The Nation: Rolling Back The Bush Doctrine

ROLLING BACK THE BUSH DOCTRINE...In a speech today in Iowa City, John Edwards came out swinging--at George Bush and Hillary Clinton.

Edwards promised the roll back the Bush Administration's doctrine of "preventive war" and return to the principle of using force only as a last resort.

The speech was titled "Learning the Lesson of Iraq: A New Strategy for Iran." And it was on those two fronts that he sharply criticized Clinton.


"I believe every candidate for president owes the American people a clear and specific plan for ending the Iraq War, and I have done my part. You deserve to know exactly where we stand. With less than 60 days to the caucus, Senator Clinton has still not given specific answers to specific questions. How many troops will she withdraw, and when will she withdraw them? All she's said is that she will meet with her generals within two months of taking office. That's not a plan. That's not even a real promise. It's the promise of a planning meeting."

"What's more, Senator Clinton wants to keep combat troops in Iraq to perform combat missions in Iraq. She will extend the war. I will end the war. Only in Washington would anybody believe that you can end the war and continue combat. On a matter as serious as Iraq, we need honesty and real answers--not more double-talk."


He then moved on to Iran. By voting for the Kyl-Lieberman resolution in the Senate, which labeled the Iranian Revolutionary Guards a terrorist organization, "Senator Clinton once again sided with Bush and the neocons--helping them rattle their sabers and build their case for another preventive war," Edwards said.

Like Obama, Edwards would reward Iran for good behavior, linking the abandonment of its nuclear program and support for terrorism with "carrots" like membership in the WTO and, ultimately, full diplomatic relations.

"It's clear that Senator Clinton and I learned very different lessons from the run up to the Iraq war," he says. "I learned that if you give this president an inch, he will take a mile--and launch a war. But Senator Clinton apparently learned a different lesson, and she's giving the administration exactly what it wants once again."

He summarized her maneuvering thusly: "Senator Clinton is voting like a hawk in Washington, while talking like a dove in Iowa and New Hampshire."


Posted by Ari Berman at 11/05/2007 @ 4:35pm

http://www.thenation.com/blogs/campaignmatters?bid=45&pid=248945