Romney Blasts Obama on Cairo Embassy Apology

[trailmonkee]

Source: National Review

After saying earlier that Sept. 11 was not the day to criticize President Obama on foreign policy matters, Mitt Romney late Tuesday issued a statement blasting the Obama administration for its Cairo embassy’s apology for anti-Muslim activity in the United States.

The U.S. embassy had put out a statement early Tuesday that apologized for an anti-Muslim video being promoted by Gainesville, Fla. pastor Terry Jones, who earlier had threatened to burn more than 200 copies of the Koran. The video reportedly mocks Islam's founding prophet Muhammed -- a view that seemed certain to rile Muslims.

The Embassy of the United States in Cairo condemns the continuing efforts by misguided individuals to hurt the religious feelings of Muslims – as we condemn efforts to offend believers of all religions," the embassy said in the statement, which was published online. The White House later sought to distance itself from that statement, according to Politico.

Romney, in his statement, said he was “outraged” by attacks on American diplomatic missions in Libya and Egypt and the death of an American consulate worker in Benghazi.

“It's disgraceful that the Obama Administration's first response was not to condemn attacks on our diplomatic missions, but to sympathize with those who waged the attacks,” Romney said.


Read more: http://www.nationaljournal.com/2012-presidential-campaign/romney-blasts-obama-on-cairo-embassy-apology-20120911

---

this one stinks to high heaven.... this whole series of events seems quite unnatural to me?

I get a feeling that this one is going to Really Piss President Obama off!! when you say shit like this to a person that actually has some conviction and cares deeply about his country... it's kind of like fucking with his family.

[still_one]

1. Fuck romney

[trailmonkee]

2. He is a massive prick

[cyclezealot]

6. I second that.

Can you just imagine what the reaction will be in the Arab world , should Americans have the stupidity to elect Mittens. He's even pized off the Brits.. Right now, the world is safer under Obama compared to Bush , post 911..
Give Mitt a chance to put his anti arab Neo cons into office , allow the evangelicals to continue their anti Islam Jihad, and we'll have John McCain wish to have war with one billion people. What happened in Libya and Cairo is just a start should Mitt's unbalanced view of the Middle East become US policy.

[still_one]

8. Problem is Obama is responsible for American lives in the area. Obviously, romney could care less

about those lives, so he can say any reckless garbage he wants

[JDPriestly]

40. Do you remember the bombing of the US embassy in Lebanon under Reagan?

The Beirut Barracks Bombing (October 23, 1983 in Beirut, Lebanon) occurred during the Lebanese Civil War, when two truck bombs struck separate buildings housing United States and French military forces—members of the Multinational Force in Lebanon—killing 299 American and French servicemen. The organization Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the bombing.

Suicide bombers detonated each of the truck bombs. In the attack on the American Marines barracks, the death toll was 241 American servicemen: 220 Marines, 18 Navy personnel and three Army soldiers, along with sixty Americans injured, representing the deadliest single-day death toll for the United States Marine Corps since the Battle of Iwo Jima of World War II, the deadliest single-day death toll for the United States military since the first day of the Tet Offensive during the Vietnam War, and the deadliest single attack on Americans overseas since World War II.[1][dead link] In addition, the elderly Lebanese custodian of the Marines' building was killed in the first blast.[2] The explosives used were equivalent to 5,400 kg (12,000 pounds) of TNT.

In the attack on the French barracks, the eight-story 'Drakkar' building, two minutes after the Marine attack, 58 paratroopers from the 1st Parachute Chasseur Regiment were killed and 15 injured, in the single worst military loss for France since the end of the Algerian War.[3] The wife and four children of a Lebanese janitor at the French building were also killed.[4]

The blasts led to the withdrawal of the international peacekeeping force from Lebanon, where they had been stationed since the withdrawal of the Palestine Liberation Organization following the Israeli 1982 invasion of Lebanon.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1983_Beirut_barracks_bombing

The loss of life and the damages were far greater. Reagan was helpless. But he was re-elected nevertheless.

We don't yet know what is behind this incident in Syria or the other incident in Egypt.

[still_one]

43. Yes, I remember those incidents, and actually that was one of the few thing that reagan did that was

right. He recognized that keeping troops in Lebanon was not feasible

However, I do not believe reagan was elected because of that.

Mondale appeared tired and drawn during the debates. That was unfortunate because it was the start of deregulation, and led to the financial crisis we are going through

[6000eliot]

3. So, this moron would rather get a lot of people killed?

[Zorro]

4. Does this mean Mitt approves of Terry Jones' movie?

[Angry Dragon]

5. I say the US should fly Terry Jones to Libya and

let him explain to the Muslims why he made the movie

[loli phabay]

17. yup and then we can put the next person who offends the religious nuts on the next plane

then anyone who is gay and we can just keep moving down the list. Sorry but these guys dont get to have a veto over my freedoms no matter what they do.

[oldsarge54]

20. C'mon, Be Real

Tell me, knowing the history of the current Islamic world reacting to less than favorable portrayals of Mohammad (Satanic Verses, Koran burning preachers, dutch cartoonists) can you honestly say that the movie was not created with malice aforethought! Jefferson did say that about freedom of speech being like freedom to swing one's arm, it ends at the other man's nose. The film maker should be held responsible. This does not limit your freedom of speech, but you should be responsible for the results.

[leftynyc]

21. Heaven forbid

we expect people to act like rational adults!! I simply cannot remember how many people died as a result of The Last Temptation of Christ. The Muslims who think the rest of the world needs to respect their fantasies need to get a grip on reality.

[randome]

22. 'Expectations' do not mirror reality.

When you KNOW that religious extremism will be the result of your film, why shove it into the faces of an unstable culture?

It's madness on both sides. We can't stop Libyans from acting irrationally but we can stop Terry Jones.

[leftynyc]

24. No, we cannot stop him

We have laws protecting speech - even when it's hateful and insulting.

[oldsarge54]

25. But we Can

In America, people do have free speech. They are also liable for the results of their free speech. I am not into censoring beforehand, but when someone incites trouble deliberately, they should be held accountable for it. It is called personal responsibility, the other side of the coin of freedom.

[leftynyc]

28. That cannot work

If Americans have to go around worried that their speech is going to incite some asshole halfway across the world, what kind of freedom is that? Personal responsibility either applies to everyone or it doesn't and it seems many here only want to make that applicable to Americans.

[oldsarge54]

31. Why Frickin not

We our responsible for OUR laws, and the actions of OUR citizens. Making that film is not about free speech, it is incitement to hate. Then again, a muzzle would look on Rush L, but I don't advocate it. Besides, get real. A maker of a movie being distributed internationally is not the same as Americans have to go around worried that their speech is going to incite some asshole halfway across the world This is the work of someone looking to get people riled up.

[leftynyc]

35. Whoa there

This is not a movie that's being distributed internationally - it's a video on You Tube. The vermin who really started this riot told the mob it was in fact a major production and is much more to blame than the moron in Florida. Were you this riled up when someone put a crucifix on urine and called it art? I'm thinking not and that was also considered insulting to many Catholics and Christians. You don't think that was done to provoke a response? Why do you seem to want to give a pass to those that murder in the name of Mohammad?

[oldsarge54]

36. You Tube is NOT internation

Urine and feces I actually understood. Symbols in Africa for fertility. Then again, I was an art teacher. Sorry, I didn't see your example as insulting. However, knowing full well how Satanic Verses, dutch cartoons, and preachers burning Korans, I cannot see how the movie producer cannot expect the result of this little film to being the equivalent of dropping a tanker of high grade gas in a wild fire.

