February 10, 2013

Congressman Cotton was excellent on drones and Benghazi on "Fox News Sunday."

(Transcript. Video.) I had never heard of the guy, but he impressed the hell out of me, in part because the host Chris Wallace, introduced Cotton — a Republican from Arkansas — this way:
Congressman Cotton, for people who don't know you, you are kind of an interesting figure. You went to Harvard, you went to Harvard Law School, and then you spent five years on active duty, on the front lines, in Iraq and Afghanistan, so you have got a lot of credibility on this issue on both sides of the equation.
I'm not a complete pushover for credentials, but this made me want to pay attention when Wallace invited him to respond to Senator Dianne Feinstein's idea that we need, as Wallace put it, "a secret drone court, where the president would have to go to get approval before putting terror suspects on his kill list.... How do you feel about this idea? Before the president could target someone for assassination, especially an American citizen, he'd have to go get approval from a judge?"

COTTON: We don't need federal judges involved in sensitive and urgent national security matters, and it would be an unconstitutional infringement on the president's rights to keep America safe. So, if you take up arms against America and you fight in a terrorist training camp or on the front lines in Pakistan or Afghanistan or Yemen, you shouldn't be surprised if America reaches out and exacts justice against you.
A while later, there was a discussion of Leon Panetta's testimony about Benghazi. Co-panelist Bill Kristol went first and laid out the criticism of Obama pithily:
KRISTOL: I think it is genuinely shocking. The president -- Leon Panetta walked out of the Oval Office at 5:30 that night, after a previously scheduled meeting. The president never called -- he knew -- he briefed the president on what was happening in Benghazi and that the American ambassador was missing, and it was clear there could well be sustained and ongoing attacks, and the president never spoke to the secretary of defense or the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff the rest of that night, and, interestingly, Secretary Panetta said he never spoke to the White House later this night. So it's not as if he spoke to the national security adviser, Tom Donilon, or the chief of staff, Jack Lew, and said, and conveyed a message to or from the president.

So basically, the president seems to have checked out. He spent an hour that evening on the phone with the Israeli prime minister, Bibi Netanyahu, because there has been that flap about Israel at the Democratic Convention the week before, and I think he wanted for political reasons to show that he was in touch with the Israelis. They did a readout of that call, the National Security Council spokesman did. So they're busy talking to the Israeli prime minister, doing the readout of the call for the press, and he is not talking to Panetta and, insofar as we -- and Donilon, apparently, is not talking to Panetta. And it is really, I think, a dereliction of duty on the part of the president and his senior staff, and I think they should be asked about it. I think Tom Donilon, the national security adviser, and Jack Lew, the White House chief of staff, should -- the president did not talk to anyone. Did they even talk to the secretary of defense, or did they just say, do what you can and then totally checked out for that evening, and then the next morning the president goes off to Las Vegas for a fund-raiser?
Cotton followed on, bringing in his military expertise:
COTTON: It is not just shocking, I would say it is outrageous as well, and it shows he has lack of preparation to be the commander in chief and lead troops when they are in combat. You know, you mentioned I was in the Army. At Fort Benning, where I spent a year, you learn the eight-step troop leading procedures. Step eight, the final step, is not issue an order. Step seven is issue the order. Step eight, which is the most important step, is supervise. He said in September that I issued a directive to take whatever steps are necessary to protect our troops and our assets. And then as Bill said, he never again followed up, he never asked, is my directive being executed? That is the essence of leadership, and this is a complete failure of leadership.

WALLACE: What about the argument, Congressman, and I don't know, and Bill raises a legitimate question, maybe he was doing this through his national security adviser.

COTTON: What General Dempsey and Secretary Panetta said, indicates there was no further contact from the White House, and the president showed no curiosity at all. He had a conversation with Prime Minister Netanyahu that was in the middle of [the] political season when he was receiving criticism for not being engaged with the prime minister, and then probably preparing to fly off to Las Vegas the next day for a fundraiser.

When you have troops in contact -- when I was in Afghanistan, we had troops in contact. I was right next to the radio, monitoring that at all times. When the president has troops in contact in an embassy that he knows is insecure, that has to be the very first priority.
Cotton also got my attention earlier in the show when Wallace asked whether the decision to have Marco Rubio deliver the GOP response to the SOTU makes him "the new face of the Republican Party on Capitol Hill."
COTTON: I wouldn't say that decision makes him. I think he has been an emerging leader on Capitol Hill for Republicans, and across the country for two years now. He's a generation of new leaders, not just Marco, but Paul Ryan and Scott Walker and so forth, who are emerging and who I think are going to be the leaders of our party going forward.
So, wanting to portray Rubio as not The One but part of "a generation of new leaders" and needing to name some names, Cotton comes up with Paul Ryan — the erstwhile VP nominee — and — of all the others — Scott Walker. I read that out loud and Meade deemed it time to play the Governor Walker anthem one more time:

97 comments:

Seeing Red said...

I wonder who wrote his responses?

I wonder who coached him?

MadisonMan said...

I wonder who wrote his responses?

This is the kind of blog response that makes me think the Congressman intimidates you and threatens your way of thinking. Rather than substantively criticize what he has to say, you suggest his words aren't his own, based on no evidence whatsover.

Totally predictable.

Seeing Red said...

Actually, it seems to be the new standard or baseline around here, so I just made a point of it, I forgot the sarc tag.

I also thought, with the Ben Carson post immediately below being so engaging, people would have gotten it without the sarc tag.

Anonymous said...

Fienstein is, once again, nuts. Of course, she's just following the footsteps of the President.

This is not a matter for due process. If you are hanging out with Al Qaeda, the Taliban, or any other group devoted to jihad, you are an enemy combatant, and the US Military has the right to kill you.

chickelit said...

Who knew Madison Man did sarcasm too?
You can't trust anybody anymore around here.

Unknown said...

As someone who worked for Congressman Cotton's Congressional campaign I can assure you that no one wrote his words or coached his performance. What you are seeing here is a once-in-a-generation character and intellect. Stay tuned.

edutcher said...

"you are kind of an interesting figure. You went to Harvard, you went to Harvard Law School, and then you spent five years on active duty, on the front lines, in Iraq and Afghanistan"

It's only unusual in this day and age. Up through WWII, it was how a lot of Haavahd men got a look at the world.

Now they're all William Ayers clones.

Cody Jarrett said...

So the white congressman who graduated from law school impresses Ann, while the high powered black neurosurgeon immediately makes her question who wrote his speech for him?

There's a word for that.

Tim said...

What the hell does a U.S. Army Infantry Officer know about leadership?

ESPECIALLY of men under fire?

Who the hell is he to criticize the President, the Commander-in-Chief?

</sarc

chickelit said...

@CEO-MMP: You might be taking Althouse's thoughts and words out of vortext.

Think twice, type once.

Scott M said...

It's a lobbed pitched just aching for a dinger. A white congressman from the south named Cotton?

Automatic_Wing said...

Eh, who cares, he's not a policy wonk. What do Fareed Zakaria and Andrew Sullivan think?

Seeing Red said...

Well, sometimes it feels like this country is being sucked into a vortex(t).

Automatic_Wing said...

If doctors can't comment on Obamacare, what right does a former ground-pounder have to discuss drone warfare?

SteveR said...

Not so subtly, the congressman nails the failure of Obama's presidency. He's CIC. #7 issue an order, #8 supervise

Anonymous said...

Tim wrote:
"What the hell does a U.S. Army Infantry Officer know about leadership?

ESPECIALLY of men under fire?"

Yeah, it's almost as ridiculous as a neurosurgeon criticizing Obamacare.

Who the hell do these people think they are? They act like they're just as good as law professors or communications majors. The nerve.

Cody Jarrett said...

Chicklit, I have no idea what vortext is.

The only vortext I could find in the urban dictionary had to do with cell phone coverage or something.


Big Mike said...

He said in September that I issued a directive to take whatever steps are necessary to protect our troops and our assets. And then as Bill said, he never again followed up, he never asked, is my directive being executed? That is the essence of leadership, and this is a complete failure of leadership.

