Mitt Romney's big lie. From Krugman

[Hamlette]

In Tuesday’s Republican presidential debate, Mitt Romney completely misrepresented how we ended up in Iraq. Later, Mike Huckabee mistakenly claimed that it was Ronald Reagan’s birthday

Guess which remark The Washington Post identified as the “gaffe of the night”?

Folks, this is serious. If early campaign reporting is any guide, the bad media habits that helped install the worst president ever in the White House haven’t changed a bit.

You may not remember the presidential debate of Oct. 3, 2000, or how it was covered, but you should. It was one of the worst moments in an election marked by news media failure as serious, in its way, as the later failure to question Bush administration claims about Iraq.

Throughout that debate, George W. Bush made blatantly misleading statements, including some outright lies — for example, when he declared of his tax cut that “the vast majority of the help goes to the people at the bottom end of the economic ladder.” That should have told us, right then and there, that he was not a man to be trusted.

http://select.nytimes.com/2007/06/08/opinion/08krugman.html?hp (this link is behind the wall but I think the column might be avail elsewhere? At any rate, this clip from the start of the column is the meat of the matter.)

I must say, I was glad Krugman pickup up on this as I'm been fuming since I heard Romney say that and there has been NOTHING on the news about it.

Krugman is right, this is serious. And scary. We need to be talking this up. Romney is more ill informed that Bush is/was.

[Hand]

1. Link to full article at freedemocracy...

http://freedemocracy.blogspot.com/2007/06/paul-krugman-lies-sighs-and-politics.html

[Hamlette]

4. thanks for the link Hand....

my computer has been crashing all day and I was too lazy/afraid to go look for it. You're the best.

[Hubert Flottz]

2. Where was Mitt during Vietnam?

[Hamlette]

3. student deferment...I've been told. n/t

[SheWhoMustBeObeyed]

5. according to dkosopedia, he was doing missionary work in France

Before college, Romney earned a draft deferral by going to France for a two-year missionary tour with the Mormon Church. As such, he was able to avoid military service in Vietnam.

http://www.dkosopedia.com/wiki/Mitt_Romney


Great OP. K&R.

[Hubert Flottz]

7. Why didn't he want to serve his country back then?

[K8-EEE]

11. Because he had to go talk Parisians into giving up wine and coffee

Now THAT'S a waste of time. Of course, then you get TO BE GOD ON YOUR OWN PLANET AND HAVE SPIRIT CHILDREN 4-EVER!

Nah, I'll take the cabernet, thanks...

[Hubert Flottz]

12. I thought the GOPers hated France and everything French?

Because the French don't jump when Bush beats the war drums.

[dogday]

6. Mitt (Full of Shit) Romney has been caught in so many

flubs now, I can't keep up...

[JHB]

8. Read it for free here

http://welcome-to-pottersville.blogspot.com/2007/06/paul-krugman-lies-sighs-and-politics.html

Now fast forward to last Tuesday. Asked whether we should have invaded Iraq, Mr. Romney said that war could only have been avoided if Saddam “had opened up his country to I.A.E.A. inspectors, and they’d come in and they’d found that there were no weapons of mass destruction.” He dismissed this as an “unreasonable hypothetical.”

Except that Saddam did, in fact, allow inspectors in. Remember Hans Blix? When those inspectors failed to find nonexistent W.M.D., Mr. Bush ordered them out so that he could invade. Mr. Romney’s remark should have been the central story in news reports about Tuesday’s debate. But it wasn’t.

Whenever someone spouts this lie, ask them one question (which Krugman hints on): If Saddam wouldn't let inspectors in before the war, how come I know Hans Blix's name?"

He wasn't exactly a houshold name before the invasion. It wasn't until the comedians started making fun of his name (and the RW machine making fun of his mission) that he had an ounce of name recognition here in the States.

Even the True Believers hit a mental speedbump if you can dredge up a solid memory of Yesterday's Always-been-the-Truth that conflicts with Today's Always-been-the-Truth.

[shimmergal]

9. Yes, it's scary, but

Mitt was only echoing * Bush's one-time statement. At some point after the invasion, * claimed Saddam's refusal to let the inspectors back in was one reason for wanting to overthrow him.

Anybody who follows the news and has a decent memory should know that statement is a falsehood. But how to get it across to the boobs who've forgotten (or who believe every thing they're told by the RW spin machine)?

It doesn't help any that Krugman, who does have a following, is one of the columnists you now have to pay extra money to read.

[Hamlette]

10. I agree he should be free but I doubt it was his decision, and it is avail elsewhere

and we have a duty to spread it. The how blogosphere should be talking about this. Bush did say it before but only once as I recall.

Now, what's happening to Paris?

:sarcasm: