His baby died!

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FADED CELEBRITY IN CHIEF BARRY O LAUNCHED A FRANTIC CAMPAIGN TO SAVE HIS TRADE BILL.

BUT EVEN RUNNING TOPLESS DOWN PENNSYLVANIA AVENUE DIDN'T SAVE THE BILL.

AS IT APPEARS TO BE DEAD, BARRY O STOMPED HIS FEET AND INSISTED, "GUYS! GUYS!  I STILL HAVEN'T PUT ON MY CROTCHLESS PANTIES!  GUYS! GUYS!"

FROM THE TCI WIRE:

The Washington Post's Eugene Robinson offers some consolation, "Don't feel bad if you’re confused about what the United States is trying to accomplish in Iraq. President Obama doesn't seem to know, either --  or else he won't say."

Yes, no one gets Barack Obama in trouble more than Barack and his own mouth and his declaration Monday ("We don't yet have a complete strategy because it requires commitments on the part of the Iraqis.") continues to haunt.

In June of last year, he sent US forces into Iraq to determine what to do.  

Apparently, their efforts were in vain since all this time later Barack still doesn't know what to do.

 "We don't yet have a complete strategy because it requires commitments on the part of the Iraqis."

Many have noted over the ensuing months that Barack's 'plan' was less than a plan -- so much less than a plan.  And on Monday, Barack chose to agree with his critics. 

It was June of last year when Barack announced that the only solution to Iraq's crises (plural) was a political solution.  

Yet his 'plan' ended up being to send US troops into Iraq as 'trainers' and to have US war planes bomb the country daily.

The political solution would, apparently, have to wait.

And it has which has rendered any US efforts useless.

From time to time, State Dept officials such as Brett McGurk or Antony Blinken will try to insist that efforts to get Sunnis to join in combat against the Islamic State qualifies as a political solution.

No, it doesn't and, no, Barack was not referring to that on June 19, 2014 when he declared a political solution the only answer for Iraq.

What can't be discussed by the White House, gets aired on CBS This Morning (link is video):

Gen Ray Odierno:  Well I think first I would just say that you've got to understand why this is happening.  And my thought is we had this in a good place three or four years ago and-and Iraq was safe, the economy was growing, we turned it over to the Iraqi government.  I believe it's because the Iraqi government has not been able to bring all the different groups together.  Until you solve that problem, in my mind, it doesn't matter how many people you put on the ground --

Charlie Rose: That's right.

Gen Ray Odierno:  And so my worry is: Could I put 150,000 soldiers on the ground and defeat ISIS?  Yes. But then --

Charlie Rose:  If you put 150,000 --

Gen Ray Odierno:  But then what?

Charlie Rose:  If you put 150,000 on it, it would defeat ISIS?

Gen Ray Odierno:  Yeah.

Charlie Rose:  But then what?  But then what? 

Gen Ray Odierno:  You have to solve the political problem.

Charlie Rose:  It would go right back to where we are.  A year later it would be right back to where we are today.  So I believe before we even consider anything like that, we need to solve --

Gen Ray Odierno:  The political problem.

Charlie Rose:  -- the political problem. 

Gayle King:  But do you think -- General, do you think we're leading towards ultimately boots on the ground?

Gen Ray Odierno: I-I think what we're trying to do -- Listen, in order to solve this problem, you need the Arab communities to solve this problem.  The United States cannot solve this problem by itself.  We need the Arabs to step up.  We need them to understand we have extremism here and they have to help us and include the Iraqis --

[cross talk]

Gayle King: And why haven't they done that?

Gen Ray Odierno:  Well again, there's this underlying -- there's this underlying throughout the Middle East, there's this underlying Sunni - Shia issue.  Iran, Saudi Arabia -- Sunni - Shia issue -- that's playing out.  And that's what's making it more difficult for us and for anybody else to help them defeat this threat. 

Gayle King and Charlie Rose are two of the hosts of CBS This Morning.  The third host is Norah O'Donnell who also took part in the interview.  She raised some issues I'd like to get to next snapshot but we don't have time tonight. 

Our point above is that General Odierno can and will talk about what is needed while the State Dept stays silent.

A political solution is needed, a unified government that is not targeting Sunnis.

This effort should be led by the State Dept but it's not leading on it, it's not helping with it, instead the White House has tasked the State Dept with using diplomatic channels to try to bring in more trainers and war planes from other foreign countries.

The political solution is not being addressed.

It's being ignored.

 Ray Odierno is correct that a political solution is needed and it is the only thing that will change anything.

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Call it a - uh - dance off!

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SCHOLAR NOAM CHOMSKY HAS DECLARED THAT CRANKY CLINTON IS JUST LIKE FADED CELEBRITY BARRY O ONLY MORE MILITANT.

REACHED FOR COMMENT, BARRY O TOLD THESE REPORTERS THAT THE REMARK WAS "HIGHLY OFFENSIVE.  MY VAG-JAY IS MUCH CUTER THAN HERS IS!"

REACHED FOR COMMENT, CRANKY CLINTON TOLD THESE REPORTERS, "HE'S PROBABLY RIGHT.  I'M SURE IT'S MUCH MORE DAINTY!"

FROM THE TCI WIRE:




Yesterday's whispers and speculation were accurate, Barack's sending more into Iraq. Today, the White House issued the following announcement:

The White House

Office of the Press Secretary

For Immediate Release

June 10, 2015

Statement by the Press Secretary on Additional U.S. Steps in the Counter-ISIL Effort

In furtherance of his comprehensive strategy to degrade and destroy the ISIL terrorist group, President Obama has approved additional actions to enhance the implementation of the counter-ISIL campaign.
To improve the capabilities and effectiveness of partners on the ground, the President authorized the deployment of up to 450 additional U.S. military personnel to train, advise, and assist Iraqi Security Forces at Taqaddum military base in eastern Anbar province. The President made this decision after a request from Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi and upon the recommendation of Secretary Carter and Chairman Dempsey, and with the unanimous support of his national security team. These new advisors will work to build capacity of Iraqi forces, including local tribal fighters, to improve their ability to plan, lead, and conduct operations against ISIL in eastern Anbar under the command of the Prime Minister. This effort will complement the ‎efforts of U.S. and coalition trainers at the four previously-established training sites in Al-Asad, Besmaya, Erbil, and Taji, where over 9,000 Iraqi troops have already been trained, with an additional 3,000 currently in training. These additional U.S. troops will not serve in a combat role and will augment the 3,100 U.S. troops who have already deployed to Iraq.
This train, advise, and assist mission builds on lessons learned during the past several months and is just one aspect of our commitment to support the Iraqi Security Forces. Toward this end, the President has also directed the expedited delivery of essential equipment and materiel in coordination with the central government to Iraqi forces, including Peshmerga and tribal fighters, operating under Iraqi command, to ensure that our partners have the equipment needed to effectively fight ISIL.
The President also approved a comprehensive approach to aid the Iraqi government’s efforts to support the people and communities living in areas newly liberated from ISIL. At the President’s direction, the United States has been working closely with the Iraqi government, the global counter-ISIL coalition, and the United Nations to develop a holistic framework to help the Iraqi government provide sustained security, services and assistance, and local governance among other key support. The United States fully supports the development of an international fund facilitated by the United Nations to help these communities across Iraq recover.
More broadly, we will continue our efforts to leverage all instruments of power to counter ISIL globally and most importantly, to protect the US Homeland. Thousands of foreign fighters – including Europeans and some Americans – have joined ISIL in Syria and Iraq. We remain concerned that these trained fighters will return to their home countries and carry out attacks and seek to inspire supporters to conduct attacks at home, and the President directed his national security team to intensify efforts with coalition partners to stem the flow of foreign fighters to and from Iraq and Syria.
The President also reaffirmed U.S. support for the efforts of Prime Minister Al-Abadi and other Iraqi leaders to build an inclusive and effective governance structure within which all of Iraq’s diverse communities feel that they have a say in determining the future of their country. In this regard, the U.S. will fully support the plan endorsed by the Council of Ministers on May 19 for the liberation of Anbar, as well as the Iraqi Government’s priority of de-centralization to empower local communities in line with the Iraqi Constitution. This “functional federalism” effort being pursued by the Iraqi government is integral to ensuring that ISIL – once defeated – can never again return to Iraqi soil.