That has also been the Obama way on hurricane Sandy. Is it not true that there are still people caught up in FEMA red tape today? Even though Sandy came ashore on October 30th and today is February 10th -- a full three months and 11 days later?

Cody Jarrett said...

Besides, chicklit: she's not the only one who can say crazy things for attention, right?

Now--explain to me how her posting that she had the hell impressed out of her by Congressman Cotton right after she said she doubted if Dr. Carson could even write his own speech doesn't smack of what I kinda think it smacks of.

I'm Full of Soup said...

And down goes Althouse!

You guys just pummeled the crap out of Althouse and she deserved it so damn much. It reminds me of the Frazier -Ali fight when the announcer yelled "And down goes Frazier!"

Bruce Hayden said...

I think that we are seeing why the left was so desperate to bury the Benghazi scandal until after the election. Does anyone doubt that GW Bush would have been in the situation room all night, or at least be in close touch, and that Dick Cheney would have been there first? And, they most likely would have given orders to militarily intervene, and then made sure that the orders were carried out.

Instead, we have the President informed about the attack, talk to the Israeli PM for an hour, then go to bed early so that he could fly to CA the next day for a fundraiser. And, because he was AWOL, nothing happened, except that Americans fought through the night, while he slept, four of them, including his ambassador, died.

Mark Levine the other day claimed that committing American military personnel across a national border requires the approval of the President, which was obviously not forthcoming, despite both a carrier group being 300 miles out, and fast reaction troops on alert about that far away in Italy. Others have claimed that this sort of thing in the past had standing orders for military support, which would have had to have been countervened. In the one case, the President would have had to give the orders, and didn't, and in the other, he would have had to give orders to stand down. Either way, it is hard, I think, to argue that the buck stopped at the President, and he was asleep early getting ready for that fundraising trip. I think that it is now fairly well established that he knew what was happening, and ignored it.

Kansas City said...

The whole notion of our president (not just Obama) as "commander in chief" is (I guess) constitutionally correct, but still a joke (at least after George Washington with a few exceptions). Modern presidents are lifetime politicians with the extraoridnary ambition necessary to become president. The notion that they are in any way qualified to command troops is ridiculous. The press and the politicians say it with a straight face because they are all in on the PR deal. Obama's combination of ineptitude and lack of concern does not surprise me. I have never sensed he had interest in anything other than himself and the big picture movement of our country as far as possible to the left.

Chip S. said...

A white congressman from the south named Cotton?

Don't pick on him.

chickelit said...

Now--explain to me how her posting that she had the hell impressed out of her by Congressman Cotton right after she said she doubted if Dr. Carson could even write his own speech doesn't smack of what I kinda think it smacks of.

I'm still trying to second guess why Meade linked the campaign ad for Herman Cain in the Carson thread. Could it be to equate Herman Cain with Carson? It's difficult sort alleged racism from their concern that GOP is deliberately embracing black politicians. What I find disingenuous on Althouse's part (now I suspect Meade too) is their insistence on burying Carson's message apart from his promotion as a candidate. I think it's shameful that Althouse thinks Carson is a fraud. If she really believes it, I suspect it's based on her anti-religious bigotry rather than racism.

AllenS said...

her anti-religious bigotry rather than racism

Bingo.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

If she really believes it, I suspect it's based on her anti-religious bigotry rather than racism.

Now now... That makes no sense.
Its making the moderate commenter (like me) feel protective toward Althouse.

furious_a said...

Re: "Absolute Moral Authority" blanket grants of credibility for uniformed, decorated service:

Duke Cunningham and Oliver North are both decorated combat veterans, too.

furious_a said...

So are Jeremiah Wright and Charles Rangel (both Korea).

Anonymous said...

Cotton is going NO-WHERE.
Rubio is going NO-WHERE.

GOP is FINISHED. KAPUT. All DONE.

THE POTUS OBAMA is the best POTUS in our American History.

He will be on MT. RUSHMORE.