[leftynyc]

37. I feel like I'm being

purposefully misunderstood. I'm not Christian or Muslim and I have never felt a need to adhere to any behavior that would supress my free speech because of how others may react. I've had many right wingers send me shit on email trying to provoke me and I simply laugh and tell them "see you in November". Someone told the mob that this was an American movie that was being distributed widely on 9/11 and that's what started this madness. So now we're not only supposed to be responsible for what our citizens do but also for the lies that may come from it.

[oldsarge54]

38. We are Misunderstanding Each other

I'm saying is that the person who, as I believe, with malice aforethought, should be held responsible for the violence he unleased. HE, not US.

[leftynyc]

39. Is Jones also responsible

for the lie that was told to get the riot started? It wasn't the obscure you tube video that started this. It was the lie that this was an American movie being released on 9/11 to wide distribution. And good luck getting 12 people to agree that Jones - while certainly an asshole - is responsible for the murder of a diplomat.

[randome]

41. We have laws restricting free speech, as well.

There is no room in the world for purists. Not in our imperfect world.

[leftynyc]

48. Not this kind of speech

I'm perfectly within my legal rights to call Jesus Christ a pedophile if I choose. You wont see anyone dying for it.

[sir pball]

44. I'd argue his speech rises to the level of muzzling

In Brandeburg v. Ohio SCOTUS laid out the current criteria for restriction of speech -

[T]he constitutional guarantees of free speech and free press do not permit a State to forbid or proscribe advocacy of the use of force or of law violation except where such advocacy is directed to inciting or producing imminent lawless action and is likely to incite or produce such action.

Right or wrong, being hateful and insulting to Islam has been historically proven to produce imminent lawless action IMO. Sometimes ya gotta put the ideals in a box under the bed and be pragmatic..

[leftynyc]

49. I think you'll have a

hard time convincing any American court that that an American's right to free speech should include worrying about imminent lawless action in other countries.

[sir pball]

51. If it involves blowing up

American embassies, I could see a pretty good case on the government's part.

[leftynyc]

54. This comes uncomfortably close

to Ari Fleisher's remark after 9/11 - that we need to watch what we say. I have the same reaction now as I did then - bullshit - I'll say whatever I like and if others cannot control their behavior, that's not my problem.

[sir pball]

55. I don't really like the idea

I tend to generally agree with you, and think that critical and even satirical works, e.g. the Danish cartoons a few years ago, are perfectly reasonable and fair...but stuff that's specifically designed to be provocative, offensive and incendiary, intended to provoke a minority segment that responds with savage violence, falls well past even strict scrutiny. It's not my problem if they can't control their behavior, but it is my problem when they blow the shit out of my Ambassador.

That, plus I'm not willing to sit here and take their lack of control - if they want to play the violence game I'm more than willing to play it back, part of me kind of hopes the President's kill list just got a little longer

[leftynyc]

58. Completely agree with your last sentence

I want those motherfuckers to be crapping their pants for the rest of their (hopefully short) lives. When I said it wasn't my problem, I wasn't trying to diminish the sacrifice the ambassador of Libya (or anywhere else dangerous) - only that I cannot watch every word that comes out of my mouth because someone, somewhere may have a problem with it. There comes a point when the only people responsible for actions are the people who make them.

[lin_e65]

34. True, BUT...

You don't yell fire in a movie theater.

[randome]

42. Doesn't Germany still have laws against promotion of Nazi themes?

It is an imperfect world. We need to recognize the reality of that.

[Roland99]

33. fuck the latter part of that...just send that asshat over there!

[David__77]

45. No. This is about terrorism and that is all.

The scandal is that the US helped set the stage for this attack by helping destroy the Libyan state, and that today it colludes with terrorists in Syria who aim to unleash similar chaos there.

[starroute]

7. October Surprise?

I think a lot of us have been waiting for some sort of Class A dirty trick -- and this seems suspiciously well-coordinated.

I wonder who his financial backers really are?

[emilyg]

10. So he's not allowed freedom

of speech?

[CJCRANE]

11. Terry Jones

is allowed freedom of speech. But it's obvious what he's trying to do with that speech. The next thing to look into is if he or his associates have contacts in the ME who deliberately promote his videos to stir up mayhem.