Kristin Donnelly, Alicia Jennings and Halimah Abdullah (NBC News) note, "The U.S. troops will not serve in a combat role and will augment the more than 3,000 U.S. troops who have already deployed to Iraq, according to administration officials. The first wave moving to the Taqaddum base will be forces already in country on the ground, and then the administration will pull additional forces from out of country to that site."  Wolf Blitzner (CNN -- link is video) explained it this way, "President Obama is now planning to send another 450 US troops to Iraq after confessing just days ago that the US lacked a 'complete strategy' for fighting the terrorist group."


On All Things Considered (NPR -- link is audio and text), host Audie Cornish discussed Barack's move with NPR correspondent Tom Bowman:

CORNISH: There are these 450 U.S. military trainers. Is this actually a change in U.S. strategy, or are we seeing more of the same?


BOWMAN: You know, it's really more of the same. The U.S. will now have about 3,500 troops there. And we're seeing a bit of a change in focus with these new troops - trying to get more Sunni tribal members to fight alongside the army that is largely Shia and take on the so-called Islamic State. Now, they'll be working out of a base not too far from Ramadi. It's called Taqaddum, and it's also, interestingly, where the Marines were stationed during the war. And, of course, Ramadi is a provincial capital, as you said, that was seized by ISIS just a several weeks ago.


Later in the broadcast, Cornish spoke with former US Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker who stated, "I think the real significance of the announcement today is not in the number of trainers. It's in the indication that the U.S. is thinking seriously about this, is engaging, perhaps in a way we haven't so far. So I hope there's more to follow. That would be the significance."  US House Speaker John Boehner participated in a press conference today and was one of many weighing in on the announced action.  Martin Matishak (The Hill) quotes Boehner stating, "I support the tactical move the president's taking, but where's the overarching strategy to deal with state -- the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the region, Iran, and to deal with ISIL and all of their related groups?"




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He's smoking

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FADED CELEBRITY IN CHIEF BARRY O HAS A NASTY HABIT -- AND IT DOESN'T INVOLVE YOUNG BOYS!

YES, HE'S BACK ON THE FAGS, THE SMOKES, THE CANCER STICKS, THE CIGARETTES.


REACHED FOR COMMENT, MICHELLE OBAMA SAID, "GGGRRRRR!"

SHE THEN SMASHED A TABLE IN HALF WITH HER BARE HANDS.



FROM THE TCI WIRE:




US President Barack Obama is said to be readying to send more US troops into Iraq.  Michael R. Gordon (New York Times) explains, "In a major shift of strategy in Iraq, the Obama administration is planning to establish a new military base in Anbar Province and send hundreds of additional American military trainers to help Iraqi forces retake the city of Ramadi and repel the Islamic State."

1. The Situation Room ‏@CNNSitRoom 9h9 hours ago

   #Breaking from @barbarastarrcnn: Up to 1,000 additional U.S. troops could be possible in Iraq http://CNN.it/go  http://cnn.it/1Mm2UFv                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

   19 retweets 11 favorites

While no announcement has yet to be made,  Keith Koffler (White House Dossier) offers:


Mission creep continues.
Fighting war the way liberals love to fight them, President Obama is adding bits and pieces of brigades at a time, adding an additional 500 troops after ISIS swamped Ramadi.
Because even though everything, according to he White House, is going fine, and ya win some ya lose some when it comes to battles in a war, the reality is that the situation is deteriorating.



David Lerman and Tony Capaccio (Bloomberg News) add, "Sending more Americans wouldn't solve the political problems that plague the Iraqi government's efforts to rebuild its army after a series of defeats, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the administration's options. Many Sunnis continue to distrust Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, a Shiite, as an ally of Iran, they said."


David Martin (CBS News) reports that sending additional US troops into Iraq is only one of three options the White House is considering:

The next option is to train Sunni tribesmen directly, Colonel Steve Warren, Pentagon spokesman, said Tuesday. This option could be seen as a reprisal of the "Sunni Awakening" of 2006 and 2007. As of now, the job of training Sunnis has been left to the Iraqi government with underwhelming results.
However, pursuing this option amounts to a vote of no-confidence in the willingness or ability of the Iraqi government to reconcile with the Sunnis. There's also some question as to whether the Sunnis would take up arms against ISIS the way they did against al Qaeda in 2006 and 2007.
The third option for the U.S. is to close off the main border cross from Turkey into Iraq. Again, Warren on Tuesday mentioned "putting pressure" on border crossing to cut off or reduce the flow of foreign fighters.


The issue of the US training Iraqi forces was raised at today's State Dept press briefing moderated by spokesperson Jeff Rathke.


