MARK WARNER in Iowa, says Sec of Def RUMSFELD should step down

[FrenchieCat]

Mark Warner is taking a stand! :patriot:

Warner calls on Rumsfeld to abandon defense position
The former governor joins some other Democrats who are thinking of a 2008 presidential run.

THOMAS BEAUMONT
REGISTER STAFF WRITER
April 21, 2006

Former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner said in Iowa Thursday that Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld should resign, joining some other Democrats eyeing the 2008 presidential nomination.

But by saying Rumsfeld should step down, he set himself apart from other potential presidential candidates in his party, including New York Sen. Hillary Clinton and Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack.

"The line of mistakes in this war is almost unprecedented," he told The Des Moines Register, including "the failure to make a change in the architect in Rumsfeld, with unprecedented calls for his resignation from the armed services — and those are just the public calls."

Warner made the comments at the outset of a two-day trip to Iowa, where the precinct caucuses are expected to launch the next presidential nominating cycle in less than two years.

By calling for Rumsfeld's resignation, Warner joined U.S. Sens. Evan Bayh and John Kerry, former U.S. Sen. John Edwards and retired Gen. Wesley Clark — all potential 2008 presidential candidates.

More at link:

EDITED TO ADD LINK! http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060421/NEWS09/604210378/1001/NEWS

EDIT: COPYRIGHT - PLEASE POST ONLY 4 OR 5
PARAGRAPHS FROM THE COPYRIGHTED NEWS SOURCE
PER DU RULES.

[Virginia Dare]

1. Awesome!

Mark Warner is a very intelligent man, nobody should underestimate him.

:kick:

[FrenchieCat]

3. Well I am not particularily attracted to his candidacy for President.....

But am glad he's joined the frey by taking a position on this. Maybe he's starting to understand that sometimes you can't wait for the poll results to take a stand. So I give him credit on this one......and hopes this is a signal that he will be more opinionated when it comes to what is in our news today.... at a timely clip.....cause in order to be taken seriously, one has to stand for something sometime! :hi:

[Virginia Dare]

4. Agreed...

I think he has a place in politics for the future whatever that may be. I really wish he would run for the Senate here first though.

I see you are a Clark supporter, I voted for the General in the primaries last year, but it was a really tough choice. I hope he runs again.



:kick:

[wisteria]

2. oh, now that he thinks it safe to say this he comes out with it.

Hillary can't be to far behind- the DLC must of put their stamp of approval on this opinion.

That said, I am happy more Democrats are challenging the President and questioning his decisions.

[Zynx]

5. A wee bit cynical, are we?

[blm]

10. I think people got miffed with Warner when he said he was against

investigating how BushInc got us into war and how he has avoided criticizing Bush on Iraq for so long.

Personally, I welcome anyone who wants to jump on Rumsfeld - I do wish they all had done so after Abu Ghraib and supported Kerry when he called for Rumsfeld to be fired at that time. THAT would have helped boost the Democratic opposition to BushInc back then.

[saltpoint]

6. An increasingly long line of Democrats and even some Republicans

are calling for Rumsfeld's resignation.

Nothing I've read or heard about the conduct of the occupation suggests that things are improving there. Overwhelmingly, they seem to be deterioriating by the hour.

Yo, Don. Time to leave.

[Tom Rinaldo]

7. Great. Now if he would also urge direct negotiations with Iran

I will start feeling noticeably warmer about Warner.

[Sparkly]

8. Better late than never!!

:thumbsup:

[ContraBass Black]

9. Everyone and hs grandmother is saying it.

Ho-hum.

[Tom Rinaldo]

11. Yes. Which is why supporting diplomacy with Iran

and warning against the consequences of military action there, is a more significant benchmark for me now, by far.

