Blogging Wes Clark for President 2008

DU Clarkies is a group of supporters of General Wesley Clark, who frequent Democratic Underground (DU). Some of our members are bloggers promoting Clark's vision for America. "Blogging Wes Clark for President 2008" reflects a weekly newsletter our membership receives by email, reporting a selection of updated blogs. WesPac Securing America is not connected with this grassroots website, nor is any other Wesley Clark organization, website or campaign. If you would like to learn more about General Clark, please visit Securing America and join in the discussion at Clark Community Network or read the Wesley Clark Wiki.

Hardball - Feb. 2, 2007

Chris: Do you believe the President has the Constitutional authority to launch a war against Iran without Congressional approval?

Maxine: Oh absolutely not. As a matter of fact General Clark and some others saw this coming and they have been talking with many of us about directing our attention toward the fact that the President was moving toward Iran and so many of us are saying to the President through letters and through actions: Don’t do it Mr. President! Don’t. We believe that you should be involved with diplomatic efforts with Iran. We cannot afford to sustain this war in Iraq and Afghanistan and go into Iran and then take on Syria. This doesn’t make good sense. We can’t afford to do that.

Wes Clark on the Middle East

Fox News 2/2/07

WES CLARK: Some of the war’s staunchest supporters are admitting they were wrong. And others now call for poll-tested positions. I speak to you today as the only person who will take this podium before you to actually have done the things we need to succeed in Iraq, Afghanistan, and throughout the world.

Jamie Colby: General Wesley Clark addressing Democrats about political divisions on Iraq and the need for strong leadership. Addressing Democrats at their winter meeting. Foreign policy front and center in the campaign. Joining us now for more on today’s DNC meeting General Wesley Clark. Thanks for being with us General.

WES CLARK: Thank you. It’s good to be with you.

Jamie Colby: You talked about your experience and the fact that you understand how things work in Afghanistan and in Iraq. So would you have ideas you would want to put in place as President?

WES CLARK: Absolutely. Immediately. You see to win in these countries you have to build a whole foundation around the military forces that we’ve committed. It’s not enough to rely on great generals and great soldiers or marines. You’ve got to have the right diplomacy. You’ve got to be able to help governments meet the needs of their people. Sometimes you even have to mediate between quarreling governments in the region. And, actually what’s happened so much in this region over the last five years is that we have relied on our military but we haven’t done the rest of the government actions that need to be done. We haven’t had the strong diplomacy. We haven’t created the means to help the ministries work in these countries and bring government services to people. We haven’t really effected people’s lives in a positive sense and after a while the military impact of our soldiers just wears off.

Read more at Wes Clark on the Iraq War

It’s been over 40 years since LBJ refused to choose between Guns and Butter, and we all came out losers because of it. Had he chosen only Guns, fewer Americans would have paid an economic price, and had he settled on Butter alone, its likely America would not have sacrificed at all. But LBJ couldn’t make that choice; instead he told America you can have this war and eat butter too. Thousands of Americans kept dying in Viet Nam and ultimately butter, along with all consumer goods and services, soared in price in an inflationary spiral until many Americans could barely afford to put margarine on their tables.

We are not exactly fighting a second Viet Nam War now, though Iraq is the closest thing to it for America since Saigon fell. Our military deployment in Iraq remains a fraction of the half a million Army of predominantly draftees that the United States once shipped off to war in South East Asia. Without a draft, most American families don’t have to worry themselves sick over whether their sons, and potentially now their daughters, will be shipped off to fight in a war they want no part of. With less troops fighting in Iraq than once fought in Viet Nam, it means there are fewer overall casualties also, which means less funerals for those of us at home to attend for the children of friends, neighbors and co-workers fallen in combat, far less than the bloodier days of the Viet Nam era. So much pain averted, for most of us.

Read more at A Left Turn FOR CLARK

The Battle for the Pacific: A thrilling new history of an epic 1944 clash

SEA OF THUNDER
Four Commanders and the Last Great Naval Campaign 1941-1945
By Evan Thomas
Simon & Schuster. 414 pp. $27

...

Drawing on archives, official debriefings, eyewitness commentary, letters, diaries and interviews, Thomas takes us into the minds of these opposing leaders. Adm. William "Bull" Halsey, the blustery U.S. fleet commander, was a household name in America; the other three main characters are less well known: Cmdr. Ernest Evans, an American destroyer captain and Medal of Honor winner; and two top Japanese admirals, Matome Ugaki and Takeo Kurita. We learn about their upbringing, schooling, military experience and the maritime and naval campaigns leading up to the 1944 showdown. And we see each side's persistent misunderstanding and underestimation of the other.

