Obama's Surrogates Aren't Helping That Much

Dem Rep. Jerry Nadler, who bears a striking resemblance to Jabba the Hutt, made a campaign appearance in Boca Raton, FL, pushing for Barack Obama. His idea of foreign policy? Let Russia invade Georgia, or anyone else they want as long as they help us with Iran:

Nadler: We have not been willing to put our priorities properly. We have not been willing to say ... "Hey Russia, we won't expand NATO into the Ukraine and Georgia, right next to your borders, if you cooperate with us on Iran." ...I think Iran and Israel are a hell of a lot more important than expanding NATO to Russia's borders. Why should we? What do we need it for?

Audience member: Because they invaded Georgia.

Nadler: So let 'em invade Georgia. It's right next to them. Would we tolerate a foreign — a Russian army in Mexico? Which is more important to us Georgia or Israel, frankly?

Audience member: What is more important to us Czechoslovakia or Austria?

Nadler: That's a completely separate kind of question.

I guess that explains why Democrats have no problem with the illegal immigration invasion coming from Mexico. It's right next to us!

That wasn't even the best of the quotes. Nadler was asked why Obama put up with all the anti-Semitic rantings from Rev. Jeremiah Wright. This was Nadler's description of Obama:

"This is not going to be complimentary to Senator Obama ..... he didn't have the political courage to make a statement and walk out."

Thanks, Jabba...er, Jerry!

Welcome to the New Cold War

A couple of stories suggest that the Georgia invasion was merely the opening sortie of a new cold war:

MOSCOW (AP) - Russia says its response to the further development of a U.S. missile shield in Poland will go beyond diplomacy.

Russia's Foreign Ministry issued a statement saying the U.S. missile shield plans are clearly aimed at weakening Russia.

The U.S. says the missile defense system is aimed at protecting the U.S. and Europe from future attacks from states like Iran.

The United States and Poland signed a deal Wednesday to place a U.S. missile defense base just 115 miles from Russia's westernmost fringe.

And this doesn't sound too good either:

OSLO, Norway (AP) - Norway's Defense Ministry says Russia has informed it that it plans to cut all military ties with NATO.

Ministry spokeswoman Heidi Langvik-Hansen says the country's embassy received a telephone call from Russia's Defense Ministry on Wednesday, saying Moscow plans "to freeze all military cooperation with NATO and allied countries."

Putin wants the old Soviet Union back, including those countries like Poland and what is now the Czech Republic. It wouldn't surprise me if he also wants the old East Germany back while he's at it. He was deeply offended at the breakup of the old Soviet system, and I think he's going to do what he can to put it back together. Dangerous times are coming.

I can't help but wonder if he's acting now knowing that the Bush presidency is coming to a close and the next president will either be a pushover (Obama) or a tough guy (McCain), and he wants to make gains now betting that it won't be the pushover. Hard to tell.

Blogger buddy Mark Daniels has more thoughts on the Russian invasion and what it all means here.

For Democrats, It's Over

So says Neil Cavuto from Fox Business in this commentary:

It’s August.

It’s early.

But for Democrats, it’s over.

Over. Done. Fini.

At the risk of sounding like I’ve snapped…allow me this snap judgment.

The Democrats have just lost the presidency this week.

For them, a horrible week.

So horrible…so discombobulated. So inconsistently communicated and messaged, that they’ve lost their message.

And I think, this election too.

Because here’s the deal as we end this week, my friends.

The Dems…are done.

I know. Laugh all you want. And I will conveniently destroy this message in the event I’m wrong.

But here’s why I don’t think I am.

During this crucial defining period that brought a Russian bear out of hibernation and a befuddled Nancy Pelosi into drilling reality…allow me to drill home this point.

Democrats lost a lot of mojo this week, their only saving grace that it’s an August week.

I don’t think that will save them.

Not when Russia threatens a new Cold War and the best their presumptive nominee can do is offer hope warring parties could put aside their hostilities…

While his opponent calls Russia what it clearly was and is: a bully. And a bully that must be dealt with.

And if his presidential mettle wasn’t tested enough…Barack Obama caves to Hillary Clinton and allows a roll call vote. He’s doing it for all good and decent reasons. But nothing good or decent will come of it….her supporters still don’t flip over him, no matter what he does to accommodate them.

He’s given Hillary a prime time speech. Bill a prime time speech. Chelsea a prime time speech. Is Sox the Cat still around?

My god, who won this damn thing? Show some backbone, man!

Then in the middle of the week Obama’s economic team comes out with this grand explanation of a tax cut package that reminds all again…not of cuts promised for the middle class…but serious hikes for those who don’t much consider themselves above middle class.

And charges again that these new numbers “still” don’t add up as we explored on this very show.

On the very same week Nancy Pelosi read the furor among her own members and decided to backtrack on that no-drilling vote thing.

Not good things for a party that said it would lead the charge.

It shouldn’t be this way…with the slowing economy, democrats should be running away.

But they look weak on a military crisis.

Inconsistent on an economic crisis.

And impotent on their own brewing political convention crisis.

Things change. Tides ebb and flow.

But I think we will look back to this week in August as the time the party that had it all in the bag…just puked in it.

I hope he's right.

Georgia: Just a Plot to Stop Obama

The old Cold War propaganda machine is ramping up in Russia:

Russians were told over breakfast yesterday what really happened in Georgia: the conflict in South Ossetia was part of a plot by Dick Cheney, the Vice-President, to stop Barak Obama being elected president of the United States.