[orwell]

14. Do you get to yell fire...

...in a crowded theater?

[oldsarge54]

26. Howabout

Open fire in a crowded theater?

[David__77]

46. He was not in a crowded theater. There should be no "mob veto."

When I was in high school, there were people who didn't like that I was gay - some even had violent tendencies about such issues. But that rightly didn't stop me from being openly gay. That there are extremist theocrats using terrorism and intimidation to get their way should be met with firm opposition, not appeasement.

[emilyg]

53. +1

[WallaceRitchie]

9. Priebus tweet

[IMG][/IMG]

[trailmonkee]

12. what a cock face - jeesh - they lie & distort so much it's actually starting to get creepy...

[nanabugg]

13. Romney needs to be a good citizen and just forfeit the election so the adults can begin to

concentrate on these international distractions.

[muriel_volestrangler]

15. Romney adviser says foreign policy is a "distraction" and a "shiny thing"

Time for Romney to fire his adviser for saying his boss is distracting attention from what Romney should be talking about? Romney does like firing people, after all:

The Romney campaign, however, doesn’t think national security is a winning issue for Obama.

Romney foreign policy advisor Robert O’Brien called the Obama campaign's tactic a transparent ploy to distract from the sagging economy, including a recent jobs report that was "a disaster for them."

"It doesn't surprise me that they're raising foreign policy because it's another distraction from the Administration’s terrible economic record,” O’Brien told BuzzFeed. “They're going from one shiny object to the next."

O’Brien scoffed at the Obama campaign's claims of foreign policy strength, and pointed to what he sees as serious vulnerabilities. Obama’s "reset" with Russia has been a “failure” O’Brien said, and “his administration should be embarrassed by it.”

http://www.buzzfeed.com/mhastings/obamas-plan-to-use-national-security-as-a-cudgel

[judesedit]

16. Rmoney couldn't fight his way out of a wet paper bag. He talks real tough and is brave with a gun

in his hand. Just like Cheney or Bushy boy. They are the beaters of children, women, and defenselss animals. Rmoney would be dropping bombs on every country he could steal something from....including this one. He's probably never made an apology in his life. Certainly not to all of the people he put out of work in his lifetime. Screw him and the horse he rode in on.

[hauweg]

18. That only makes sense to Romney

WTF? The embassy’s apology was release before the attack happened and Romney complains that it doesn't condemn the attacks.
Only Romney can retroactively look into the future or rewrite history.

[lunatica]

19. Romney is dangerous to our country

Not even Bush was this reckless with his words.

[Odin2005]

23. The timing of this is suspicious.

[still_one]

27. This should piss every American off. romney's reckless statements can put Americans in the region

at risk. This further demonstrates how incompetent romeny actually is

[trailmonkee]

29. read about the Libyan Ambassador-this is now beyond rhetoric-Romney needs to apologize and stfu!

[rgbecker]

30. Does this sound like an apology?

Only quote from the National Review article:

"The Embassy of the United States in Cairo condemns the continuing efforts by misguided individuals to hurt the religious feelings of Muslims – as we condemn efforts to offend believers of all religions," the embassy said in the statement, which was published online.

[trailmonkee]

32. its an 'Embassy apology' from thw Cairo US Embassy

[Vidar]

47. Turn Terry Jones and Mitt over to the Arabs.

[The Stranger]

50. Mitt can't even go a full 24 hours without completely reversing himself 180 degrees on anything.

[AnnaLee]

52. This one is simple

Send Romney to stay in the Embassy and recall the apology.

Really now, would you want Romney in charge when he could save lives by saying the US government doesn't support nut-cases but he doesn't say anything because he's so, so "tough".

[patrice]

56. I predict that our President is going to be hyper-aware of attempts to push our troops into more war

[patrice]

57. Romney thinks it's a signal The Deal's done on America's next PROXY WAR & that HE IS HIRED to run it