McCain Gets Surge Facts Wrong, CBS Edits It Out  | |  This is really ironic, the same day John McCain sends out an e-mail about the supposed "love affair" between the media and Barack Obama McCain makes a major mistake in an interview with CBS's Katie Couric but CBS doesn't air it, instead leaving it on the "cutting room floor".
http://nottingtonnews.wor...
Here's an excerpt:
"During a CBS interview on Tuesday, [US Senator and presidential candidate] John McCain made a stone cold error on a subject about which he claims expert knowledge: the “surge” strategy in Iraq. In an interview with anchor Katie Couric, the Arizona Republican said, inaccurately, that the surge strategy was responsible for the much-touted “Anbar Awakening,” in which Sunni sheiks turned against Al Qaeda, helping in turn to reduce violence in the country."
Here's part of the interview from the transcript, the part that wasn't aired on tonight's newscast:
Katie Couric: Senator McCain, Senator Obama says, while the increased number of US troops contributed to increased security in Iraq, he also credits the Sunni awakening and the Shiite government going after militias. And says that there might
have been improved security even without the surge. What’s your response to that?
McCain: I don’t know how you respond to something that is as– such a false depiction of what actually happened. Colonel MacFarland was contacted by one of the major Sunni sheiks. Because of the surge we were able to go out and protect that sheik and others. And it began the Anbar awakening. I mean, that’s just a matter of history.
"In fact, as Spencer Ackerman and Ilan Goldenberg have reported, the record firmly establishes the opposite: instead of being caused by the surge, the key signs of the Anbar Awakening occurred not only before that strategy was implemented, but before it was ever conceived."
McCain wasn't always confused as to which came first or which caused or helped the other between the surge and the Anbar Awakening. In fact, here is a transcript of what he said on January 5, 2007 as he advocated the newly proposed surge:
“Too often the light at the tunnel has turned out to be a train, but I really believe — I really believe that there’s a strong possibility that you may see a very substantial change in Anbar province due to this new changes in our relationships with the sheiks in the region. … But it’s important, as I said in my opening remarks, that this troop surge be significant and sustained. Otherwise, don’t do it.”
This one incident indicates two things, in my opinion; one, that McCain is either becoming increasingly confused about the facts or is purposely stretching the truth for political gains and two, the media he's complaining about snubbing him is more than willing to help him cover his tracks when he commits a major gaffe such as this one. What are your thoughts on this? Was this yet another perfectly innocent mistake or another case of misspeaking and did CBS simply randomly cut this segment of the interview out for time constraints and no other reason? Somehow, I don't think so!
Annie
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| | | | | | | | 1.  elmiko (960) | 4 weeks ago |  Sounds like Mccain paid them off. I remember when Bill Clinton was on foxnews do an interview and he easily won the debate and they it edited out to not look so bad.
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 anniepa (5405) | 4 weeks ago | I seem to remember when Bill Clinton was interviewed on Fox by Chris Wallace and he seemed to be "ambushed"; is that the time you're referring to? I can't remember the details now but I do recall thinking that if it had been a Republican former President who had been treated with such disrespect from any other network we'd never have heard the end of it. Apparently there's a whole different set of standards, depending on which party someone is in.
Annie | |
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| elmiko (960) | 3 weeks ago | Yes, the one with Chris Wallace is who i'm referring to. | |
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| | | 2. ZephyrSun (1045) | 4 weeks ago |  Well I don't watch CBS news. I never really have but when the whole thing with Dan Rather came out back in Bush v Kerry champaign it really made me think less of the nightly news on that channel.
As for McCain it could be old age, or it could also be the fact that his flip flopping has gotten him into a bit of a pinch. He can't remember where he stands on what issues because he has changed so many times.
I believe that we all misspeak at times, do not have all the facts or misheard or misunderstood something that was said, but don't you think that he is doing this way too much? Do you think that possibly he is frustrated? I mean when I am frustrated I call my oldest child my youngest child's name. I mean could you imagine selling out to Bush? The man that whose champaign team called McCain every name in the book during the 2000 champaign, now, they are "buddies" because without Bush's whopping 29% of the population liking him he won't win.
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| anniepa (5405) | 4 weeks ago | I don't watch CBS News either. I don't think many do since their ratings are pretty dismal these days, so I've heard. That whole deal with CBS back in 2004 really annoyed me because if they hadn't used the particular document they showed there would have been no controversy, at least not on their part, because nobody ever really disputed the evidence that Bush had been AWOL, they just concentrated on that "fake" document and everyone forgot the story itself since the network and Dan Rather became the story.
You're also right about how we all get frustrated and misspeak, I've done it myself many times. However, McCain's been doing it a bit too much to just shrug it off. I also agree about how McCain sucks up to Bush after what the Bush campaign did to him in 2000. That was what made me lost respect for him.