He will over-take Lincoln, with more books written about the POTUS Obama, more schools named after him (Obama High School of Science in Kansas).

Obama is the BEST. The GREATEST.

GOP: Who cares?

Baron Zemo said...

EVERYBODY LOVES CAPITAL LETTERS TODAY!

I THINK WE ARE JUST HARD OF HEARING FROM ALL THOSE COOL BOB DYLAN CONCERTS!

chickelit said...

Lem: Perhaps I could be more specific and amend that to read her "anti-evangelical bigotry." The thing is, I don't see any what she may dislike about evangelicals in Carson--other than by association. And if someone were to dig (hello, Andy R?), would it be central or tangential to what Carson is trying to say?

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

An example of the Althouse vortex (to my mind) is the story she tells of how she taught her kids.

I dont know if I'm doing the story justice but... They would choose a topic, choose sides and then Althouse would turn it around and reverse roles by asking them to argue the other side.

Thats not to say we are her children... if you prefer, there is also her garden metaphor.

chickelit said...

In other words Lem, I think Althouse (and Meade) were deeply offended by the juxtaposition of common sense and religion. It's apparently excruciating.

Titus said...

I thought we hated Harvard?

Bart Hall (Kansas, USA) said...

Cotton was being kind. Obama failed much earlier in the process. He had broadly received the mission (Step 1) but shows no sign of having understood a) the nature of the enemy, b) the resources available, or c) the time constraints.

Consequently his warning order (Step 2) was at best fragmentary. You issue the warning order with the information you have available, then you update as more info comes in.

When Obama said, essentially, "we didn't have enough information" he demonstrates his inability to 1) understand the seriousness of the situation (little *time* available), 2) trust his field commanders to make quick decisions about what troops were available and get them deployed quickly, and 3) issue the actual order.

It was a failure at even the most rudimentary levels of command.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

That makes more sense.

It took me awhile to get past some of that stuff...

But.. it is easily mockable.. if you know what I mean... its just where we are kind of thing.

If that makes any sense.

Chip S. said...

chick, there may be something else going on in Althouse's subconscious.

Benjamin Carson's life story is evidence against the notion that institutional racism prevents African-Americans from rising to the top of any profession.

Barack Obama's life story, OTOH, is a testimony to how high a black man can rise in America w/ the help of affirmative action.

Althouse has spent her entire academic career in an environment where the default is to believe in pervasive racism. Cf. her infamous caterwauling about the reaction to Obamaphone Lady.

Cognitive dissonance sets in when you try to admire both men simultaneously. Crazy talk is a manifestation of cognitive dissonance being resolved.

OR, SHE'S JUST CHUMMING THE WATERS OF THE COMMENTARIAT.

Baron Zemo said...

I THINK IT IS DISRESPECTFUL TO COMPARE THE PROFESSOR TO A BUCKET OF FISH GUTS!

Baron Zemo said...

THAT IS TO THE FISH!

NEMO WOULD NOT BE AMUSED!!!!

Cody Jarrett said...

Chip S. : I'd be willing to go along with her chumming the waters (or trolling her own blog, as I prefer).

But there's some evidence to support the other stuff you said as well.

chickelit said...

OR, SHE'S JUST CHUMMING THE WATERS OF THE COMMENTARIAT.

I respond to chumming behavior by avoiding portals.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Reacting to things, to words, no matter who says them, w/o any contemplative? reflection on what exactly and why something is being said... I find most of the time, to be the cause of much needless confrontation.

Anonymous said...

He's CIC. #7 issue an order, #8 supervise

After you fail to do step 8, I am shocked, actually shocked, that he woke up in the morning, discovered that not a damn thing had been done overnight to save those brave men, and didn't have somebody's ass by breakfast. Call that step 8B

I say that with all seriousiness, having been in Operations Centers when screams were coming over the radio.

Unless of course he didn't really give the order to secure our people, or didn't wink at Panetta when he gave the faux order...

Chip S. said...

I respond to chumming behavior by avoiding portals.

Me too.

