Republican Majority leader blames troops

[HOGFAN]

proud right-winger here. First Ive heard of it. I would like to know more.

BTW, when watching Wolf interview Lynne Cheney I could have slapped him.
She was there to talk about her book and he totally broadsided her with policial talk. You could tell she was irritated with him and I dont blame her.
Of course, Wolf is not bipartisan, he has his own agenda.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Yeah. Deflect blame for Rummy's mistakes onto the men on the ground. Way to support those troops baby!!!!

Where are all the right wingers on this board demanding apologies on the behalf of our troops? Why I would think they'd be right behind Rush and the right wing echo chamber demanding apologies.

Oh silly me. It's ok if you're a Republican. I forgot. Move along, nothing to see.

3rd posting I have seen on the DIS--I replied the first time I saw it on the JK thread (posted by The Doctor IIRC...)

The guy was an idiot for saying it. (the soldier basher--not the poster ).

The partisan politics on this board is so darn nasty. I am so sick and tired of blanket statements on both sides.

I'm a conservative, registered republican..and oh yeah..unlike the scarecrow, I do have a brain common sense to call a spade a spade and realize something is inappropriate when I see it/hear it.

Why so much attitude?

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

I will bring up one additional point. For those who heard about it on the DIS for the first time, please ask yourself why. ....
Food for thought, and again, your collective condemnation of the comments in the OP is indeed noted and greatly appreciated.

Truthfully--I will admit to this being a generalization..but in the 2.5 years I have been on these boards....major oopsies and major tragedies--I have heard about most here first. There is always a poster or two--who happens to be watching a news ticker when something breaks (or in the case of politics...watching something where an oopsie will be breaking news as soon as it happens).

A generalization--but that has been my experience.

The DIS is just sometimes faster than a news bureau. No big deal.

 

[JimB.]

onservative here, and this is the first I've heard of it. Blaming those who are running the war from the front lines is wrong and he should apologize.

same here.....................

 

[TheDoctor]

Rahm Emanuel, the DCCC head, issued this statement.

"President Bush used to say that he would listen to the generals. Today, he says he’s happy to listen to Secretary Rumsfeld while his lieutenant in Congress, John Boehner blames the generals on the ground for the chaos in Iraq."

Bush has not listened to the generals and the result is chaos in Iraq. Now the GOP and Boehner seek to blame the military for the failure in Iraq instead of looking at the main reasons for such chaos such as Rumsfeld.

 

[poohandwendy]

Just to add another thought about the news coverage. I think there could be more here than just partisan politics. (I said could, obviously I do not know)

But, Kerry's name is a household name due to his presidential campaign, Boehner not so much. What Kerry said was a more obvious shocking soundbite. When I read Kerrys words, I was like "OMG, did he really say that?" When I read Boehners words, I was thinking "What are they talking about?" meaning, what the heck was the conversation about? I am not justifying anything, I think both comments were inappropriate. But, the news stations generally go with what will make bigger headlines.

I think that could be part of it too. I am not saying partisan politics did not also play a role. It's election time, partisan politics are so thick right now you could chop them up and serve them.

 

[disneyfan67]

Another conservative checking in...

Also the first I have heard of this. (I don't spend my days following the talking heads... I have better things to do)

The insinuations that the silence here speaks against conservatives as a whole is just plain wrong.

If this is how it appears, then I agree that an apology is in order.

Everyone, both parties, should step up and take responsibility for their words and actions.

I agree and not only were Mugg's words were wrong, I feel it's b.s. to try paint only conservatives as partisan. I know full well that it's on both sides of the political spectrum here on these boards. I have to agree with this quote below.

The partisan politics on this board is so darn nasty. I am so sick and tired of blanket statements on both sides.

That John Boehner sounds like a true idiot and doesn't speak for me or any other conservative I know. Sorry, I pretty pissed off at this moment after seeing not only Boehner's comment, but also being lumped into something I'm not.

