - we all know Maliki is a shia and there is no way he condemn hezbollah. However, Fox will play that video a hundred times, and people will believe it’s true.
McCain has sold his soul because he wants the presidency in 2008, and if he can’t get that, he wants a Republican regime to carry on so he can get a cabinet position.
McCain is lost.
when the truth is shown, mccain can spend the next two years on the campaign trail explaining his ignorance. not only didn’t this iraqi leader condemn hizbolah, but as juan cole explains in common sense terms even a former POW could understand, no one with a reasonable grasp of facts perttaining to the middle east should have even expected him to do so. gaffe, mccain. open mouth insert foot. those on fox and so forth who believe they can create their own reality in iraq or in lebanon are in for a rude awakening.
July 26th, 2006 at 12:21 pmMcCain knows 2008 is his last shot and obvioulsy believes the the conservative base will carry him to the repub nomination. His advisors must believe that leaving his image as a “moderate conservataive” for a “compassionate conservative” will pay off for him. I hope they are wrong.
July 26th, 2006 at 12:27 pmTweety’s gonna cream his jeans………..”Oh, Johnny, you’re so tough!”
July 26th, 2006 at 12:28 pmRepublicans do this stuff because it works on an utterly clueless public. It’s why they always win elections.
Democrats need to stop whining and learn from them.
July 26th, 2006 at 12:29 pmGoddammit, John McCain! To think I actually thought you were a credible politician!
July 26th, 2006 at 12:34 pmOf course, he does need to get the nomination of the Republican Party. And the Republican party is run by those who are only filled with hate and bile towards everyone but themselves.
I commend you, MildlyDisturbed, but we cannot stoop to the same level as our nemesis. We have to show why we are better than they are. The American people are smarter than you think…
Just the latest chapter in the prostitution of John McCain.
July 26th, 2006 at 12:37 pmwho the f**k thinks mc cain is presidential material? since many americans vote under the ludicrous assumption they are participating in a beauty contest this guy loses hands down. he is old and tired looking and talks without parting his teeth; perferct qualities along with his lack of vision for a president dont you all think ?
July 26th, 2006 at 12:41 pm#9: If he’s planning on a presidential bid, I don’t know why he would support Bush and the war so much, as unpopular as they are.
Several other respondents alluded to this, but he’ll never get the Republican nomination unless he appeals to the conservative wing of his party. That’s why he’s fawning all over Jerry Falwell and other extremists. After he gets the nomination, then he’ll go back to pretending he’s a centrist with broad appeal across the political spectrum. I don’t think McCain stands for anything or believes in anything.
July 26th, 2006 at 12:52 pm#23: Democrats need to stop whining and learn from them.
Learn from them, yes. But I’ll never advocate imitating them.
July 26th, 2006 at 12:54 pmWho’s not qualified to lead?
July 26th, 2006 at 1:01 pmLet’s start with BUSH.
Move on to his entire cabinet.
Shift over to the inept Congress.
And then there is McCAIN, wrong as he is almost always wrong, misquoting alMalaki, and using his misquote to impugn the leadership of those so much more qualified to lead than he.
He’s a clown. He’s a joke. He’s a misanthrope, bitter and battered by his own buddies. He can’t tell friend from foe, death from diatribe. His brain is fried.
Lying, immoral whores everywhere.
July 26th, 2006 at 1:19 pm[…] Is a liar who will apparently say anything to smear his opposition. […]
July 26th, 2006 at 1:22 pmMaybe, just maybe, living in a POW camp causes irreparable harm to your common sense.
I’m not disparaging him, any more than the Repukes turned Kerry’s service into a detriment.
And that goes to show what FOOLS the American public are. We’d rather have a chickenhawk, frat-boy, coke-head, non-reformed alcoholic liar, than an actual, honest, deeply caring man WHO SERVED AMIRABLY?
Follow the money, it leads to the corruption that emenates from evil, self-centered whores/pimps.
July 26th, 2006 at 1:35 pmMcCain’s public statements have been so bizarre lately, you really do have to worry about his health. He may think he’s on the fast track to the presidency, but it’s hard to seem him even making it out of the starting gate in 2008. He’s history.
July 26th, 2006 at 1:53 pmjames riser
“tonight is slow…i welcome you to expand on your attack of what you believe are my epistemological roots…”
That’s your’s right?
So, how can I help You, Sir?
July 26th, 2006 at 1:55 pmDude’s insane.
July 26th, 2006 at 1:56 pm[…] Senator McCain is using some very strong language in his latest attack of Congressional Democrats: The Prime Minister of Iraq and others have condemned Hezbollah and say they do not support them. So, if you want to have our effort in Iraq impaired by this situation, go ahead, but I think the Democrats are proving again why they’re not qualified to lead. […]
July 26th, 2006 at 2:00 pmUsing McCain’s own logic, HE, himself is not qualified to lead.
July 26th, 2006 at 2:13 pm[…] McCain Falsely Claims the Iraqi Prime Minister Has ‘Condemned Hezbollah’ […]
July 26th, 2006 at 2:28 pmStraight Talk Express…FROM HELL
July 26th, 2006 at 2:30 pmI’m a Democrat, and I condemn Pelosi, Emmanual, Lantos, Weiner, Reid and any other Congressional member who attacked Maliki for daring to criticize Israel. Whether they did this seeking to divide Republicans over Israel or highlight Republican failures in Iraq, is irrelevant. It was a disgusting display of support for a country which has violated international law AND US DOMESTIC LAW (Arms Export Control Act) and attacked, invaded and destroyed a sovereign country, forcing more than 700,000 to flee, hundreds of thousands to lose their homes, devastated the infrastructure, and now “apparently deliberately” murdered a half-dozen UNifil representatives, after bombing them for a full day. There is no difference between Democrats and Republicans when it comes to AIPAC. Israel is commiting war crimes and crimes against humanity in Lebanon. That the Democrats support Israel means that the Democratic Party is COMPLICIT in these crimes. Shame on Pelosi and Reid as well as John McCain.
July 26th, 2006 at 2:32 pmCorinne
“Nuri al-Maliki is Shia. There’s no way he’d condemn Hezbollah.”
I apologize, but You are not being fair.
It’s like saying “No Arab will ever live in peace with Israelâ€.
It used to be the case, but today most Arabs do live in peace with Israel.
July 26th, 2006 at 2:33 pmThe Iraq government is a big joke. We see our president and our politicans kissing up to them and Israel at the sme time. Which side are we on? When the entire region erupts into a World War, whose side will Iraq be on? The Iraq’s are all muslims, of one kind or the other, and they will turn against us. We have wasted billions and billions of American taxpayers money and lost a lot of american lives and crippled many more and Iraq is worse off than when we started. They are in a civil war. We need to pull out now.
July 26th, 2006 at 2:33 pmI don’t think McCain stands for anything or believes in anything.
This is not true.
He stands for his ambiton and he believes in his ambition.
And he won’t let anything trivial like principles or ethics get in the way of his ambiton.
July 26th, 2006 at 2:39 pm#42:
Maliki wouldn’t ever condemn Hezbollah, but not because he’s Shia. It’s because his fragile little government would come crashing down around his head if he ever did it.
July 26th, 2006 at 2:45 pmI just phoned McCain’s Washington office (here’s the toll free number: 888 355 3588…you can use this for any congressperson, BTW).
When I mentioned the lie McCain spewed about Maliki and Hezbollah, his staff person informed me that about a half hour ago (that’d be 3:30pm EST), CNN ran a story saying that in private talks with McCain and others, that Maliki had, i fact, condemned Hezbollah.
I haven’t had a chance to see CNN (I’m at work) but if there’s any truth to this story, I hope Maliki’s compatriots in Iraq find about about it and call him on it.
No matter how this pans out, someone (everyone?) is lying.
July 26th, 2006 at 4:05 pmIt surprises you McCain is a liar? He’s a republofascist and his lips are moving, if that the definition of the word “liar”?
July 26th, 2006 at 4:05 pmIt was on Faux right? I don’t think you’re required to tell the truth there. In fact I think you get extra points for just making shit up.
July 26th, 2006 at 4:07 pm#47 Thanks to Bush, democracy is on the march in the middle east
on the march into the sea that is
July 26th, 2006 at 4:45 pmI lost respect for McCain because he’s supported bush after bushco doged him so badly in their primary in ‘99. Sadly that means Guilliani will be the GOP pres candidate and he’s more dangerous than bush. Don’t think he didn’t know 9-11 was going to happen (he was inside cheney and bush’s plans to allow it to happen). He positioned himself in Bldg.7 so he could look like the hero on the spot, but we all know he was flying the planes via remote control into the towers (which is why bldg. 7 was brought down to hide the evidence)…..don’t be fooled people the bigger the lie the easier to con all! They need Guilliani to keep the lie alive and stop further investigations while they continue destroying evidence.