And I was just about to buy a pair of these for each of the Chipettes for Valentine's Day.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

With malice toward none, with charity for all, with firmness in the right as God gives us to see the right, let us strive on to finish the work we are in...

The Great Lincoln.

Baron Zemo said...

I want us to win and win big. I want us to make our school proud, I want us to make our parents proud, our grandparents proud, our first and second cousins proud, our POONTANG proud and ourselves proud.

The Great Santini

Chip Ahoy said...

The only vortext I could find in the urban dictionary had to do with cell phone coverage or something.

The urban dictionary will not be helpful for the term vortex but the Blogger search box in the upper left corner to this blog will reveal the entire truth, pages and pages of pictures, twirly things all over the place, yes, a veritable ... wait for it ... eddy!

No wait wait wait, a veritable whirlpool!

James said...


I'm still trying to second guess why Meade linked the campaign ad for Herman Cain in the Carson thread. Could it be to equate Herman Cain with Carson?


I think Meade was attempting to equate Carson's mention of tithing in relation to taxes with Herman Cain's 999 plan.

garage mahal said...

Barack Obama's life story, OTOH, is a testimony to how high a black man can rise in America w/ the help of affirmative action

And Ben Carson too, right? He's black. And raised by a single mother.

James said...

Chickelit introduced the portmanteau "vortext" earlier in the thread so Urban Dictionary is an appropriate place to look for a meaning.

Chip S. said...

Ben Carson is black? Inconceivable!

But now that you've pointed that out, I guess it simply cannot be true that he's gotten anywhere w/o affirmative action.

Cuz, he's black.

The fact that he's actually good at his job and Obama is not has no bearing on this.

garage mahal said...

But now that you've pointed that out, I guess it simply cannot be true that he's gotten anywhere w/o affirmative action.

Now that you mention it, typically, only blacks that don't tow the conservative line benefited from affirmative action.

Anonymous said...

Carson? Bah.

If a minority physician is going to become involved in politics, why can't he be more like Democrat Dr. Salomon Melgen?

"According the developing accounts, NJ Sen. Bob Menendez has a special relationship with mega-donor Dr. Salomon Melgen. In addition to campaign contributions, Dr. Melgen allegedly flew Sen. Menendez to the Dominican Republic on his private plane and may have provided the Senator with prostitutes. That soap opera, though, obscures a more troubling connection. According to a report in the Washington Post, Sen. Menendez intervened at least twice on behalf of Melgen in a billing dispute he had with Medicare....

But a grassroots effort may have been less important to Melgen than pressuring his allies on the Senate Banking Committee for new regulations. His friend and political beneficiary Sen. Menendez has sat on the banking committee since he joined the Senate in 2005.

Melgen has called himself a “victim” of Wall Street “greed.” In 2005 he sued Banc of America Securities, then an investment subsidiary of Bank of America, after he lost $15 million in what he claimed was securities fraud. He alleged that his entire investment was transferred into the account of a failed trader in order to help him cover a margin call."




chickelit said...

Now that you mention it, typically, only blacks that don't tow the conservative line benefited from affirmative action.

Sigh. People have lost fingers playing "tow the line." It was only a matter of time before "toes" were lost too.

chickelit said...

@James: vortextual analysis.

Prior art, as it were.

Baron Zemo said...

STOP THAT!

EINEE MEANEE MINEEE MOE REFERENCES THAT RELATE TO A TOE ARE RACIST!

AS ARE BRIAR PATCHES AND UNCLES EITHER TOM, BEN OR RHEMUS!!!!

STOP THE MADNESS!!!!!!!!!!!!

Beldar said...

Cotton is a bona fide star, stronger'n horse radish or train smoke. He's got an amazing personal story and his head is screwed on straight. I'm proud to have contributed to his primary election campaign -- his general election campaign was a cakewalk, even in purplish Arkansas.

I'm glad he caught your attention, Professor Althouse. In his day job at the Weekly Standard, Bill Kristol & crew have been covering his story for some time, but I think he's going to make more of a national impression soon enough.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

I dont understand if on the one hand enhanced interrogations techniques are beyond the pale... how can Drone carte blanch not also be... beyond the pale.