 

[disneyfan67]

Good post. I too am amazed at the scant exposure this is getting. I can understand saving face and having to defend Rumsfeld, at least publicly, but that was a stupid statement and if Bush, Cheney, and Co. are going to continue to squawk about Kerry, they should admonish Boehner also....Publicly.

Not only publicly, but quickly and in a loud voice. I never heard of this Boehner before until I saw Kyle bring it up on another thread. I'm sure this story will start getting some traction, especially after the public pounding Kerry has taken. If I was John Kerry, I would be trying to get this story to the "front page" by contacts through various media sources.

 

[Charade]

Another conservative piping in. The first I heard about this is here. It was not a nice thing to say and he should apologize.

It's interesting however, the contrast between this thread and the Kerry thread. There you have Democrats/liberals defending and agreeing with what Kerry said.

(Kyle, can you ever agree that a Democrat does ANYTHING wrong? EVER!!??).

There was also plenty of redirection and deflection by bringing Bush into the mix.

So far, not here.

 

[TheDoctor]

Here is another great quote from Boehner about Rumsfeld.

BOEHNER: “I personally like Don Rumsfeld. I think he's been the perfect person to be our defense secretary over the last five years. He knows more about the Pentagon, knows more about reforming the military than virtually anybody in the United States, and knows where the bodies are buried at the Pentagon and has a strong enough will to make the changes necessary to reform that operation. And that's where I am personally.” [CNN, 9/5/06]

The official GOP line is that Rumsfeld can do no wrong and so if there are problems in Iraq these problems are due to our troops.

 

[TheDoctor]

Majority Leader Boehner has been asked to apologize by numerous Democrats and today he responded by refusing to apologize. http://www.armytimes.com/story.php?f=1-292925-2328683.php

In the wake of Sen. John Kerry’s belated apology for offending troops deployed in Iraq, House Majority Leader Rep. John Boehner of Ohio is being asked by Democrats to apologize for seemingly blaming senior military officers for any problems with the Bush administration’s Iraq strategy.

Boehner, however, does not appear to be budging.

“Good try,” he said when asked about demands for an apology.

Again, Rep. Boehner is blaiming our soliders for the problems in Iraq because they are resisting reforms being imposed by Rumsfeld.

Rumsfeld, Boehner said, has been pushing the military to transform, but the uniformed military leaders have resisted.

“You have to understand that the generals who have been in charge of the Pentagon have been very resistant to change,” Boehner said. “It’s the younger generals who understand this new force structure that we need to have for the military of the 21st century.

“I think there’s only one person in America who could have brought about that transformation, and that’s Donald Rumsfeld,” Boehner said. “He’s smart, he’s been through the Pentagon, knows how it works. And now we have a lighter, more flexible force, a quicker force.”

Senate Democratic leader Harry Reid of Nevada, reacting to Boehner’s statement, said the House Republican leader “ought to be ashamed.”

“He is blaming our troops for failures in Iraq,” Reid said. “If he wants to cast blame, he can start by looking in the mirror because he and his congressional Republican colleagues have rubber-stamped the Bush administration’s failed policy for nearly four years.

Again, it is the miltiary's fault that Iraq is in chaos. If the generals would do what Rumsfeld wants i.e. fight the war too few troops then everything would be fine.

 

[Patch'sD]

Before I make my opinion, I would like to see the whole interview. I don't see it as blaming the troops. He looks to be saying that the Generals are in charge along with Bush and Rumsfeld. I don't see him saying the Generals are to blame. I would like to see or read a transcript of the Entire Interview before making a final judgement.

 

[reeeoga]

The guys name is Boehner!

He should appologies. Stupid remark.

Edit: just found out it pronounced Bay-ner. Darn now my joke doesn't work.

 

[Chloe'sMom]

Another conservative piping in. The first I heard about this is here. It was not a nice thing to say and he should apologize.

It's interesting however, the contrast between this thread and the Kerry thread. There you have Democrats/liberals defending and agreeing with what Kerry said.

