Gateway Pundit and Judith Apter Klinghoffer flag Sen. Hillary Clinton’s attempt to take credit for progress in Iraq on NBC’s Meet The Press:
SEN. CLINTON: Tim, I’m going to go back to what the whole point of the surge was, and the testimony that we heard last fall. The point of the surge was to push the Iraqi government to make these tough choices. Now, if we put in 30,000 of our finest young men and women, who are going to go after the bad guys and quell violence in certain parts of Iraq, there’s no doubt that can be done. The partnerships that have been created by the tribal sheiks in Anbar province and elsewhere gave us an extra advantage. But that doesn’t in any way undermine the basic reality. The point of the surge was to quickly move the Iraqi government and Iraqi people. That is only now beginning to happen, and I believe in large measure because the Iraqi government, they watch us, they listen to us. I know very well that they follow everything that I say. And my commitment to begin withdrawing our troops in January of 2009 is a big factor, as it is with Senator Obama, Senator Edwards, those of us on the Democratic side. It is a big factor in pushing the Iraqi government to finally do what they should have been doing all along.
 If the Iraqi government listens to what she says, they will have noted her shifting positions on troop deployments in Iraq. If the Iraqi government listens to the Democrats, it might certainly push the government to cut a deal with President Bush by July:
Most significant of all, the new partnership deal with Iraq, including a status of forces agreement that would then replace the existing Security Council mandate authorizing the presence of the U.S.-led multinational forces in Iraq, will become a sworn obligation for the next president. It will become just another piece of the complex global security framework involving a hundred or so countries with which Washington now has bilateral defense or security cooperation agreements. Last month, Sen. Hillary Clinton urged Bush not to commit to any such agreement without congressional approval. The president said nothing about that on Saturday, but Lute said last fall that the Iraqi agreement would not likely rise to the level of a formal treaty requiring Senate ratification. Even so, it would be difficult if not impossible for future presidents to unilaterally breach such a pact.
***
The upshot is that the next president, Democrat or Republican, is likely to be handed a fait accompli that could well render moot his or her own elaborate withdrawal plans, especially the ones being considered by the two leading Democratic contenders, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton.
No doubt the Democratic nominee will want to grab the credit for that at the Democratic National Convention. The party’s anti-war base will give profuse thanks.
Update: Though it may be tempting to reject Clinton’s suggestion that the Iraqi government listens to what she and other Democrats say, it is demostrably true. For example, the Senate Democrats’ plan for a soft partition of Iraq managed to unite Sunnis and Shiites in opposition to it. And Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki once publicly lashed out at Clinton and other Democrats seeking his ouster, saying they’re treating Iraq like “one of their villages.” Oddly enough — or perhaps not – John Edwards said the Prime Minister should not worry about what the Democrats say.
It’s that typical narcisstic claim for credit; The Iraqi Government is to respond to what leftists Democrats in Congress decree and not to the Iraqi people or to events on the ground, according to her.
She has been in the Harry Reid camp of “we’ve lost the war” and calling Gen Petraus a liar in the Senate. She and her handlers truly think we will not remember what she has said in the past. The mendacity is breathtaking.
As long as you’re willing to suspend disbelief, right Hill?
A soldier responds to Hillary’s remarks on MTP:
A Soldier Responds
Obama was the guy that said the very real potential of genocide in Iraq was of no concern to him. I bet they heard that.
yeah, Karl, they do seem to listen, but the Democratic reaction is better described as, “Oh, I meant to do that!”
Blowback.
It would almost be worth having a Democrat elected president just to watch them have to change their positions on everything from Guantanamo, to FISA, to troop withdrawals, to invading Pakistan etc… Watching the contortions in the Senate alone would be great theater.
I’m not sure if Hillary is even capable of having a genuine conviction that is not geared towards in some way increasing her own personal power. At least Bill had a sincere interest in poontang and fast food. Even if he had no guiding political or economic philosophy there was always that bond with the common man. What does Hillary have as a redeeming or humanizing characteristic?
“bite her in the end”
{shutter}
Yeah, I saw this. I was already having a bad morning (dog threw up on the bed, and we were dangerously low on coffee), and this didn’t help my disposition. She called Petraeus a liar last fall. Both Charlie Gibson and Tim Russert have asked her if she would revise her opinion in lieu of current events. She won’t budge, and now she she wants to take ALL the credit, leaving none for the troops. There might be a grain of truth in her theory that the Iraqis have their expiration date approaching, but her refusal to acknowledge the efforts of Petraeus and the troops is vile.
I’ve always tried to resist Clinton hatred, seeing what BDS does to its victims, but how could a person like this ever deserve to be commander-in-chief?
True dat. Hillary has a sincere interest in Hillary and not much else.
Um… I’m pretty sure Hillary has an interest in poontang as well.
Tim? If you don’t mind, I’d like to confirm that “almost”, because one of the absolute fundamental characteristics of Democrats is an inability to be feel shame or embarrassment after reversing a “deeply held” conviction for a perceived short term, even temporary, political gain.
Guys, guys. It’s all accounted for. Be tranquil.
I feel an essay coming on. I’ll put it in the Pub.
Regards,
Ric
The Dems shifting stances on the WOT have been 100% poll driven, since the clock struck noon on 9/11.
[…] Karl: If the Iraqi government listens to what she says, they will have noted her shifting positions on troop deployments in Iraq. If the Iraqi government listens to the Democrats, it might certainly push the government to cut a deal with President Bush by July […]
this should be made known to the world at the Hillarywall.com site. Let’s traffic it,and let’s build it
You think they waited that long?
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Before reading the transcript and seeing the clips of Hillary’s appearance on MTP yesterday I didn’t realize what an ungrateful idiot I am.
First, I need to send a big note of thanks to San Fran Nan for giving us the most ethical Congress evah! Second, I need to send a humongous contribution to Hillaty’s campaign to reward her for finally forcing some progress on the qwagmiyah of Iraq. I have just been looking at things totally bass ackwards.
Thank god we have an honest staight shooting politician like Hillary who is willing to correct the record and tell it like it is without any shading!