Newt Gingrich Says War on Terror "Phony"

[Mr. Ected]

Washington — Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said Thursday the Bush administration is waging a "phony war" on terrorism, warning that the country is losing ground against the kind of Islamic radicals who attacked the country on Sept. 11, 2001.

A more effective approach, said Gingrich, would begin with a national energy strategy aimed at weaning the country from its reliance on imported oil and some of the regimes that petro-dollars support.

"None of you should believe we are winning this war. There is no evidence that we are winning this war," the ex-Georgian told a group of about 300 students attending a conference for collegiate conservatives.

SNIP

"We've been engaged in a phony war," said Gingrich. "The only people who have been taking this seriously are the combat military."

His remarks seemed to reflect, in part, the findings of a National Intelligence Estimate made public last month.

In the estimate, the U.S. intelligence community concluded that six years of U.S. efforts to degrade the al-Qaida terrorist group had left the organization constrained but still potent, having "protected or regenerated" the capability to attack the United States in ways that have left the country "in a heightened threat environment."

"We have to take this seriously," said Gingrich.

"We used to be a serious country. When we got attacked at Pearl Harbor, we took on Imperial Japan, Fascist Italy and Nazi Germany," he said, referring to World War II.

"We beat all three in less than four years. We're about to enter the seventh year of this phony war against ... , and we're losing."

http://www.ajc.com/news/content/news/stories/2007/08/03/newt0803.html

[CottonBear]

1. Rat abandoning sinking ship. n/t

[Mr. Ected]

5. Wonder If Sean Hannity Will Still Show Newt the Love

This kind of destroys the incessant message of the right wing pundits, doesn't it?

[CottonBear]

6. Hannity will go down with the ship. He's probably gonna kick Newt to the curb. n/t

[IndyOp]

2. Holy, holy hell - this is quite a sucker punch.

Newt Gingrich sounding like Gore Vidal -



On Edit: I had to click on the OP link double check the article was really on the Atlanta Journal Constitution website before I really believed it was Gingrich.

[CGowen]

31. more like Al Gore, he isn't questioning 911

WASHINGTON -- In a Capitol Hill debate about global warming touted by its moderator as a "smackdown" between former House speaker Newt Gingrich and Senator John F. Kerry of Massachusetts, Gingrich praised Kerry's recently released book about environmentalism, acknowledged that global warming is real, and offered what amounted to an unexpected apology for his party's inaction on curtailing greenhouse gas emissions.

"I'm not going to stand up here and defend our failure to lead," said Gingrich, who is considering a run for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 and plans to release a book in the fall burnishing his environmental credentials. "There has to be a green conservatism."

...........

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/washington/articles/2007/04/11/gingrich_drops_skepticism_on_global_warming/

[Cetacea]

3. K+R nt.

[Poiuyt]

4. A few months ago, Gingrich was calling it World War III

That said, I have to agree with Gingrich on his new assessment. A new energy strategy based on reducing oil usage is really needed.

[NewJeffCT]

13. I know - I remember that as well. It was Newtie's big idea

to start calling "it" World War 3.

and, a bunch of Republics followed suit for a while. I guess it fell flat once it got beyond the focus-groups and the RW radio audience.

[Old and In the Way]

35. That Newt is quite a chameleon.....nt

[shain from kane]

7. Otter: Germans?

D-Day: War's over, man. Wormer dropped the big one.
Bluto: Over? Did you say "over"? Nothing is over until we decide it is! Was it over when the Germans bombed Pearl Harbor? Hell no!
Otter: Germans?
Boon: Forget it, he's rolling.

[malachi]

8. Sounds like O'l Newt is testing the waters for a run on '08.

[Maccagirl]

9. Yep

I wouldn't believe that he believes anything he says-it's all political calculation. BTW, haven't we(progressives) been saying for YEARS that we need a new energy policy? Old Bulldogface acts like he just discovered the cure for cancer. I also can't believe he found 3 women who would marry him...

[zabet]

12. I can believe it ..(the 3 wives)

some people will take horse shit if you are giving it away.

[Virginia Dare]

14. I think he's doing a big old belly flop...

seriously, this guy is practically begging on a daily basis for people to start calling him "the dark horse". Nobody's biting...:rofl:

[Gidney N Cloyd]

16. Poor Newty. No one will let him sit in the front of the plane.

[BuyingThyme]

10. Man, is this on tape?!

[AX10]

11. Someone's jumping ship.

[Quantess]

15. Newt Gingrich, of all people.

Whatever his ulterior motives might be, I'm glad that he's speaking out.

[On the Road]

17. Newt is Something of a Maverick

and occasionally will break ranks to say something very refreshing. He does not seem to like towing the party line all the time or being part of an echo chamber.

