Biden Gets It Wrong -Again

Vice President Joe Biden pinned the country’s rocky negotiations with Iran on the Bush administration, saying only after President Obama took office and made “good faith” efforts toward dealing with the rogue nation did the world realize Iran is the problem. Here is what he said at the Rabbinical Assembly's annual convention in Atlanta: “By going the extra diplomatic mile, presenting Iran with a clear choice, we demonstrated to the region and the world that Iran is the problem, not the United States. When we took office, let me remind you, there was virtually no international pressure on Iran,” Biden continued. “We were the problem, we were diplomatically isolated in the world, in the region, in Europe. We were neither fully respected by our friends nor feared by our opponents. Today it is starkly, starkly different.”

Today is starkly, starkly different. Yes, that part is true but it is because the exact reverse is true as a result of this administrations behavior. It is today that we are neither respected by our friends nor feared by our opponents. And why should they respect a country that goes to great lengths to apologize for its role in everything from the war in Iraq to the Greek siege of Troy?

Joe Biden's comments immediately drew rebuke from conservatives. Biden went on to add that Obama’s efforts also have created world-wide support for the U.S.’s recent get-tough policies in the face of what appears to be Iran’s expanding nuclear program, including Obama's executive orders punishing those who make financial deals with that country. “That's why China, that's why Russia, that's why Europe, that's why the rest of the world have joined us in these sanctions, and the president deserves the credit,” the vice president said, painting with a broad brush what actually has been a rather contentious dialogue between the U.S. and those other countries.

Once again Joe is getting it wrong -China and Russia neither one have the slightest intention of supporting effective sanctions against Iran. In fact, China will be buying more oil from Iran this year than ever before!

The truth here is that the Obama administration criticism of the president's predecessor (President Bush) is not new, and the Obama re-election campaign has begun to look for ways to tout the president’s foreign policy.

Matt Brooks, executive director of the Republican Jewish Coalition, said Biden comments were "outrageous."

"Iran was the problem then and it is the problem now," he said. "It's foolishly misguided for the vice president to blame anyone or any country other than Iran."

Biden also said Iran is not monolithic and bet that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad would be out of power within two years. Well, he probably got that part right, but then, even a broken clock is right twice a day...

Live Long and Prosper...