QUESTION: Iraq?


MR RATHKE: Iraq, yes.


QUESTION: It’s one year since Mosul was taken by ISIS and they still maintain the grip on that city. Do you have any comment?


MR RATHKE: Well, we’ve always been very clear that this is an Iraqi-led operation and that the timetable for an offensive, first of all, with respect to Mosul is one that will be set by the Iraqis. We are focused on getting Iraqi forces ready, adequately trained and equipped, and our efforts to train and advise Iraqi forces are ongoing at multiple sites across Iraq. And we’re doing that in cooperation not only with the Iraqi Government, but also with our coalition partners. And so that’s a central part of our response and of our broad international coalition, which is working on multiple fronts and multiple lines of effort to degrade and defeat ISIL.


QUESTION: Thank you.


MR RATHKE: Yes, Mary Alice.


QUESTION: Following up on that question, yesterday President Obama made a comment that there was more training capacity than recruits. Could you perhaps tell us where – what the blockage is within the Iraqi Government to not actually supply more recruits?


MR RATHKE: Well, it is – as the President said yesterday, one of the things that we have to improve is the speed with which we’re training Iraqi forces, and I think the President also spoke to that. We’re reviewing a range of plans for how that could be done. And I would highlight, though, that there is – we have already – we have trained 9,000 Iraqi troops. There are about 3,100 Iraqi troops currently in training across Iraq through our train, advise, and assist program. It is also true, though, that we have greater capacity to train troops than there are troops currently in the pipeline. And that’s why we’re working with the Government of Iraq to improve that aspect of the program. This is something that Prime Minister Abadi and his council of ministers recognize as well. When they put forward a plan on May 19th, one of the things that acknowledges is they need to expand recruitment into the Iraqi army as one of the key points of that plan.


QUESTION: But do you know what the obstacle is? Why are they having so much trouble getting recruits? Where is the obstacle? Is it within the government structure itself, or is it that people just don’t want to join?


MR RATHKE: Well, again, if you look at the response across Iraq, there is a lot of interest in joining. If we switch from the Iraqi army to the Popular Mobilization Forces, there are Sunni volunteers currently being trained by the Iraqis. About 1,000 Sunni fighters were inducted into the Popular Mobilization Forces at the end of May – May 27th – and they joined thousands of other Sunni volunteers who have already joined this program and are fighting side by side with Iraqi Security Forces. For more details about the particular difficulties in recruitment, I’d refer you back, I think, to Iraqi authorities.
Ros.


QUESTION: But, Jeff, the Pentagon’s spokesperson, Colonel Steve Warren, just told reporters an hour ago that of the 9,000 or so that have already been trained, a portion of them are Kurdish Peshmerga. So that actually knocks down the number of non-Kurdish Iraqi forces who have actually been trained, which doesn’t exactly put a good light on the efforts to build up the capacity and to try to confront ISIL fighters. And again, to echo Mary Alice’s point, are Iraqis really not willing to take up arms against ISIL, or is this just bureaucratic bottlenecks that are keeping people from actually getting into the training and then getting outfitted and getting deployed?


MR RATHKE: Well, to go back to your first point, though, yes, some of those forces which we have trained are Kurdish forces, and that’s been part of the plan all along because, as we’ve seen, there are also – I mean, the Kurdish forces are also fighting back against ISIL in northern Iraq in the Kurdish region. So that is necessarily a part of our training and assisting mission with Iraq. So I don’t see any reason to discount those from the overall numbers that we’ve trained. We’re helping Iraqis push back against ISIL in all of those places of Iraq where they have tried to expand – not only in Anbar, although Anbar, of course, is a key region.


QUESTION: But it does beg the question that in a country of some 25-odd million people that the most that have been trained is still under 10,000 in total to date.


MR RATHKE: Well, those – that’s through the U.S. train, advise, and assist program. So those are the ones we have trained. We have a footprint of about 3,000 trainers on the ground, and that – again, we’re looking at ways to increase the throughput and the recruitment, because we have some additional capacity and we want to make use of it.


QUESTION: Jeff?


MR RATHKE: Yes.


QUESTION: Can I just say something here to correct the record --


MR RATHKE: Sure.


QUESTION: -- and to do it because she’s too polite to herself. But the person to whom you’re referring as Mary Alice is named – her name is Sharon.


