Maddow blog: "but we didn't 'send' anyone a letter"

[Panich52]

The worst excuse yet for the Senate Republicans’ Iran letter
By Steve Benen

As last week progressed, and the scope of the fiasco surrounding the Senate Republicans’ letter to Iran became more obvious, many GOP officials on Capitol Hill furiously tried to think of excuses. The scramble was understandable: Republicans had tried to sabotage American foreign policy, and the stunt hadn’t gone well.
 
Over the course of three days, congressional Republicans came up with at least four different excuses, including Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) blaming a D.C.-area snowstorm the week before. None of the arguments was particularly persuasive.
 
But National Review’s Deroy Murdock yesterday presented the most amazing excuse yet: the 47 Senate Republicans shouldn’t be criticized for sending a letter to Iran since they didn’t literally, physically “send” anything.

... Say what you will about the Republicans’ open letter “to the leaders of the Islamic Republic of Iran.” The Cotton/GOP letter regarding Tehran’s atom-bomb talks with Obama was not sent to the ayatollahs.

Had Cotton & Co. actually delivered their communique to Iran’s mullahs – perhaps via a Swiss diplomatic pouch or something even more cloak and dagger – their critics would be on less swampy ground in calling them “traitors,” as the New York Daily News screamed.

The National Review piece added that “the Cotton Club” – Tom Cotton and his 46 GOP cohorts – “did not send its letter anywhere.” Murdock added, “Cotton & Co. never even dropped an envelope in the mail.”

...

The National Review argument emphasizes the fact that the Republicans message was an “open letter,” published online. As such, if we parse the meaning of the word “send” in the most charitable way possible, then maybe the GOP senators didn’t actually communicate with Iranian officials, at least not directly, during sensitive international talks.

...

Does the argument have merit? Actually, no, it doesn’t. Tom Cotton himself, presumably well positioned to speak on behalf of the “Cotton Club” given his role as ringleader, specifically said he and his Republican partners “sent a letter to Iranian leaders.”

I can appreciate the creativity behind the defense. In fact, it almost brings me back to an undergraduate course on metaphysics – if someone publishes a letter but doesn’t send it, does it really reach its destination?

...

More
http://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow-show/the-worst-excuse-yet-the-senate-republicans-iran-letter?cid=eml_mra_20150317

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Spin and obfuscating word games...apparently the one thing Repubs, especially TPers, do well. Of course, FauxNews & Limburger audience will swallow hook, line, & sinker. <sigh>

[Jackpine Radical]

1. Wonderful Republican reasoning.

Click your heels 3 times, invoke the name of St. Ronald, and suddenly a message is a non-message.

Here's a little passage from Business Insider that ought to be posted on sites like FR, if anyone registered there wishes to undertake a suicide mission.

The freshman senator tweeted the letter last Monday to Iranian leaders including the Ayatollah Khamenei, President Hassan Rouhani, and Iran's foreign minister.

Cotton received a prompt reply from Foreign Minister Javad Zarif via Twitter. Zarif chastised the Senators for the letter, which he called a "propaganda ploy."



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/tom-cotton-says-irans-leaders-clearly-have-the-message-from-his-letter-2015-3#ixzz3UfnHdQyu

[GeorgeGist]

2. By that logic ...

most folks never really voted for them.

[Wellstone ruled]

3. Mr. Kerry seemed to use this POS move to his

advantage. Appears there was a meeting of the minds,and,now Iran and 5+1 will reach a major break through and this is really pissing of the Military Industrial Complex and their Ally the Party of War. It's all about Euro and Mid East trade. Sanctions have crippled Iran's populace and it appears the present Government is seeing pitchforks and torches on the horizon. This is the former Persian Empire and thy do Business differently than other Arab country.