Giulani's Post Debate Statement

After the Republican debate, Republican presidential candiate Rudy Giulani said - to paraphrase - that all he heard at the Democratic debate was a push to go back to the 1990s and forget about the threat of the terrorists to the United States.

1) I'm sure that the Democratic candiates plan to completely ignore the war in Iraq and the threat to national security created by that war and jihadi Islamists and terrorist groups. I think I remember that answer in the Democratic debate... Wolf: "Please raise your hand if your administration's policy regarding the war in Iraq will be to just completely ignore it and act like it never happened." ::every hand goes up::

2) If the reason that Giulani believes that the Democrats want to roll back policy blindly to 1990s is because they mentioned the Democratic heydays of the '90s, then Mr. Giulani, it seems to me you are proposing sometime much worse. At every possible moment you invoke the memory and presidency of Reagan. According to your theory, that must mean that you want to roll back to the 1980's. Not only would that push the threat of terror from the Middle East and jihadi Islamists further from our mind, it would be a complete shift in policy. Instead of fighting the War on Terror by targeting Islamists we would fund and support their campaign against current world powers. Given that we are currently in a unipole situation, it seems that Giulani's invocation of Reagan only means that Giulani must want to the Islamists to defeat the United States. At least that is what it would mean if we were to follow his statement and reasoning to its logical end.


LATER ADDITION:

Ronald Reagan Proclamation 5034 - Afghanistan Day, 21 March, 1983

Excerpt:

The tragedy of Afghanistan continues as the valiant and courageous Afghan freedom fighters persevere in standing up against the brutal power of the Soviet invasion and occupation. The Afghan people are struggling to reclaim their freedom, which was taken from them when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in December of 1979.

In this three-year period the Soviet Union has been unable to subjugate Afghanistan. The Soviet forces are pitted against an extraordinary people who, in their determination to preserve the character of their ancient land, have organized an effective and still spreading country-wide resistance. The resistance of the Afghan freedom fighters is an example to all the world of the invincibility of the ideals we in this country hold most dear, the ideals of freedom and independence.(emphasis added)

If you read the proclamation it isn't very hard to just replace "Afghanistan" with "Iraq", "Soviet Union" with "America", and "Afghan freedom fighters" with "Iraqi insurgents". If we weren't the occupying force in Iraq, it's not unfathomable that President Bush would issues a statement in the spirit of Reagan's Proclamation 5034.

This proclamation only further evinces that Mr. Giulani's comment was nothing more than sophomoric politicking. But then the great Ronald Reagan knew all and was infallible, right? At least that is the myth the Republicans aim to push.