MR RATHKE: Oh my goodness. Well then, I apologize most heartfeltly. Sorry about that.
Yes, go ahead.


QUESTION: Are you convinced that the 9,000 that you have trained through the American train, advise, and assist program have the will to fight?



MR RATHKE: That’s certainly been our experience, and I think we’ve spoken to this since the fall of Ramadi. The President also has spoken about it. And our experience has been that for those forces who have gone through our train, advise, and assist program and are properly equipped and are part of an Iraqi command and control structure, that they have fought well. That’s – I think there’s been a lot of discussion of the situation in Ramadi and how that differed. I don’t have anything to add to those discussions, but I think that’s certainly been our view of things and I think that’s shared by others in the U.S. Government.


The White House has bigger problems than the State Dept's spin being refuted as it's being spun.  There's also the issue of the Sunnis in Iraq.  Yerevan Saeed (Rudaw) explains:



US diplomats have been talking to Sunni leaders, trying to convince them to join the fight against ISIS. But they have failed to talk to the real influential Sunni leaders who enjoy greater trust in their communities. Instead, the Americans have depended on elected officials, or tribal leaders who are seen as pawns of the Baghdad government. This has amounted to a major blunder in the US strategy to bring the Sunni tribes on board against ISIS. When Anbar’s capital Ramadi fell last month, the Iraqi army abandoned large numbers of weapons of all types, including tanks, Humvees and munitions, which were seized by ISIS. Meanwhile, the Sunnis had been begging Baghdad for months for enough weapons to push back ISIS from Anbar.  To the Sunnis, it appears as if the government prefers the weapons to fall into ISIS hands than to be given to their own fighters. This has angered many Sunni tribal sheikhs, who have accused Baghdad of backstabbing.  


At last, US diplomatic efforts in Iraq!

. . . to build the military.








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CRANKY CLINTON SURE KNOWS A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO OVERDOSED.

AND SHE SURE HAS A LOT OF ENEMIES.

CRANKY SAYS IF SHE DOESN'T GET THE PRESIDENCY, SHE'S HEADED TO BROADWAY WHERE SHE'LL BE THE LEAD IN ALL FEMALE MUSICAL REMAKE OF BRIAN DE PALMA'S SCARFACE.

FROM THE TCI WIRE:

Today, US President Barack Obama and Iraq's Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi addressed the press briefly in a joint appearance.






US President Barack Obama:  And that’s why a lot of our discussion today will focus on how we can build on the thousands of Iraqi security forces that we have already trained; how we can coordinate more effectively in getting weapons into the hands of those who are prepared to fight ISIL on a timely basis; how we can ensure that the work that the Prime Minister has done to maintain an inclusive government in Baghdad continues. And in all of these discussions, what I found is that Prime Minister Abadi is very much committed to effective, inclusive governance.  And there’s a refreshing honesty, I think, on the part of the Prime Minister in recognizing that there remains a lot of work to be done.  But as long as the international coalition sustains its efforts, and as long as Prime Minister Abadi and the Iraqi government stay committed to an inclusive approach to gaining back territory from ISIL and then instituting governance that is inclusive and serves the people, I’m absolutely confident that we will succeed.



An inclusive approach to the government?

Is Barack unaware of the talk on Arabic social media that it's time to start protesting in Iraq again?


Such protests, if they took place, would make it much more difficult for Barack to lie that Haider's all about the inclusive.

He was selling that lie hard today -- in the joint-appearance with Haider as well as during a press briefing.  From the latter:


US President Barack Obama:  The final point that I emphasized to Prime Minister Abadi is the political agenda of inclusion remains as important as the military fight that’s out there.  If Sunnis, Kurds, and Shia all feel as if they’re concerns are being addressed, and that operating within a legitimate political structure can meet their need for security, prosperity, non-discrimination, then we’re going to have much easier time.  And the good news is Prime Minister Abadi is very much committed to that principle.  But, obviously, he’s inheriting a legacy of a lot of mistrust between various groups in Iraq -- he’s having to take a lot of political risks.  In some cases, there are efforts to undermine those efforts by other political factions within Iraq.  And so we’ve got to continue to monitor that and support those who are on the right side of the issue there.


Political inclusion is as important, according to Barack, as the military fight.


So how many diplomats has he dropped on Iraq?

How many Imaans who can preach inclusion and unity?


