‘We cannot even contemplate … trading American blood for Iraqi blood’

January 16, 2007

As the keeper of the John McCain flip-flop list, I wanted to report on a great find from my friend Cliff Schecter, who found this quote from McCain from August 1990. The context is a discussion about using U.S. troops in the first Gulf War.

“If you get involved in a major ground war in the Saudi desert, I think support will erode significantly. Nor should it be supported. We cannot even contemplate, in my view, trading American blood for Iraqi blood.” [New York Times Aug 19, 1990]

Now, to be fair, I should note that in 1991, McCain did vote to authorize the first Bush to launch the first war with Iraq. But the quote is nevertheless startling.

We can’t “even contemplate … trading American blood for Iraqi blood”? That was McCain 17 years ago — when Saddam Hussein actually had WMD.

McCain’s behavior makes me question the items of his mythology. Did he really turn down an offer of freedom from the Hanoi Hilton because his men would have to remain behind? This lack of consistency just makes one wonder.

That list of his flipflops will be even more important as the 08 election warms up. McCain might get his buddy Bush to declare it classified.

  • That flip flop will be so easy to debunk as simply pre-9/11 thinking. Remember, September 11th changed everything. We were all so innocent back in the 1990’s. Next …

  • That was before Iraq attacked us on 9/11. snark

    I think WMD is a spin expression. There is little comparison between chemical, biological and nuclear weapons. The right likes to conflate them so they can suggest mushrooms cloud where there are none. And guy slike McCain can claim they were found.

  • I get the strong feeling that McCain is about to spiral down. Maybe he senses that already, and that’s why he looks so unhealth of late. I don’t know what it is, but he looks as though a great big belch or fart might do him a world of good. Maybe lots of time in a sturdy hammock under that warming Arizona sun? Fondly assembling memorabilia such as putting together his Keating Five scrapbook?

  • Give McChain enough time, and he’ll be telling us all that he personally beat up Ho Chi Minh in a kick-boxing challenge—with both legs tied behind his back….

  • Well, that was before the criminal conspiracy otherwise known as the secret Cheney energy task force began meeting and coming up with ideas that led to all this:

    That was one startling headline in the Washington Post this morning — Saudi says no need to panic over oil price drop. What peak oil? Did we really invade Iraq to keep its oil in the ground? Was Greg Palast right? And what now? With Iraq in total chaos and much of its oil off the market, there still seems to be way too much oil slopping around in world oil markets. The trouble with OPEC is, everyone cheats. To get supply and demand back in a nice proper balance that keeps oil prices high, it would be nice if you could find another country whose entire oil supply you could just remove from the market. Hey, what about finding a pretext to attack Iran?

  • Edwards is a wolf in sheep’s clothing, plain and simple

    Stop for a minute, and consider what he’s actually done, and not his talk.

    While many members in congress wisely voted against the Iraq war, Edwards not only voted for it, he co-sponsored the disastrous resolution with neocon Joe Lieberman, that made it possible.

    Edwards also co-sponsored and voted for the massive increase in H-1b visas, that dumped 195,000 foreign workers on the job market, destroying perhaps hundreds of thousands of American tech careers.

    Edwards voted for normal trade relations with China, making American workers have to compete with Chinese labor standards, which of course they can’t.

    Edwards voted for the DREAM act, forcing states to give in-state tuition (a subsidy) to illegal aliens, when there are poor Americans in these states who can’t afford to send their kids to college, partially because illegal immigration drove down their wages. This act, of course only encourages more illegal immigration because it extends even further the taxpayers obligations to those who break our laws to come here.

    But what about civil liberties? Here again, Edwards voted to the Patriot act, perhaps the greatest risk to civil liberties, ever.

    Edwards supporters don’t want Edwards to be held accountable for these facts. Yet, Edwards made himself extremely wealthy holding others (such as doctors) accountable – while doctors malpractice premiums rose so much as to make many obstetricians leave their specialty. More illegal alien taxpayer payed births, and fewer obstetricians – could that be why health care costs are skyrocketing?

    One simple question – 10 years ago, if you did your job, the way Edwards performed as Senator, do you think he would he advocate that you get a big promotion?

    Or do you think he would he have sued you and taken you to the cleaners?

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