Thomas draws the battle scenes with exquisite precision, taking us onto the bridge with the admirals or into the waves with sailors abandoning ship. He portrays incredible heroism, boredom, fatigue and fear -- across both fleets. This is an exciting read, especially for landlubbers who have never experienced the discipline, loneliness or anxieties of war at sea.

Read more at Moderating the Madness

I would favor a two-pronged approach, stop the surge and stop the march to war on Iran, but I see, for sure, what Bulworth is getting at here: "2008 and Iran."

So as Greenwald asks, what's left for us, and what Democratic candidates, if any, are going to rebuff the siren's call of war with Iran, given all that's transpired and continues to transpire in Iraq?

Well, TPM tells us that James Fallows says forget challenging the surge in Congress and concentrate on denying the Administration any wiggle room for warring on Iran.

It would be nice if our presidential candidates would, after they've fallen all over themselves repenting of their Iraq-war vote, which is now a politically safe call to make, and demonstrate they've actually learned something over the past four years by calling bullshit ahead of time in the already emerging propaganda designed to lure us into bombing another Muslim country that hasn't attacked us or anyone else yet, and which is not a "clear and present danger" to the United States or our allies.

What is needed is for Congress to stand up and confront Bush's preemptive war doctrine, kill it, outlaw it. Would Bush necessarily follow such a law? Probably not, and it would move to the Supreme Court for debate on separation of powers, but that's not such a bad thing. Congress relinquished its own responsibility and the least they can do is try to take its powers back with the whole country watching.

Read more at A Wes Clark Democrat

An article by New York Sun proves that Goldberg is wrong in his latest column; The N.Y. Sun says some New York Money People are buying influence from Democratic Politicians; and Iran has everything to do with everything! The Forward and the Associated Press also confirms this

If you've read the Goldberg "opinion", know that Jonah Golberg's column of wrongness is syndicated....meaning it will be fanned across the nation and perpetuates nothing more than a lie. When you google, one can see where it is going; to every right leaning publication in the nation, and I guess the L.A. Times (they sure are a changin').

The N.Y. Sun published an article on Feb 1st which negates Goldberg's nasty column out to slam Wes Clark and Matthew Yglesias, in where he states that neither Clark nor Yglesias have proven that there is a connection between AIPAC, New York Contributions, and the Iran Stance taken by some Dem and GOP politicians.
Goldberg ignorantly states,

"there is zero evidence to back up Yglesias' statement that "major Jewish organizations are pushing the country into war" with Iran."

So Jonah Goldberg is accusing not only Gen. Clark and Mr. Yglesias of statements without evidence, but also the N.Y. Sun, AP and now The Forward of speaking and printing information that isn't true! Yeah....OK, what-E-ver! Who's next?

Read more at RAPID FIRE - Silver Bullets

I got an e-mail today from VoteVets.org. It's worth reading, but more than that, it's worth visiting the website and kicking in a few bucks.

These people, Iraq war vets, are making a difference. They helped elect good Democrats to Congress, but they didn't stop there. Now they're helping remind us how important it is to tell our congressmen and women how we feel about Bush's escalation.

But don't take my word for it. Read what they have to say:

Dear VoteVets.org Supporter,

You are making a difference!

Today, VoteVets.org is profiled in the Washington Post, regarding our trips to Capitol Hill and ads we've been running. Today, at 4pm, I will be on MSNBC to discuss our efforts. None of this would have been possible without you. Your calls, donations, and word of mouth campaign have given us the strength and credibility to make insiders in Washington take notice of us, and take the troops and veterans seriously.

Read more at Soldiering on for Wesley Clark

Clark talks and sounds like a presidential candidate

WASHINGTON (CNN) — He hasn’t formed a presidential exploratory committee or assembled much of a campaign organization, but Gen. Wesley Clark (Ret.) sounded like a full-fledged presidential candidate at the Democratic National Committee’s winter meeting Friday.

The 2004 presidential candidate’s address to the party faithful was packed with political punches on everything from the war in Iraq to increased compensation for CEOs to global warming.

“I think we need a president who understands how to take us out of Iraq; how to deal with multiple international challenges — Iran, North Korea, terrorism, immigration, global warming, international trade; how to reenergize the American spirit and how to put us on the right path to a strong, secure and just America,” Clark told the crowd.

Ending his speech with a call to have the “courage to begin” changing America, Clark left many wondering when and if he might begin his second presidential campaign.

Wes for Pres