Today’s Moment Of Hukabee Zen (So Far)... The Bush Administration’s Arrogant Bunker Mentality.

Pretend for a moment when you are reading the following quote you didn’t already know it was from the Huckster. Would you think it came from the leading Republican or Democratic candidate?

"American foreign policy needs to change its tone and attitude, open up, and reach out," Huckabee said. "The Bush administration's arrogant bunker mentality has been counterproductive at home and abroad. My administration will recognize that the United States' main fight today does not pit us against the world but pits the world against the terrorists."

Or, how about this one?

On Iran, for example, he makes a case for diplomacy by saying, "Before we put boots on the ground elsewhere, we had better have wingtips there first."

There are certainly legitimate grounds on which to criticize the Bush Administration, including the handling of the war. But blaming Bush for the world’s reaction to our actions post 9/11? That’s straight out of the Clinton/Obama/Edwards playbook.

Let’s be honest, if it wasn’t for abortion Huckabee would be running as a Democrat.

UPDATE: You can read the full article in Foreign Affairs. A few more excerpts below the fold.

Hukabee seems to be schizophrenic when it comes to national security/ terrorism issues. On one hand he often talks tough and sounds like he ‘gets it’.

it takes an enormous leap of imagination to understand what Islamic terrorists are about, that they really do want to kill every last one of us and destroy civilization as we know it. If they are willing to kill their own children by letting them detonate suicide bombs, then they will also be willing to kill our children for their misguided cause.

But at other times he falls back on liberal talking points.

Our invasion of Iraq went well militarily, but the occupation has destroyed the country politically, economically, and socially.

Really? “The occupation” did all of that? Not 30 years of Saddam or the terrorists we are fighting?

Of course later he says:

Since we overthrew Saddam, we have learned that we invaded an imaginary country, because we relied at the time on information that was out of date and on longtime exiles who exaggerated the good condition of Iraq's infrastructure, the strength of its middle class, and the secular nature of its society.

So, which is it? Who destroyed Iraq? Oh, he thinks we should have had an ambassador in Iraq in the years after the Gulf War. I guess he missed the part where we were in a state of de facto war with Iraq all those years.

Huckabee also says we must offer an alternative to Islamic fundamentalism but then says we should offer better relations with Iran by taking steps that would help prop up their government. Huh? Are we only supposed to be worried about Sunni fundamentalism and not the Shia brand? If so, why?

There’s much more, including some tough but unrealistic talk about what to do with Pakistan.

Overall, despite the comforting rhetoric that dots the piece (including a fairly realistic, though obvious, assessment of Putin’s Russia), I am left with a realistic, though obvious, assessment of my own…Huck just ain’t ready for prime time

posted by DrewM. at 01:35 PM

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