Not Such An Impressive Elder Statesman

Huffington Post reported  on Sunday

Code Pink brought signs and handcuffs into the hearing to protest the presence of former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, demanding that he be arrested for his role in alleged war crimes during the Nixon and Ford administrations. The protesters objected to the U.S.'s use of the poisonous chemical Agent Orange in the Vietnam War, the bombing of Cambodia and other issues.

Fox News later would note "US Capitol Police spokeswoman  Kim Schneider said later the force did not 'meet the standards expected of the USCP'" during the disruption (video below).





That came on the heels of the rudeness of Code Pink and the reaction of committee chairperson John McCain (R-AZ).  The protesters came, made their point, and were ushered out of the hearing room within minutes. Unacceptable, to management of the US Capitol Police; democracy, to some of us. Would it that law enforcement in Ferguson, MO, Cleveland, OH, Staten Island, NY, or Bridgeton, NJ had adopted such a measured response.

After- and only after- the protesters were contained and under control- the guy who endured torture at the Hanoi Hilton (decades ago) was bold enough to assert (video below)

You know what I'd like to, uh, say to may colleagues, uh and to our distinguished witness this morning - I have been a member of this committee for many years and I've never seen anything as disgraceful and outrageous and disrespectful as the last demonstration that just took place about- you know, you're going to have to shut up or I'm going to have you arrested... Get out of here, you low-life scum.

Sunday on CNN, McCain defended his response (video below) on CNN:

I'm used to people popping up at these these hearings and yelling, and they're escorted out -- that's at least some version of free speech, These people rushed up, they were right next to him, waving handcuffs. He's a 91-year old man with a broken shoulder who was willing to come down and testify before Congress to give us the benefit of his many years of wisdom.








Far less impressed by Kissinger's comments was Digby, who commented 

And no they didn't threaten him. They held up signs behind him and chanted. I'm sure it was unpleasant to be publicly called a war criminal.  Not as unpleasant as being bombed, tortured and "disappeared" but unpleasant nonetheless: If that's the only punishment he receives for his deeds over the past 50 years, he's one very lucky man indeed.

On his Saturday program on CNN, Michael Smerconish had remarked that as he was watching the event, he was thinking the same thing as McCain- but that the Senator should not have uttered it. Though fair, that  does not get to the heart of the matter. Code Pink observes that Kissinger- who believed "the illegal we do immediately, the unconstitutional takes a little longer"-  is a war criminal whose influence led to the death of countless human beings. Still lost is that the venture in Vietnam- for which the  former National Security Adviser and Secretary of State is most remembered- was a failure.  The war was lost.

Senator McCain is impressed his committee called to testify a man who could "give us the benefit of his many years of wisdom." Kissinger, however, was a  failure as a foreign policy adviser.   Moreover, a legislator exorcised that a 91-year-old man was harassed might consider that the latter might have lost a little off his fastball on his way to 91- even assuming there was considerable wisdom initially. If the age was no impediment to Kissinger wisdom, perhaps McCain needn't have been aghast that handcuffs were waved in the witness' face.

Henry Kissinger himself is certainly no low-life scum. He is quite wealthy, distinguished, and pleased to be treated as royalty by fawning politicians.





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Now A Weak Argument

The Washington Post reported on Sunday, 9/28:

(Senior Advisor Steve) Schmidt said the campaign will press two arguments as forcefully as possible in the coming days. One is that Obama is not ready to be commander in chief and that, in a time of two wars, "his policies will make the world more dangerous and America less secure." Second, he said, McCain will argue that, in a time of economic crisis, Obama will raise taxes and spending and "will make our economy worse."

So McCain wants to argue that Barack Obama's policies "will make the world more dangerous and America less secure." Arguably, this would have been McCain's strongest argument to elect himself rather than the junior senator from Illinois. Only the 72-year-old (admittedly skin) cancer survivor should have thought about this before he selected as his running mate the author of these response the first four from the interview with ABC's Charlie Gibson, the last from the interview with CBS' Katie Couric):

On the perspective that she has of Russia's national security threat: They're our next door neighbors and you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska, from an island in Alaska.

On a possible Israeli attack (which the White House reportedly would oppose): We cannot second guess the steps that Israel has to take to defend itself.

On whether she agrees with the Bush Doctrine: In what respect, Charlie?

On pursuing terrorists on the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan: In order to stop Islamic extremists, those terrorists who would seek to destroy America and our allies, we must do whatever it takes and we must not blink, Charlie, in making those tough decisions of where we go and even who we target. (A legitimate and debatable position held by Barack Obama- and opposed by John McCain, prompting the latter to retract his mate's statement)

On meeting with Iran: I've never heard Henry Kissinger say, "Yeah, I'll meet with these leaders without preconditions being met." (Stated, presumably, because she did not hear Kissinger say "Well, I am in favor of negotiating with Iran.....But I do not believe that we can make conditions for the opening of negotiations.")

It's painfully obvious: any guy who puts "Country First" and would like to argue credibly that his opponent would endanger national security would not have chosen Sarah Palin as first in succession to the Presidency of the United States of America.

Palin And Iran

The second portion (broadcast Tuesday, 9/25/08) of the interview by CBS News' Katie Couric of Sarah Palin featured this exchange about Iran:

Couric: You met yesterday with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, who is for direct diplomacy with both Iran and Syria. Do you believe the U.S. should negotiate with leaders like President Assad and Ahmadinejad?

Palin: I think, with Ahmadinejad, personally, he is not one to negotiate with. You can't just sit down with him with no preconditions being met. Barack Obama is so off-base in his proclamation that he would meet with some of these leaders around our world who would seek to destroy America and that, and without preconditions being met. That's beyond naïve. And it's beyond bad judgment.

Couric: Are you saying Henry Kissinger …

Palin: It's dangerous.Couric: … is naïve for supporting that?

Palin: I've never heard Henry Kissinger say, "Yeah, I'll meet with these leaders without preconditions being met." Diplomacy is about doing a lot of background work first and shoring up allies and positions and figuring out what sanctions perhaps could be implemented if things weren't gonna go right.

I doubt the Alaska Governor is lying. It is highly unlikely Kissinger actually uttered the exact words in this exact order: "Yeah, I'll meet with these leaders without preconditions being met." However, at the forum of five former secretaries of state held on 9/15/08 (and aired on 9/20/08) at George Washington University in the District of Columbia, Kissinger came awfully close:

Well, I am in favor of negotiating with Iran..... we ought to have a clear understanding of what is it we're trying to prevent. What is it going to do if we can't achieve what we're talking about? But I do not believe that we can make conditions for the opening of negotiations.

Immediately after the interview was aired, Couric announced that Richard Nixon's Secretary of State had been contacted and confirmed that he supported direct talks with Iran without "preconditions." (By the way, aren't conditions in fact preconditions?) And Kissinger had previously, in a March 15, 2008 interview with Bloomberg News, strongly implied the same.

Sarah Palin is governor of a tiny state (in population) which is detached from the rest of the country and prospering from the same high energy prices bedeviling most Americans in arguably every other state. But she is also smart and shrewd. Having spoken the day before with Mr. Kissinger, she probably was aware she was inferring that he is "off-base," "naive," and guilty of ideas "beyond bad judgement." The Repub vice-presidential nominee has been thoroughly briefed by the McCain campaign and is not ignorant or stupid- just detached and unconcerned about world affairs.