| Obama Taking Fire Over Bumps In the Road |
| Sep-24-2012 |
| Keywords: obama, 60 minutes, bumps in the road, romney |
President Obama is drawing criticism for his characterization of the Middle East unrest and the assassination of four U.S. citizens as "bumps in the road."
Obama's Republican challenger Mitt Romney went on the offensive Monday, saying that "His[Obama's] comments on foreign policy particularly the middle east, where things are so turbulent right now, I think were very surprising to people. He said the developments in the Middle East are bumps in the road.... Bumps in the road? We had an ambassador assassinated, we had a Muslim brotherhood member elected to the presidency of Egypt, 20,000 people have been killed in Syria. We have tumult in Pakistan, and of course Iran is that much closer to having the capacity to build a nuclear weapon. These are not bumps in the road, these are human lives. These are developments we do not want to see. This is time for a president who will shape events in the Middle East, not just be merciful or be at mercy of the events of the Middle East. I will get America on track to have the kind of leadership we need so we can shape the future of this part of the world and keep America strong."
President Obama and Mitt Romney appeared in dueling interviews on "60 Minutes" last night, and it appears the president is getting a taste of the criticism Romney faced following his "47%" remark.
The president telling "60 Minutes" that, "The question presumes that somehow we could have stopped this wave of change. I think it was absolutely the right thing for us to do to align ourselves with democracy, universal rights- a notion that- people have- to be able to- participate- in- their own governance. But I was pretty certain and continue to be pretty certain that there are going to be bumps in the road because- you know, in a lot of these places- the one organizing principle- has been Islam. The one part of society that hasn't been controlled completely by the government. There are strains of extremism, and anti-Americanism, and anti-Western sentiment. And you know can be tapped into by demagogues. There will probably be some times where we bump up against some of these countries and have strong disagreements, but I do think that over the long term, we are more likely to get a Middle East and North Africa that is more peaceful, more prosperous and more aligned with our interests," Obama said.
White House Press Secretary Jay Carney faced a barrage of questions at Monday's press briefing about the "60 Minutes" interview.
The accusation about Obama's Middle East comments, Carney said Monday, is "both desperate and offensive."
He rejected the idea that the president was minimizing the recent violence.
"The president was referring to the transformations in the region," Carney said. "There is a certain rather desperate attempt to grasp at words and phrases here to find political advantage and, in this case, that's profoundly offensive."
That wasn't the only line Carney had to carefully explain Monday.
Romney's campaign had also criticized the president for his comments regarding Iran's nuclear program.
Asked about whether he feels pressure regarding Iran from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Obama said, "When it comes to our national security decisions, any pressure that I feel is simply to do what's right for the American people. And I am going to block out any noise that's out there."
He went on to refer to Israel as "one of our closest allies in the region."
Israel is typically referred to as America's closest ally in the region -- not just one of several.
Carney clarified Monday at the briefing that "you've heard the president say numerous times that Israel is our closest ally in the region." He said that bond is "unshakable."
As for the comment on the "noise" surrounding Iran's nuclear program, Carney said Obama was making clear that his commitment to Israel "is as strong as ever and unbreakable in nature."
The Obama team was also taking heat Monday for Obama's suggestion that sometimes the campaign ads go "overboard" and contain "mistakes" |
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Posted by Lou Dobbs Staff at 3:00 PM Email to a friend |
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