It seems backwards to me.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

This is the drone comment tread isn't it?

No drone viability comment?

No one?

I have to go... but I will be back.

Chip S. said...

People have lost fingers playing "tow the line."

When garage thinks of black people, he naturally thinks in terms of manual labor.

Tote that barge! Tow that line!

Racist.

Chip S. said...

Now that garage mentions it, only blacks who think that they're responsible for their own success are to be sneered at.

Racist.

Chip S. said...

garage mahal's sad little comments here illustrate perfectly the trap that is the concept of White Privilege.

According to the dipshits he listens to, blacks cannot succeed w/o affirmative action b/c of institutional racism, aka White Privilege. Therefore, any successful black who denies this is a pawn of the Rethuglikkkans, witting or unwitting.

Of course, if any of this bullshit were true, we'd observe lots of stuff we don't. For example, students who got into Ivy schools thru quotas would do extraordinarily well after being admitted. And they'd be as likely to major in STEM subjects as anyone else. There would be no need whatsoever for quotas in, say, law-school or grad-school admissions.

We call Obama the affirmative-action president b/c he was elected despite having no qualifications for the job. Also, he was re-elected despite being manifestly bad at the job.

None of that applies to a man of real accomplishment like Dr. Carson.

Mark O said...

It's as if Obama owned all the networks.

Hagar said...

Do we need to re-examine the meaning of "Bills of Attainder"?

ken in tx said...

The Latin word Imperator means commander-in-chief. The word has come down to us in English as Emperor. It seems like we have one now, doesn't it?

There is a whole bunch of stuff taught in NCO Leadership School and Officer Candidate School that Obama does not know.

A commander-in-chief ought to know the basics of military leadership.

How far away are we from a coup? Who would really oppose it? How would they do it?

somefeller said...

Chip S. says:Of course, if any of this bullshit were true, we'd observe lots of stuff we don't. For example, students who got into Ivy schools thru quotas would do extraordinarily well after being admitted. And they'd be as likely to major in STEM subjects as anyone else. There would be no need whatsoever for quotas in, say, law-school or grad-school admissions.

Of course, there aren't quotas because racial quotas haven't been allowed for some time under affirmative action jurisprudence. Affirmative action programs are more subtle than that (see the Grutter case), but in any case your basic premise is incorrect.

We call Obama the affirmative-action president b/c he was elected despite having no qualifications for the job. Also, he was re-elected despite being manifestly bad at the job.

No, people who call Obama the affirmative action president are using racist rhetoric. I'll be kind and not say they are racists, as that requires more insight into their general personality, though many of the people using that rhetoric are racists. But they wouldn't need to bring up his race if they had more to go with. And he was re-elected because most Americans obviously thought he was doing a decent enough job and was a better option than Romney.

Sorry you're still bitter because you lost the election, but all the talk in the world about how "manifestly bad" Obama is at his job won't make it true. Maybe you should ask yourself why your side lost if he was so obviously and manifestly bad.

sojerofgod said...

Cotton is actually a fairly common name among African-Extraction Americans in the South. Likely something to do with their career (non)choices I suppose. It also has English roots. what the hell difference does that make?

sojerofgod said...


Hagar said...
Do we need to re-examine the meaning of "Bills of Attainder"?

Bah. I doubt 1 in 10 even know what that is.

Chip S. said...

somefeller, point by ridiculous point:

• there are no quotas, only schemes that mimic quotas. So don't use the word "quotas".

George Orwell says "fuck off", somefeller. Any scheme that defines success in terms of demographic targets is a quota.

• I'm not a racist, but just someone who uses racist rhetoric.

Tell me, somefeller, if you're a believer in the essentiality of affirmative action, why do you consider it a criticism of Obama?

Maybe you should ask yourself why your side lost if he was so obviously and manifestly bad.

Do you think that GWB was obviously good at his job b/c he won 2 elections? I doubt it very much.

So you're obviously not able to construct a coherent argument. But the answer to the question you suggested that I ask myself is pretty obvious--the entire MSM are in the tank for this incompetent.

MountainMan said...

If you go search the Powerline blog the guys there had been following Cotton for some time. He was one of their featured candidates during the recent election. They were very high on him and today's interview showed why.

garage mahal said...

We call Obama the affirmative-action president b/c he was elected despite having no qualifications for the job.

Riiiiight.

Chip S. said...

List 'em.

somefeller said...

Any scheme that defines success in terms of demographic targets is a quota.

No, a quota is a set percentage. Not allowed under US affirmative action jurisprudence for many years.

Tell me, somefeller, if you're a believer in the essentiality of affirmative action, why do you consider it a criticism of Obama?

I actually don't think it's essential and could live without it in university admissions. But I don't think the fact someone may have benefited from affirmative action diminishes their accomplishments otherwise. However, I consider it a criticism of Obama because generally whenever it is mentioned it is used to diminish Obama's accomplishments and to demean him personally in a manner that ties into his race. Context matters, particularly given what we know about many of his critics.

Do you think that GWB was obviously good at his job b/c he won 2 elections? I doubt it very much.

No, but I don't lie to myself and think that his problems were so obviously and manifestly bad that it is inconceivable to think that the electorate should have gone the other way. I voted for Bush in 2000 (I thought he would have been a good moderate patrician Republican like his father - oops) and Kerry turned out to be a weak alternative in 2004. Something about Massachusetts, I guess.

But the answer to the question you suggested that I ask myself is pretty obvious--the entire MSM are in the tank for this incompetent.

Keep telling yourself that. Self-analysis and self-improvement is a painful task. But hey, keep it up and the Democrats will win in 2016, even though the 8 year cycle of presidential voting that has existed in modern times should cut strongly against them.

Ruth Anne Adams said...

Congressman Cotton has a regular slot on The Hugh Hewitt Radio Show. So do Mark Steyn and James Lileks and many others. I'm surprised you don't already listen. For my money, Hewitt does the best long-form interview on radio.

Chip S. said...

Thank you for your concern, somefeller. I do appreciate it.

chickelit said...

Keep telling yourself that. Self-analysis and self-improvement is a painful task. But hey, keep it up and the Democrats will win in 2016, even though the 8 year cycle of presidential voting that has existed in modern times should cut strongly against them.

Wow. You and ritmo have essentially the same numerological approach to election cycles. Where did you two read this and how do you account for externalities?

MadisonMan said...

It's a mistake to think people have read every previous post completely when you comment on subsequent posts.

Synova said...

Somefeller... honest? What qualification did Obama have when he ran for president in 2008? We were told *at the time* that he was qualified for an executive position *because he managed his campaign*.

And he wrote a book.

And was a junior state congressperson briefly followed by an even briefer stint as a junior senator.

What did he have in 2012?

A disastrous economy, ongoing wars, Guantanamo, kill lists, and Benghazi, which we weren't *allowed* to talk about because it wasn't fair to expect answers so soon.

He just needs more time, poor fellow. It's not his fault! Vote for him anyway because he simply can't fail. If we pretend he's not failing, that nothing bad his his fault, then it's all going to be good in the end.

No, those calling him the affirmative action president are not just grabbing onto that to attack him in the absence of anything substantive. They're pointing out that the *substance* is being utterly ignored by people who voted for him because they were excited about voting for someone who is black and now the consequences of being wrong about this symbolic "first" are too dire to allow.



JAL said...

But they wouldn't need to bring up his race if they had more to go with.

Yeah that would be nice. Like to start with, Obama's college transcripts. And how he got into Harvard Law (recommendations from ...?) How his university career was paid for....

You know that would give them more to work with.

Having that information might provide some clarity.

Kirk Parker said...

Everyone,

America's Politico is sent here with a very specific mission: to bore us to death.

Well, it's working...

somefeller said...

Plus - they should provide his birth certificate, right, JAL?

chickelit said...

somefeller said...
Plus - they should provide his birth certificate, right, JAL?

A transparent attempt to smear JAL as a birther, easily countered by pointing out that somefeller was most likely a Palin birther like his hero Andrew Sullivan.