(Kyle, can you ever agree that a Democrat does ANYTHING wrong? EVER!!??).

There was also plenty of redirection and deflection by bringing Bush into the mix.

So far, not here.

100% untrue as there were liberal/democratic posters who posted that they thought Kerry should apolgize. I was one of them, so I know they were there. The fact is no one bothers to read all 33 pages of drivel.

Again - the person should apologize for his comments....can't help but wonder how much truth is behind the statement though. Not that the troops are to blame, but the fact that Bush isn't listening to the generals.

Also have to love how the accused "liberal media" is barely covering this story.
~Amanda

 

[Mugg Mann]

I agree and not only were Mugg's words were wrong, I feel it's b.s. to try paint only conservatives as partisan. I know full well that it's on both sides of the political spectrum here on these boards. I have to agree with this quote below.

That John Boehner sounds like a true idiot and doesn't speak for me or any other conservative I know. Sorry, I pretty pissed off at this moment after seeing not only Boehner's comment, but also being lumped into something I'm not.

I have several comments;

-Ironically, you took my words out of the context they were written in. The original post detailing Boehner's comments were posted at 12:46 AM. I posted more than six hours after that when not a single conservative had yet condemned his words. While I can understand that the initial post was past bedtime for most, I challenge you to find a similar gap on the major Kerry threads over the last two days. By the time Cape Cod Tenor was the first to condemn Boehner's comments, almost 8 and a half hours of conservative silence had elapsed. Conside the actual words I wrote in that context when not a single conservative poster here yet there was no shortage whatsoever of Kerry condemnations during that same time period;

The silence of conservative posters around this goes to show that first and foremost it's all about partisan politics for them.

My condemnation was of those who chose to scream loud and hard on one type of thread yet UNANIMOUSLY remained silent to that point on this one.

Please note that I did in fact praise those who did respond in a subsequent post, as I would you. But when I wrote that it was very maddening to see attack after attack and not a peep here.

Thank you for letting me get that off my chest.

-John Boehner is the Republican house majority leader, and has been ever since Tom Delay was forced to resign while under indictment. Considering that the comments in question came from the house majority leader, it makes them even more newsworthy.

 

[poohandwendy]

LOL, Mugg...just wanted to say, I was here last night but I wasn't ignoring this thread...I seriously didn't notice it.

I agree that it should be newsworthy, but I don't think his name has the same shock-and-awe as Kerry's. Doesn't make it right, but that is the media and the public for you. It's become so tabloid anymore.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

Mugg Mann--something is written at midnight and then mudsling, typecast, and generalize b/c "conservatives" didn't meet your timetable of response.

Pretty sad.

I didn't realize we had a curfew on the DIS for responding to threads.


Edited: I wrote as though MM was the OP and MM is not. Sorry!

 

[fabshelly]

Where's the angry mad big red letters military mom in this?

Is Boehner (pron. bay-ner, unfortunately) getting a walk on this one?

 

[Mugg Mann]

Mugg Mann--you write something at midnight and then mudsling, typecast, and generalize b/c "conservatives" didn't meet your timetable of response.

Pretty sad.

I didn't realize we had a curfew on the DIS for responding to threads.

You don't have a curfew, and I didn't write something at midnight. I was commenting the next morning on what someone else wrote. Please check the posts and the timelines again before firing untrue allegations.

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

You don't have a curfew, and I didn't write something at midnight. I was commenting the next morning on what someone else wrote. Please check the posts and the timelines again before firing untrue allegations.

I corrected it IMMEDIATELY when I did recheck and included an apology! Notice how the littled "last edited" phrase doesn't appear---b/c I did it right away.

FTR--it was 1:46 for me and I was sleeping--then awoke to homeschool, then took the kids to gymnastics--then found this post with the whining that no conservative responded. Is that okay with you?

Since us conservatives are soooo bad to not respond to something according to your expectations or lack there of.