First, Obama had a string of clear flip-flops coming up to the “refine” comments about Iraq and Iraq withdrawal. That includes a huge flip-flop on FISA, a notable straddle on gun control after the DC handgun ban was struck down, and a flip-flip at least as big as the FISA one when he opted out of public campaign financing. (Josh at TPM overlooks all those in the commentary he has behind the AP story.)
That said, let’s look at what Obama was getting at, specifically in his second July 3 conference, where he had the opportunity to explain his “refine” comments:
He said the refining wouldn’t be related to his promise to remove combat forces within 16 months of taking office, but to the number of troops needed to train Iraqis and fight al-Qaida. But then he acknowledged that the 16-month timeline could indeed slip if removing troops risked their safety or Iraqi stability.
No, it’s not a flip-flop, like the first and third issues above. It’s not even a straddle, like the gun control issue.
Is “trimming” a fair word, though? Especially given the history leading up to this on other issues? He admits that he may redefine the number of troops that will need to stay in Iraq as “combat troops,” (he still has never talked about just how he will decide what constitutes “combat troops”), and he did say, clearly, that the 16-month time span could lengthen — without saying by how long.
I say yes, “trimming” is a fair word.
As, as for the point I made above, Obama also, while saying he may refine how many troops need to stay in Iraq, has never, from his first iteration until now, even offered a guesstimate of how many that will be.
In other words, it’s clear he really is trying to have his cake and eat it too, on Iraq, and
How many of them have ever asked Obama to put a number on it?
You know the answer, and it’s “zero.”
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