As Glenn Reynolds notes “When things go well, it’s always “I, me, mine†with this guy. When things go badly, it’s always “they†who screwed up.” This dovetails perfectly with my notation of Liberals always blaming Someone Else, That Guy
(The Hill) President Obama largely blamed the United States’ intelligence community in an interview broadcast Sunday for giving an incorrect assessment of the capabilities of the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).
“Our head of the intelligence community, Jim Clapper, has acknowledged that, I think, they underestimated what had been taking place in Syria,†Obama said on CBS’s “”60 Minutes.”
Obama said ISIS, also known as ISIL, went “underground†when United States forces fought al Qaeda in Iraq in the last decade.
That, along with Syria’s civil war, allowed ISIS to regroup and recruit fighters from all over the world, including Europe, the United States, Australia and the Muslim world, Obama said in an excerpt from the interview. The full interview with Steve Kroft will air Sunday night.
“And so this became ground zero for jihadists around the world,†Obama said of Syria.
See? It’s Someone Else’s fault. It certainly couldn’t have been missed by “one of the most sophisticated consumers of intelligence in the world”.
Perhaps some in the US intelligence community did miss it. The Pentagon certainly didn’t. They’ve been warning about ISIS in the Presidential Daily Briefings for well over a year about the danger. Those are the same PDBs that Obama refuses to be briefed on, he instead simply reads them over (supposedly) by himself. The Daily Beast, covering the same friendly 60 Minutes interview as The Hill does, notes
Reached by The Daily Beast after Obama’s interview aired, one former senior Pentagon official who worked closely on the threat posed by Sunni jihadists in Syria and Iraq was flabbergasted. “Either the president doesn’t read the intelligence he’s getting or he’s bullshitting,†the former official said.
And while James Clapper did tell the Washington Post recently that he somewhat underestimated ISIS, other intelligence officials were giving testimony to Congress in January and February about the threat of ISIS. Clapper himself warned of the terrorist group during those hearings.
Obama was warned time and time again what a precipitous withdrawal from Iraq could lead to, virtually on Day 1.
BTW, whatever happened to that gem Obama liked to throw around, “The buck stops with me”?
There’s also this gem, via the Washington Post article on the interview
“What we also have to do is, we have to come up with political solutions in Iraq and Syria in particular, but in the Middle East generally, that arise in an accommodation between Sunni and Shia populations that right now are the biggest cause of conflict, not just in the Middle East, but in the world,†he said.
I truly hope that this is just Politician Speak, rather than something he really believes, because it’s wholly deluded.
Obama withdrew our forces on the schedule that Bush promised to when he signed the SOFA
Perhaps you forgot that
The new Iraqi prime minister has also repeatedly said no to foreign combat troops
An intelligence failure certainly but no where near the blunder of WMD. That cost us 5000 dead. 35000 wounded 1800 with their balls blown off
You also haven’t cut back on you wanting others to fo to ISIS what you will not do yourself if uou think they are so bad go get them yourself
You want boots on the ground? Lace them up and go on over
John,
First, there were WMD’s. The fact that you don’t know that simply means that you are ignorant.
Now, I like this attitude that you and Jeff have about requiring that people can not have an opinion unless they are willing to join the army. That is really good as it fits in with my thoughts about the fact that you should not be able to vote or stand for office unless you have shown the ability to preform by having property or a certain income.
Teh Stupid is strong with John.
First, chuckles, Bush didn’t promise anything in the way you claim, nor did the Iraq Prime Minister insist on “no foreign troops” except in stage-show press releases. The reality is that Obama deliberately let the SOFA negotiations lapse, and made no real effort to close a deal. As usual, the sycophants try to pin his failure on Bush. Barry wanted to proclaim the end of the war, so the troops must go.
There was a screw-up on the WMD, but not the way you claim. Nearly every intelligence agency believed Saddam still had some WMD program going, due to Saddam’s own efforts. Oh, the irony. And in case you’re wondering why, recall that Iraq is adjacent to Iran, then chew on it.
Either way, the Bushies issued a mea culpa, while Obama blames “the other guy.” Meanwhile you and your companion fellators give him a pass on every single screw-up in his administration, vice the GOP. Recall that in contrast by 2006 a very large number of Republicans were calling for Rumsfeld’s resignation. That’s what a cult of personality gets you.
Finally, drop the chicken-hawk argument. It makes you look foolish. By the same logic: if you oppose crime, you should join the police; if you oppose hunger, you must personally feed people; if you want to cure disease, you need to hand out medicine yourself. Etc, etc.
BH Obama is starting to make Jimmy Carter look good.
Hey, Teach: how about a photo of a smiling or waving Carter with the caption “Miss me yet!?” LOL.
The current POTUS has no shame. Any president worth his salt shoulders responsibility when things go wrong. He IS the Commander in Chief, no?? Doesn’t the BUCK STOP with him? Apparently not. He shamelessly chucks his subordinates under the bus. He is a disgrace, and it’s too bad he can’t be impeached. Imagine how that would look!
And isn’t it nice having this troll called ‘John’ showing what a true democrat, and idiot he/she is. The dems only follow lock step
the lead of their pet president, who never has learned that the Statutute of Limitations has past, vis a vis blaming everything on Dubya, and not taking responsibility for their own follishness and stupidity.