Annie | |
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| | 3. fiona08 (294)  | 4 weeks ago |  I think we are being kind when we attribute ALL his "mistakes" to memory problems. I think he out and out, lies about some of this stuff. This latest one is an example of a time I believe he is changing events to earn his way into the White House. I believe his convenient change of football teams in his POW days is another example of purposely changing the event to suit his campaign needs. If he really is just having memory problems, that is all the more reason for us to worry about his becoming president. Lying, or forgetting, or a combination of both, we need to pay attention here, and vote accordingly. I don't even know where to begin with the media. I used to think most news stations could be relied upon to tell the truth, in a fairly unbiased manner. I mean, I've been aware of the right lean over at Fox News for some time, but I would like to have thought they were the exception, and not the rule. It really is too bad, that we can't take what is reported by the media in this country at face value. Shameful behavior, by McCain and by CBS.
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 ClarusVisum (439) | 4 weeks ago |  I agree completely. Frankly, I wouldn't want someone who would REPEATEDLY confuse Sunni and Shia (even after being corrected!) to be anywhere NEAR the Commander-in-Chief position. Just imagine the potential for disaster in the Middle East if McCain was in charge.
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| anniepa (5405) | 4 weeks ago | I agree. It's really incredible that CBS would go to such lengths to make him look good. They've (CBS) said they didn't like it but it was a mistake. You're right, whether it's a case of memory loss, out and out lying or a combination it's still cause for concern. I know he isn't getting my vote!
Annie | |
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| fiona08 (294) | 4 weeks ago | Thanks for the BR, Annie! | |
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| | | 4. Taskr36 (1846) | 4 weeks ago | This is just another example of people trying to call something they misunderstood a mistake by McCain. He's already responded to allegations that he misspoke.
McCain said Army Col. Sean MacFarland started carrying out elements of a new counterinsurgency strategy as early as December 2006.
Democrats jumped on his comments. They said McCain's remarks showed he was out of touch, because the rebellion of U.S.-backed Sunni sheiks against al-Qaida terrorists in Iraq's Anbar province was under way well before Bush announced in January 2007 his decision to send 30,000 additional U.S. troops to Iraq.
McCain asserted he knew that and didn't commit a gaffe. "A surge is really a counterinsurgency made up of a number of components. ... I'm not sure people understand that `surge' is part of a counterinsurgency."
Now I didn't watch CBS so I don't know what was or was not edited. I'm just putting this out so you know for the record, that McCain did not make a mistake. His words were simply jumped on in an attempt to make him look bad. | |
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| anniepa (5405) | 4 weeks ago | Taskr, he DID make a mistake and a huge one! Everyone knows what is meant by the word "surge", for him to now say he didn't mean THAT surge is absurd! CBS edited it to make it seem like McCain was giving the answer that he'd given to a previous question to the one he answered with the part that was cut out. Wow, if you got that you're pretty good...lol! It's even worse that he's now talking down to people, like he and many other accused Obama of doing, to make everyone else look stupid and him like the only one who knew what he was talking about.
Annie | |
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| Taskr36 (1846) | 4 weeks ago | So when Michelle Obama does a lame job of rephrasing "For the first time in my adult life I'm proud of my country", you totally go along with what she's saying, no doubts, and anyone who still sees her words as they were originally stated is completely wrong and should have known that she meant something completely different than what she actually said. However, McCain clarifies what he was saying, in a very clear and concise manner, and you just KNOW that there can't possibly be any relation between surge and counterinsurgency. Brilliant. | |
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| MoonlightSerenade (495) | 4 weeks ago |  I don't know what Michelle Obama has to do with it, but honestly Taskr, he did make a mistake. He said the surge fended off an assassination of a Sunni sheik. ..but the sheik was assassinated in the middle of the surge. He tried to put a spin on his error. It's a thing common to politicians to do that, after all.
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| anniepa (5405) | 4 weeks ago | McCain clearly said the SURGE made the Anbar Awakening possible; the Anbar Awakening took place before the SURGE, as we all know it, the SURGE McCain continually says is working and that Obama says he still would have opposed, was even proposed. Now he claims he was referring to a different surge.
Michelle Obama doesn't have anything to do with this but since you brought it up:
"So when Michelle Obama does a lame job of rephrasing "For the first time in my adult life I'm proud of my country", you totally go along with what she's saying, no doubts, and anyone who still sees her words as they were originally stated is completely wrong and should have known that she meant something completely different than what she actually said."
OK, you tell me, what did I take wrong about what she said? What was so different about what she claims to have meant and what she said? She was at a political event so I assumed she was talking about the political engagement of the people finally making her proud. There are many things not to be proud of about this country, but that's what I took her to mean in that instance. When I say there are things not to be proud about, that doesn't mean I don't love my country but I think we could use improvement in many ways.
Annie | |
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| | | | 5.  shoffman2000 (323) | 4 weeks ago |  if it did not aire how do you know what he said
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| | | | | 6.  anawar (1030) | 4 weeks ago |  At least someone is trying to keep up with all the lies and cover-ups. It won't be much longer though, when there won't be enough white space to cover it all.
I'm reserving further comments because I am out of mylot for tonight, but I had to stick at least two cents in. Although, with the value of the American dollar, that amounts to, hmmm
less than nothing. That means I was never here.
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| anniepa (5405) | 4 weeks ago | Oh yes you were so here...lol!
You can't have your two cents back, either.
Annie | |
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