July 26th, 2006 at 4:50 pmOh, WELL! In “private talks” al Maliki denounced Hezbollah. I SEE! So, what we all heard him say in public is to be ignored in favor of what he supposedly said in PRIVATE to McCain! Unh huh. Perhaps the fellow would like to say a few more words in public to clarify his position, and then McCain could tell us what he REALLY said later, eh? Why does the man even have a mouth, if McCain can do all his talking for him?
July 26th, 2006 at 4:54 pmPS…How can people say that Hezbolla is more dangerous than Isreal? Isreal though in a pickel and once upon a time very abused are now the bullies and it’s all payback for Lebenon and Palastine useing the democratic process to elect Hezbolla and Hamas people to elected offices…..payback for being democrats…imagine that? So they (bushco) don’t want democracy they want to pick and control elections there just like they do here. Criminal pigs they should all go to jail, yet the innocent die and more Lebonese are dying yet the news won’t tell the truth!
July 26th, 2006 at 4:54 pmI called McCains office and they said that they got the quote of Maliki saying that from CNN.com
I ask them to put that out in a press release from McCains office then to put an end to the story that McCain lied on FOX news.
I hope that he did lie and that this blows up in CNN and McCains face.
July 26th, 2006 at 5:28 pmJuan Cole:
“The members of Congress also don’t seem to realize that the Iraqi Dawa helped to form the Lebanese Hizbullah back in the early 1980s. The Dawa was in exile in Tehran, Damascus and Beirut and it formed a shadowy terror wing called, generically, Islamic Jihad. The IJ cell of the Dawa attacked the US and French embassies in Kuwait in 1983, in an operation probably directed by the Tehran branch, which was close to Khomeini.
“My understanding is that Nuri al-Maliki was the bureau chief of the Dawa cell in Damascus in the 1980s. He must have been closely involved with the Iraqi Dawa in Beirut, which in turn was intimately involved in Hizbullah. I am not saying he himself did anything wrong. I don’t know what he was doing in specific, other than trying to overthrow Saddam, which was heroic. But, did they really think he was going to condemn Hizbullah and take Israel’s side?
“And if he did, do they think that the Shiite religious parties that backed him would let him stay in office (they are the Supreme Council for Islamic Revolution in Iraq, the Islamic Dawa, and the Sadr Movement of Muqtada al-Sadr)?
(there’s more)
http://www.juancole.com/ 2006/ 07/ congress-expects-islamic-dawa-to.html
(via FirstDraft)
July 26th, 2006 at 5:34 pmThey’re all scared of the lobby that must not be named. (Actually Lantos’ case is different. He is a holocaust survivor, and when he puts the interest of Israel above that of the United States, what he is doing in understandable.)
It is not understandable that Lantos put Israel ahead of the US just because he is a holocaust survivor. What you say is offensive and unpatriotic. Survivors of the Irish Famine did not put Ireland ahead of their adopted country, America. No sir, they thoroughly embraced their adopted country and in many cases fought fiercely in wars for its ideals. Lantos is a jerk and has no loyalty to America.
July 26th, 2006 at 5:58 pmMcCain is certifiably insane.
July 26th, 2006 at 6:07 pmI feel like I owe George W. Bush a debt of gratitude for this one thing: he showed me, albeit indirectly, McCain’s feet of clay. Otherwise I might have made the enormous mistake of voting for McCain someday.
July 26th, 2006 at 6:19 pmPut McCain in the same trash basket with Powell — they are the most insidious of all because they had the trust of the public and they sold out! They sold out for political gain - not for altruistic reasons or mistaken idealistic notions — they sold out for their party!
July 26th, 2006 at 6:30 pmwe all loved him for his services to the country and sympayhized with him for his experiences in Vietnam but its time to stop milking it. Poor John’s PTSD is overwhelming him and he needs to ride off into the sunset
July 26th, 2006 at 6:49 pmIsrael in the “New Middle East”
America’s dream is to build a “New Middle East.” But this time, the New Middle East will be created by an upheaval of the entire system, and not just by signing on an agreement. Should America succeed, a New Middle East will indeed emerge, demanding that Israel formulate its own strategy.