The line came on the main news of Vesti FM, a state radio station that — like the Government and much of Russia's media — has reverted to the old habits of Soviet years, in which a sinister American hand was held to lie behind every conflict, especially those embarrassing to Moscow. Modern Russia may be plugged into the internet and the global marketplace but in the battle for world opinion the Kremlin is replaying the old black-and-white movie.

The Obama angle is getting wide play. It was aired on Wednesday by Sergei Markov, a senior political scientist who is close to Vladimir Putin, the Prime Minister and power behind President Medvedev.

“George Bush's Administration is promoting interests of candidate John McCain,” said Dr Markov. “Defeated by Barak Obama on all fronts, McCain has one last card to play yet - the creation of a virtual Cold War with Russia . . . Bush himself did not want a war in South Ossetia but his Republican Party did not leave him any choice.” The Americans were now engineering an armed conflict between Ukraine and Russia, Dr Markov added.

The thing is, you don't have to look at Russian media to find theories like this thrown around. Wacky left columnist Robert Scheer made the same allegations in a recent column.

So, why would an armed conflict be a threat to Obama? Could it be that voters perceive him as weak on national security issues? Is he too willing to talk and not willing enough to act? All of the above, and complaints from Russia and Scheer actually serve to reinforce that idea.

Is There an Upside to the Russian Invasion of Georgia?

Jim Pethokoukis of US News suggests there is:

We also now have greater clarity on the need to dramatically reduce our dependence on foreign oil. As fast as possible without ruining the economy. It's "all of the above" time, gang—domestic drilling, nukes, concentrated solar, deep geothermal, clean coal, and whatever else Silicon Valley and heroic capitalists everywhere can dream up as we conduct a market-driven transition to a post-hydrocarbon economy. Now the inside-the-beltway types tend to pooh-pooh all this, as if anyone suggesting energy independence is an isolationist, nativist rube who wants to turn America into Juche North Korea. But why they would want to risk the American economy potentially held hostage to, say, a couple of oil pipelines running through Soviet-occupied—I mean, Russian-occupied—Georgia is baffling to me.

Yep. Do them all, and give precedence to those things will will produce results the fastest - drilling.

Obamessiah Saves Georgia

At least that's the story being promoted by potential VP Virginia Governor Tim Kaine:

On Fox this morning, Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine explained how Obama saved Georgia:

“It was a bad crisis for the world. It required tough words but also a smart approach to call on the international community to step in. And I’m very, very happy that the Senator's (Obama) request for a ceasefire has been complied with by President Medvedev.”

The McCain Report is full of praise for the vacationing Obamessiah:

Of course the Russians complied with his request. They've also started inflating their tires in order to reduce domestic demand and free up oil for export markets. It's like we don't even need to elect Obama to the White House--he can stop the rise of the seas, heal the planet, and bring us peace in our time just by issuing press releases from the comfort of his Hawaiian retreat.

Unfortunately for Gov. Kaine and the Obamessiah, the Russians may say they're winding down in Geogia, but thinks keep blowing up down there for no apparent reason. Surprisingly, Russian words are not matching Russian deeds. I wonder if the Obamessiah understands that the Russians tend to do that sort of thing.

Bush Warns Putin

It now appears very likely that Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin looked President Bush right in the eye at the Olympics Opening Ceremonies and lied to him about his intentions in Georgia. Bush is not happy:

WASHINGTON (AP) - President Bush on Monday demanded that Russia end a "dramatic and brutal escalation" of violence in Georgia, agree to an immediate cease-fire and accept international mediation to end the crisis in the former Soviet republic.

Almost immediately after his return from the Olympics in China, Bush warned Russia in his strongest comments since the fighting erupted over Georgia's separatist South Ossetia region last week to "reverse the course it appears to be on" and abandon any attempt it may have to topple Georgia's pro-western government.

"Russia has invaded a sovereign neighboring state and threatens a democratic government elected by its people. Such an action is unacceptable in the 21st century," the president said in a televised statement from the White House, calling on Moscow to sign on to the outlines of a cease-fire as the Georgian government has done.

"The Russian government must reverse the course it appears to be on and accept this peace agreement as a first step toward solving this conflict," Bush said, adding that he is deeply concerned that Russia, which Georgian officials say has effectively split their country in two, might bomb the civilian airport in the capital of Tbilisi.

He said Russia's escalation of the conflict had "raised serious questions about its intentions in Georgia and the region" and had "substantially damaged Russia's standing in the world." "These actions jeopardize Russia's relations with the United States and Europe," Bush said. "It's time for Russia to be true to its word to act to end this crisis."

It has become dramatically clear in the past day that Russia's actions in Georgia were not a spur-of-the-moment response to some perceived humanitarian crisis in South Ossetia, but a carefully planned and staged invasion designed to destroy the military capacity of the Georgian state. Once Russia has completed the invasion you can expect them to depose the elected leadership and replace them with puppet leaders loyal to Putin. Georgia will once again become a de facto Soviet Republic.

And the worst part of it is that nobody in the world can do anything about it. We're not going to war to save Georgia and neither is anybody else. At best there will be sort of sanctions, such as tossing Russia out of the G-8 and perhaps some other economic sanctions, but it won't change anything. What it will do is aggravate Putin and make him more likely to try this again with the Ukraine or other former Soviet republics.

Right now Putin holds all the cards.