Bill Clinton was accused of political motives for firing missiles at Iraq on the eve of his impeachment proceedings. Gingrich's comment on that accusation was "that's just sick."

[Mr. Ected]

21. Newt Is Just Another Arlen Specter

Just when you think he might make you proud, he reverts back to his pitbull, Repukelican ways.

[On the Road]

26. I Agree With You There

He is way too nasty and partisan to ever get elected president.

[Vidar]

18. He's right for once.

[WI_DEM]

19. I wonder if he's planning a third party bid, wish he would. He would be the GOP's Nader

[GreenPartyVoter]

20. Is he a paleocon?

[RadiDem]

22. Wow! Newt paving the way for most other Repugs to skewer Bushco -nt-

[UTUSN]

23. What next?!1 Grinch will confess to being a Hollow Man?!1 n/t

[bullwinkle428]

24. Holy shit...what a left-wing moonbat!!!

:sarcasm: :sarcasm: :sarcasm:

A more effective approach, said Gingrich, would begin with a national energy strategy aimed at weaning the country from its reliance on imported oil and some of the regimes that petro-dollars support.

It's nice to finally start seeing a few wingnuts wake up and realize things like this are really getting to the root of the solution...

[mcg]

32. He also admitted the global warming is real.

Gingrich drops skepticism on global warming
But he and Kerry differ on solutions

http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2007/04/11/gingrich_drops_skepticism_on_global_warming/

The subtitle is the kicker.

What's the solution? That's where Gingrich is wrong and that's
where those republicans who aren't in complete denial about it
are going to be slimy about it.

[RadiDem]

25. FreepTards abandoning Newt over this - The love the Neocon's war - Read THIS gem >>>

"Just another one of those out of touch old guys who don't know what they are talking about but like to hear themselves talk so much they just keep spouting off. Guys like Jimmy Carter, Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, Colin Powell, Ralph Nader, Charlie Shummer, Ted Kennedy, John Kerry etc."

They're old? LOL! None of them are senile like Ray-gun was in office. How quickly they forget!

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1875989/posts

[AspenRose]

27. Ouch, that's gonna leave a mark.

Better put some ice on that, Bunnypants....

Broken clock....right twice a day.....yadda yadda yadda

[The Backlash Cometh]

28. I'm Gobsmacked.

"more effective approach, said Gingrich, would begin with a national energy strategy aimed at weaning the country from its reliance on imported oil."

The only thing worse than telling a Republican that he has to be weaned of imported oil and should stop driving a Hummer, is gun control.

[RainDog]

33. His remarks show that the gop is on the wrong side...

of nearly every important issue that americans consider important.

otherwise, he would not say these things. he's a politician. truth is only told when it's politically advantageous to do so. At the recent college repuke convention or whatever it is, he also said something to the effect that the politics of hate, the total division between parties is bad for this country. (the crowd wasn't too happy about it...they liked the next speaker who went into the democrats are demons yadayada.. (read this on Salon, dont' have link, sorry.)

That remark is correct too. But he should have also noted that Rush and Coulter and O'Reilly, etc. started this and he should have told them to stfu if they really care about this country and not just their pocketbooks.

I hope he can bring some sense to the republican party because right now they are full of the insaniacs of the religious right. the gop can't win without them, tho, so newt is probably trying to draw off some independents to marginalize the talibornagains as part of his potential campaign. he's trying to do the "appear rational and able to work across the aisle" shtick.

[Canuckistanian]

29. "phony war"? as in "fictitious"?

Because Michael Moore used the term "fictitious" and was viciously criticized for it.

[pepperbear]

30. See, George, ya fucknut, ya? So easy even a newt can figure it out! n/t

[Old and In the Way]

34. How will the Pygmies respond?

Run, Newt, Run!

[Hubert Flottz]

36. I guess if worms can turn newts can too...

Edit...The GOP would call that a Flip Flop if a democrat did it.

[Kip Humphrey]

37. The NEW-t Gingrich... Seems The War on Terra debacle may be derailing the NEWTonian agenda

[NeedleCast]

38. That's....Interesting

If he's serious I appluad him for it. I'd never vote for the dude, but it's nice to see none the less.

[Mr. Ected]

39. I Heard Newt Try to Distance Himself From These Remarks Today

Said that the war on terror is phony like Neville Chamberlain's war on Germany was phony...i.e., insufficient for the contemplated task. Harkened back to Winston Churchill's disdain for the half-assed effort that preceded him.

Newt says he wants MORE resources dedicated to the war on terror, not less.

Looks like Newt needs to change his name to "Chameleon".