Tuesday, March 11, 2008

A Question I would Like to Ask Senator Obama

This is from an Obama position paper on Hillary Clinton's experience:
Senator Obama’s speech opposing the war in Iraq shows independence and courage as well as good judgment. In the speech that Senator Clinton says does not qualify him to be Commander in Chief, Obama criticized what he called “a rash war . . . a war based not on reason, but on passion, not on principle, but on politics.” In that speech, he said prophetically: “[E]ven a successful war against Iraq will require a US occupation of undetermined length, at undetermined cost, with undetermined consequences.” He predicted that a U.S. invasion of Iraq would “fan the flames of the Middle East,” and “strengthen the recruitment arm of al Qaeda.” He urged the United States first to “finish the fight with Bin Laden and al Qaeda.”
My question:

Senator Obama, you often refer to a speech that you gave against the war as proof that you have better judgment than your opponents who voted in favor of the war. At the time you were not in the US Senate and did not have access to Senate Intelligence Reports. Your insistence that had you been a senator you would still have been against the war is a bit hypothetical to be your only claim for judgment. Can you give an example of your judgment where you were actually there to cast a vote instead of in the Illinois Senate?

No comments: