Dems fire back at Bush on 'appeasement' - CNN.com
JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Democrats on Thursday condemned President Bush's insinuation that they would be appeasing terrorist states by holding talks, with one going so far as to call his remarks "bulls**t."
President Bush called the idea of negotiating with terrorists a "foolish delusion."
Joe Biden, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said that if the president disagrees so strongly with the idea of talking to Iran, then he needs to fire his secretaries of state and defense, both of whom Biden said have pushed to sit down with the Iranians.
"This is bulls**t. This is malarkey. This is outrageous. Outrageous for the president of the United States to go to a foreign country, sit in the Knesset ... and make this kind of ridiculous statement," he said...Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid called on Bush to "explain the inconsistency between his administration's actions and his words today."
"Not surprisingly, the engineer of the worst foreign policy in our nation's history has fired yet another reckless and reprehensible round," he said in a statement...
"It is sad that President Bush would use a speech to the Knesset on the 60th anniversary of Israel's independence to launch a false political attack," Obama said in a statement released to CNN by his campaign.
"George Bush knows that I have never supported engagement with terrorists, and the president's extraordinary politicization of foreign policy and the politics of fear do nothing to secure the American people or our stalwart ally Israel," Obama's statement said.
Watch the Obama camp's response to Bush »
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who leaves later Thursday on a bipartisan congressional trip to Israel, said there is a "protocol" of not criticizing the president when he is abroad but then declared, "I think what the president did in that regard is beneath the dignity of the office of president and unworthy of our representation at that observance in Israel."
She and Howard Dean, the Democratic Party chairman, called on McCain to denounce the comment.
McCain declined to do so Thursday, instead criticizing Obama's willingness to talk to the president of Iran.
"It is a serious error on the part of Sen. Obama that shows naiveté and inexperience and lack of judgment to say that he wants to sit down across the table from an individual who leads a country who says that Israel is a stinking corpse," McCain said.
And apparently the outrage has nothing to do with the millions dead and trillions spent. He insulted the Democlican Party! How dare he! Each day he goes untried for war crimes is an insult to humanity! Perhaps the ball is beginning to roll. Might one hope?
At least someone in D.C. (Dick City) is finally publicly denouncing the murderous son of a bitch. I guess I'll call it 'progressive'.