Ultimately, the war against Hizballah must be waged by Israel and not America. Israel cannot allow Middle East wars to be fought by the Americans alone. Israel must abide by the principle that guided it during its first years of independence: Israel must defend itself by itself.
If the majority of Americans fall for this deception, they will be happy to replace George Bush with some other Zionist puppet, in which case, nothing will improve! The Americans will be suckers again!
The criminal Zionist network will still have control of our media, our banking system, our government, and our military.
We must get better leaders in power. This requires investigating all of these investigators. If there is one lesson to learn from history, it is that no one deserves blind obedience.
July 26th, 2006 at 8:38 pmHow could a Naval Academy grad(barely) get so stupid? Lets see, Boner graduated Yale and then got an MBA from Harvard…His daddy(Skulker) may have been able to influence that, ya think? Of course having a high-ranking and very political Naval officer for a daddy wouldn’t have have helped the Straight Shooter, NAWH, didn’t think so…LOL
July 26th, 2006 at 9:25 pm[…] Lefty (Soros funded) Think Progress is hammering McCain over whether or not Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Makiki actually said he condemned Hezbollah. […]
July 26th, 2006 at 11:13 pmAnd thinkprogress and the rest of the lefties are happy about it. The nazi left in the US is following their nazis leaders in Europe rooting for Hezbollah.
It should be educational for rational thinkers to observe the left and their inability to hide their hatred of Israel. And once again, the left allies itself with the islamo-fascists.
July 27th, 2006 at 2:48 amThe TRUTH behind the Hezbollah incident that Israel used as a pretext to invade another country
Check out the maps and explanations
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DqR1qcWtnpg
July 27th, 2006 at 6:20 amWhat is an “Islamo-facist” anyway? It sounds like something someone just made up, as some sort of an insult. It just sounds stupid.
July 27th, 2006 at 7:44 am[…] Senator McCain has falsely claimed that the Iraqi Prime Minister has “condemned Hezbollah.” He then went on to criticize the Democrats who criticized Malaki for his position, calling them “not qualified to lead.” Feel free to tell McCain what you think of his qualifications by calling/writing him here:Â Phone: (202) 224-2235Â Fax: (202) 228-2862 […]
July 27th, 2006 at 9:28 amMCAIN SHOULD NOT HAVE LIVED TO RETURN AND SELL OUR COUNTRY OUT, HE AND BUSH ARE BOTH REPUBLICAN SCUM. I LIVE IN ARAZONA AND IF YOU GO TO HIS WEB SITE IT SAYS HE WILL NOT RESPOND TO YOUR EMAILS UNLESS YOU ARE MAKING A DONATION, WHAT A SLUT.
July 27th, 2006 at 12:01 pm[…] This is worth noting not because all of that was conventional wisdom back then, but because — unfathomably — it is still the conventional wisdom. Howard Dean is still considered a far left extremist who is completely “unserious” about national security and whose party — all together now — can’t be trusted with national security. […]
July 28th, 2006 at 10:39 amCNN ran a story saying that in private talks with McCain and others, that Maliki had, i fact, condemned Hezbollah..
Must have been one of those dick cheney secret meetings, Either way johnny mac is in a world of shit. Poor johnny, he was swift boated by Rove on his first try, now scared to death it will happen again he’s kissing ass. Makes one think maybe there was some truth to what rove was saying about him hmmmmmmmm why so scared johnny. Oh well here’s hoping he gets the nomination, there’s no way we can lose to this idiot, what goes around comes around.
FLIP- FLOP, FLIP FLOP, The dems new mantra for mcain
July 29th, 2006 at 3:54 am[…] McCain Falsely Claims the Iraqi Prime Minister Has Condemned …Think Progress, DC - Jul 26, 2006FOX ANNOUNCER: I want to change gears for a minute because the Prime Minister of Iraq, of course, is in the United States, met with President Bush yesterday. … […]
August 2nd, 2006 at 8:05 pmWell I don’t know for sure who would be qualified except, it ain’t Johnny Boy! I used to think he might be someone that had it together but he’s so far up Dubya’s Dari air I though Bush had grown a tail. He really wants that nomination so maybe some good Republican should give it to him.
August 11th, 2006 at 11:07 pm