[Donna Zen]

12. Freed by Freedman

Tom Freedman, who supported the war and usually props up the DLC Dems, recently wrote a scorcher of a column. In it he made several points: 1) as long as Rummy is at the helm the world can't/won't deal with us 2) a nuclear Iran would be better for America than another Rummy lead war, 3) until this gang is gone, we will coast along without a foreign policy 4) the best way to solve Iran is with diplomacy, but bush doesn't do diplomacy. (No link..NYT select)

Freedman seemed very angry when I saw him interviewed by James Fallows filling in for Charlie Rose. He should be. We all should be. Rummy at the Pentagon is standing in the way of even a minor measure of success (D-) in the Gulf, and thus, endangers all of us.

But I stray...I would think that Warner et al now have the DLC green-light. But just as the Freedman ops doesn't place me in his camp, so to, late to the party remains better late than never. A qualified Cool.

Leadership is standing up when no one else is standing up.

ps I would rather have seen Freedman interview Fallows. Just why the MSM is so interested in showcasing people who got everything wrong is a mystery.

[Stinky The Clown]

13. I just can't muster any enthusiasm for this guy .......

When I knew less about him, I was more postive about him. Wuzzat tell ya, yanno?

He would hae been the absolute ***perfect*** guy to unseat that turd, Allen. But no. Mark wanted more, so he sidesteps the senate and turns to the presidency.

Then he criticizes other Dems who took a principled position. All the while having no real positions of his own.

I think he's of the Joe Biden school of positioning ... stick a wet finger in the wind and see which way its blowing.

Sorry, Mark, for me ... you just don't get it.

[FrenchieCat]

14. Awe...Come on......

He's taking a Stand, at least..... :shrug:

[nickshepDEM]

15. Just a tad late, but better late than never I guess...

Some of you better get used to seeing him because I gurantee he will be on the ticket one way or another. If not president, he is a virtual lock for VP, imo...

[Sparkly]

16. NObody has "locked" anything at this point!!!

There ARE no "guarantees."

[nickshepDEM]

17. He's as close as it gets. For VP anyway...

[Sparkly]

18. There IS no "close," no "far," no anything. nt

[nickshepDEM]

19. Oh, but there is.

:hi:

[Sparkly]

20. Only in each of our imaginations. nt

:hi:

[nickshepDEM]

21. Hearing those voices again?

:pals:

[Tom Rinaldo]

23. I'll grant you that "early favorites" is a real category

Seriously, this is the phase I said Warner had to spend some time in before anyone can get a real read on what his real chances are. He had to get out of Virginia and talk about issues effecting all Americans and the world. He's not late doing it or anything, he's right on time, at least from a political perspective. Some will say he should have spoken out sooner on this or that. For 2008 that won't matter. What will matter is what Warner starts saying, or not saying, from here on out. People are keeping score now.

[ruggerson]

24. Beyond that, Tom

he served as chief executive, by all yardsticks successfully, of a large state with a fairly diverse (both urban and rural) population. In other words, he's walked the walk.

Whether he can talk the talk is another story entirely. My worry about him is less policy oriented - he stands firmly in the middle of the Democratic belief system, my worry is I wonder if he is tough enough and engaging enough. I don't yet see a James Carville disciple, fire-in-the-belly take no crap fighter. Which is what I think we're going to need this time around.

[Tom Rinaldo]

26. Certainly, Warner makes it through the first screen

He is a talented man with Executive experience in both a Business and State setting, who managed to please his constituents. That qualifies him for consideration. Whether or not Warner can please a broader base of potential constituents than Virginians, whether or not Democrats believe he has a sufficient mix of experience, including those related to international and security concerns, to be ready for the national ticket, whether or not he chooses issues to focus on that enough people care about, and offers solutions enough people people back, that is on the table now. Also Warner's ability to communicate his vision and inspire people with it, BETTER than his opponents.

It's not just if people like Warner and/or find him qualified to run for President, the test that all of our potential candidates will face is whether people like candidate A better than candidates B C D and E on those counts. Some mighty good Democrats get eliminated every four years, some earlier than others.

[ruggerson]

22. Thanks for posting this, FC

Too bad that for some folks, Warner is damned if he does, damned if he doesn't.

I don't quite get it.

[AmericanDream]

25. Don't even republicans want that now? What's new?