Today alone, the Defense Dept boasted of these air strikes in Iraq:

-Near Al Qaim, one airstrike struck an ISIL tactical unit, destroying an ISIL vehicle.
-Near Bayji, two airstrikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and an ISIL bridge, destroying an ISIL vehicle.
-Near Makhmur, three airstrikes struck an ISIL tactical unit, an ISIL mortar position and an ISIL rocket position, destroying three ISIL heavy machine guns and an ISIL building.
-Near Sinjar, three airstrikes struck three ISIL tactical units, destroying four ISIL buildings, an ISIL heavy machine gun and an ISIL vehicle.
-Near Tal Afar, two airstrikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and an ISIL heavy machine gun, destroying two ISIL buildings, an ISIL mortar system and an ISIL vehicle.

 Airstrike assessments are based on initial reports. All aircraft returned to base safely.


So if the political situation in Iraq is as important as the military, what has Barack done to aid it?  To foster a climate of unity?




At the  G7 conference, Josh Earnest, White House spokesperson, attempted to distort the meaning of a political solution.



Josh Earnest:  Uniting the diverse country of Iraq to confront the ISIL threat will be critical to their success.  And we’ve seen evidence of this approach when it comes to the efforts of Iraqi security forces to face down ISIL in Anbar Province.  The Prime Minister has received strong support from his multi-sectarian cabinet, but also from Sunni leaders in Anbar, that the deployment of a multi-sectarian force in Anbar Province against ISIL isn’t just important, it’s actually something that they specifically requested.  And they welcome the support of the international community for local Sunni fighters in Anbar and they welcome the decision from Prime Minister Abadi to deploy even Shia fighters and Kurdish fighters that are under the command and control of the Iraqi central government.  That’s an indication that Prime Minister Abadi’s multi-sectarian, inclusive approach is one that has the support of even Sunni leaders in Anbar Province.  Again, that is an indication that the strategy that we believe will be critical to their success is one that Prime Minister Abadi and other leaders in Iraq are committed to pursuing.


No, it's not and that's a ridiculous claim.

A) The Sunnis fighting the Islamic State in Anbar were largely fighting it for some time.  In some cases, they've been fighting since before Haider was even prime minister.

B) Sunnis fleeing Ramadi?  Sunni families are not allowed to enter Baghdad and the males of fighting age are forced to return to the area as fighters against the Islamic State.

Conscription isn't really a measure of national unity, it's just forced service.


We'll come back to Josh Earnest later, right now let's stay with Barack's press conference.


Kevin Liptak (CNN -- link is text and video) reports, "President Barack Obama said Monday his top national security advisers were still working to solidify training plans for Iraqi defense forces battling ISIS in their own country."  And he quotes Barack stating, "We don't yet have a complete strategy because it requires commitments on the part of the Iraqis."  Tom McCarthy (Guardian) notes:

The comments echoed the president’s assessment nine months ago, when he was asked at a White House news conference about how to defeat Isis militants in Syria.
“We don’t have a strategy yet,” Obama said then.


 BBC News quotes Barack declaring, "We want to get more Iraqi security forces trained, fresh, well-equipped and focused and [Mr] Abadi wants the same thing so we're reviewing a range of plans for how we might do that."

Abadi wants the same thing, does he?


But Kristina Wong (The Hill) reports today, "The U.S. mission in Iraq has stalled at one of five coalition training sites because the central government has not been sending new recruits, according to defense officials.  Baghdad has not identified or sent any new recruits to the Al-Asad air base in western Iraq for as many as four to six weeks, defense officials said Monday. "

If everyone's so committed, how do you explain that?

And how are you supposed to hear that news and not immediately think of the police training attempts in Iraq, by US forces, as the winter months bled from 2011 to 2012 and no police trainees showed up for the training?

Half a billion dollars set aside for that training (US tax dollars) and it never took place because Iraqis refused to show up for the training.



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"THIS JUST IN! CRANKY HAS A NEW ADVISOR!"

Who's joined the campaign?

BULLY BOY PRESS &     CEDRIC'S BIG MIX -- THE KOOL AID TABLE

CRANKY CLINTON'S HER OWN WORST ENEMY.

AFTER THE DISASTROUS LAUNCH OVER HER CAMPAIGN,  SHE'S NOW ATTACKING THE PRESS.

