Sunday, November 13, 2011

BUNCHA WUSSIES

Sometimes I get the feeling that no one in this GOP field really wants it enough. This is from a report on last night's debate:

Cain and Bachmann left no doubt that the practice [waterboarding] would be reinstated as a way to extract valuable intelligence from detainees.

"If I were president, I would be willing to use waterboarding. I think it was very effective. It gained information for our country," Bachmann said, knocking Obama for being too soft on terrorism suspects. "Today, under Barack Obama, he has allowed the ACLU to run the CIA."

Cain said he did not agree with torture, but would allow military leaders to determine what constituted torture.

"I would return to that policy. I see it as an enhanced interrogation technique," Cain said, referring to the Bush administration's euphemism of choice for waterboarding....

Perry later chimed in on the topic while answering another question, underscoring the tough "cowboy" persona he has developed in part due to his support for Texas's high rate of executions for prisoners.

"That's what happens in war," he said, adding that he would waste no time bringing back waterboarding. "I will be for it until I die."


Really, Rick? You want to break from the pack and the best you can come up with is "I will be for it until I die"? Dude, you're trying to appeal to crazy-base Republican voters. To them, a lifelong commitment should be a given.

What amazes me is that you have some of the craziest people in American history up there on the stage, and no one said, "Hell yeah it's torture, and so freaking what? To keep the American people safe, you bet I'd torture someone." Maybe do a whole ticking-bomb scenario/Alan Dershowitz/legalized torture warrants riff. Or just say, "Torture! Evildoers! U-S-A! U-S-A!" Foam "#1" finger optional. (The debate rules probably ban props.)

No wonder Romney is winning -- he's the only one who's showed any gumption on issues of this kind, even if it was four years ago, when he talked about "double Guantanamo." You want to beat the anointed one, anti-Romney wannabes? You gotta get crazy. Or, rather, get even crazier. Don't forget what party you're in.

3 comments:

c u n d gulag said...

Where was the Uber-Patriot who would do ANYTHING to protect America?

You know - "I'll create a new 21st Century high-tech 'Iron Maiden!'
I'll use existing Nautilus technology as racks!
Get prisoners to talk by using their eyes as ashtrays!
I'll stomp on the private parts of children of our enemies, cook them, and feed them to their parents!
I'll hold suspects heads in molten lava until they talk!"

Pussies!

Mark said...

The Obama campaign should send a DVD of that debate to anyone who ever said, "Obama disappointed me on foreign policy, I'm not as excited about supporting him." The debate was like a 90 minute infomercial declaring, "You can support Obama, or take a risk with crazy."

BH said...

Amen, Mark. And as an addendum, I note that O flatly reiterated that waterboarding = torture and defended his decision to end it, explicitly in response to Mad Michelle & Handy Herman. Good on him.