"Polish death camps"

[RZM]

22. I agree and I think it's like calling Abu Ghraib an 'Iraqi prison'

It's not quite the same as the death camps, since those were constructed by the Germans and Abu Ghraib was already there when the Americans took it over, but other than that it's an apt comparison (note, I am not at all trying to equate the death factories with Abu Ghraib. They aren't even in the same galaxy, let alone ballpark).

The death camps were instruments of German policy located in occupied Poland. Abu Ghraib was an instrument of American policy located in Iraq. Neither facilities were 'Polish' or 'Iraqi.'

I don't think the president meant to offend or muddy the historical waters. I think he simply misspoke, which is a pretty common thing for anybody to do, especially when every word you say in public is recorded and analyzed.

But this is a sensitive enough subject that I think the president needs to call Tusk and personally apologize. Once he does that, it's fair to expect everybody to move on.