Tit for Tata, somefeller.

somefeller said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
somefeller said...

JAL was the one who started in with the standard conspiracy theory questions, chickelit. People who raise those questions often are birthers. But JAL can speak for himself.

And your Palin-Sullivan obsession is amusing. Do you keep a photo of Palin up on the wall of your cubicle for inspiration?


chickelit said...

And your Palin-Sullivan obsession is amusing. Do you keep a photo of Palin up on the wall of your cubicle for inspiration?

FWIW, I've never worked a cubicle, somefeller. But Sullivan/Palin voodoo dolls were probably marketable--4 1/2 years ago.

I like keeping the Sullivan-Palin thing alive because Sullivanists like you want to pretend it never happened. So long as you deny the instigation, I will assert the denial's stench.

chickelit said...

@Somefeller: What you should do sometime is reconstruct a timeline of events in the 2008 election.

Honest timelines never lie.

MayBee said...

He said in September that I issued a directive to take whatever steps are necessary to protect our troops and our assets. And then as Bill said, he never again followed up, he never asked, is my directive being executed? That is the essence of leadership, and this is a complete failure of leadership..

I believe people are misreading Obama's directives. He said he issued them when he found out what happened....which could easily mean the next morning. He wasn't talking about securing the personnel in Benghazi, but in other embassies. He did follow up on that

For those of you dinging Althouse, I'm certain those will be the comments she does't read. She doesn't have time to read all your comments, not even if you are a portal-user.

Revenant said...

Of course, there aren't quotas because racial quotas haven't been allowed for some time under affirmative action jurisprudence.

Fascinating.

You know, racial discrimination in hiring, admissions, et al, has been illegal for fifty years. Does that not exist anymore, either? :)

Dante said...

I'm starting to see how this works. It's just some people, of the hundreds of millions of Americans. People die all the time, and I have bigger issues to deal with. The press will cover me.

Well, the guy is unfortunately right. It's just some lives. People die all the time. What's the big deal. Oh, it's a political deal. Well, Candy will cover my ass for me.

That's the problem, the press. If Bush made that kind of mistake, he would have been impeached.

Screw the press. They are a bunch of tards that don't know why when you multiply 6 * 8 it's the same as 8 * 6, because they can't think and are a bunch of circle jerk clones.

Penny said...

Sad day for America when the Press changed their job descriptions to include not only opinion, but edutainment, and now entertainment.

Guess they thought bloggers were having WAY too much fun.

Amartel said...

Deafening silence on the topic of Obama's qualifications. Other than being black and deeply embedded in a no doubt very complicated patronage system. But he rose to the very top. Yaaay.

Amartel said...

Cotton was excellent. He's been on before and is smart enough to make sneaky Mike Wallace think twice before trying any tricks.

Robert Cook said...

"COTTON: We don't need federal judges involved in sensitive and urgent national security matters, and it would be an unconstitutional infringement on the president's rights to keep America safe. So, if you take up arms against America and you fight in a terrorist training camp or on the front lines in Pakistan or Afghanistan or Yemen, you shouldn't be surprised if America reaches out and exacts justice against you."

This response alone reveals that Cotton is no more fit for elective office than President Obama or most of his colleagues in the Senate and House.

Robert Cook said...

"Does anyone doubt that GW Bush would have been in the situation room all night...?"

I have no doubt...that he wouldn't have been. He famously had an early bed time.

Robert Cook said...

"I dont understand if on the one hand enhanced interrogations techniques are beyond the pale... how can Drone carte blanch not also be... beyond the pale."

Who says it's not also beyond the pale? Except the mass murderers running the program and those in Washington who applaud mass murder?

Issob Morocco said...

Althouse, keep tugging on this thread. Where was David Axelrod that evening and was he in contact with the President?

I think you will find that path an interesting one that ties back to the infamous Video.

Chicago Way Meets the Muslim Brotherhood.

paul a'barge said...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Cotton

Learn about Tom Cotton.

In DC they're not all a bunch of Obamas.