REACHED FOR COMMENT BY THESE REPORTERS, CRANKY EXPLAINED SHE'D HIRED SEAN PENN TO HELP HER GET IN TOUCH WITH HER FEMININE SIDE "YOU KNOW, THE WAY NAOMI WOLF HELPED AL GORE LOOK HUMAN OR THE WAY RENEE ZELLWIGGER MADE TOM CRUISE A BETTER MAN IN 'JERRY MCGUIRE'?"




FROM THE TCI WIRE:



As we were noting Friday, Diana Ohlbaum blew her chance to explore a serious topic via her own dirty whoring.  The Hill published her  "Republicans' revisionist history on Iraq" possibly in an attempt to open her up to the public ridicule she now so richly deserves.

In a tacky poly blend of fact and fiction, she offers this mouth dropper:


It was President George W. Bush who signed the security agreement with Iraq that set a date of Dec. 31, 2011 for all U.S. forces to withdraw from the country. 


Get it?

Because Bully Boy Bush did a treaty with Iraq, no one else can.

It's a liar posing as a child's view of the world.

By this 'logic'?


He left no time to regret
Kept his dick wet
With his same old safe bet
Me and my head high
And my tears dry
Get on without my guy
You went back to what you knew
So far removed from all that we went through
And I tread a troubled track
My odds are stacked
I'll go back to black
-- "Back to Black," written by Amy Winehouse and Mark Ronson, first appears on Amy's Back to Black album




So by the liar's 'logic,' since Bully Boy Bush got his dick wet, Barack must be a virgin, right?


In an either/or, dichotomous binary world, that is the only possible outcome, right?

By her 'logic.'

It's a 'logic' that's fact-free.



Here's Barack speaking about it on June 19, 2014:



Q    Just very quickly, do you wish you had left a residual force in Iraq?  Any regrets about that decision in 2011?


THE PRESIDENT:  Well, keep in mind that wasn’t a decision made by me; that was a decision made by the Iraqi government.  We offered a modest residual force to help continue to train and advise Iraqi security forces.  We had a core requirement which we require in any situation where we have U.S. troops overseas, and that is, is that they're provided immunity since they're being invited by the sovereign government there, so that if, for example, they end up acting in self-defense if they are attacked and find themselves in a tough situation, that they're not somehow hauled before a foreign court.  That's a core requirement that we have for U.S. troop presence anywhere. 




Huh?

Yeah.

That's right.  Barack tried to get a new agreement but failed.

A fact that a cheap whore who can't even get honest about her politics thought she'd lie about in an article slamming Republicans for lying.

I don't need cheap whores.


None of us who are trying to tell the truth need cheap whores 'helping' us.

All their lying does it obscure reality even further.

I am trying to be as honest about Iraq as I can be because the Iraqi people matter.

I'm not the whore Bob Somerby who announced this week that his entire reason for existence online is to elect Democrats (Ruth noted it here).

Lies are not helping the Iraqi people, lies have never helped the Iraqi people.

The lie that sanctions were a 'humane' way to avoid war didn't help the Iraqi people.

The lie that Iraq had WMD didn't help the Iraqi people.

Democratic politicians were the ones chiefly responsible for the first lie, Republican politicians were the ones chiefly responsible for the second.


A lot of politicians did a lot of lying and, thing is, politicians lie all the time.  It's only when whores enable them that their lies have traction.

It's only when filthy whores see themselves as something better than they are -- cheap tricks who will be used and tossed aside -- and lie for politicians. Diana Ohlbaum is just the latest whore to sling a tired ass.

She writes:


Third, it is clear that leaving U.S. troops in for longer, or returning them now, would not essentially change the fundamentals of the conflict. ISIS and other extremist forces are expanding, not for lack of powerful enemies, but because those enemies are themselves so abhorrent. The repressive, violent and corrupt regimes in Syria and Iran are the chief antagonists and targets of ISIS. By inserting ourselves into this fight, we unavoidably strengthen the very regimes we find so repugnant and so threatening to U.S. interests in the region.



Is that clear?

No, it's not.

And you have to be a damn liar to claim otherwise.

I have been speaking out against the Iraq War since February 2003 -- one month before it started.

It is still going on and I am still speaking out.

But opposition to the illegal war or the desire to stop it does not give me the excuse to lie about it.

The drawdown of US forces is December 2011.

And immediately Nouri al-Maliki




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