Abominable. Blind. Subservient. Ex-President Jimmy Carter lambasts Blair

[T_i_B]

Source: UK Independent

The former US President Jimmy Carter lambasted Tony Blair for his "blind " support of the Iraq war today, saying it had been a "major tragedy for the world".

The outgoing Prime Minister's relationship with President George Bush appeared to have been "subservient" and "abominable", according to Mr Carter.

In an interview for BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Mr Carter speculated that Mr Blair could have made a crucial difference to American political and public opinion by distancing himself during the build-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Mr Carter has long been an outspoken critic of the war, and has previously expressed his "disappointment" that Mr Blair did not use his influence more wisely.

Read more: http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article2560259.ece

[T_i_B]

1. Carter attacks Blair's Iraq role

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/6672035.stm

Former US President Jimmy Carter has criticised outgoing British Prime Minister Tony Blair for his "blind" support of the war in Iraq.

Mr Carter told the BBC Mr Blair's backing for US President George W Bush had been "apparently subservient".

He said the UK's "almost undeviating" support for "the ill-advised policies of President Bush in Iraq have been a major tragedy for the world".

Mr Blair leaves office at the end of next month.

[blm]

36. Anyone think Blair acted contrary to the consul he received from his closest ally, Bill?

I remember when Bill was telling Democratic lawmakers that they should follow Blair on Iraq issues and call themselves Blair Democrats.

[understandinglife]

41. ah yes .... in_deed ...

[Morgana LaFey]

44. Oh, puke. Thanks for the reminder, even if it does make me ill. nt

[Brundle_Fly]

63. Bill was under enourmous pressure from

the Neo Cons to do what Bush did in Iraq, the difference being, he DIDN'T

[blm]

65. Difference being that none of the allies would go along with it in 98 - and

wouldn't you know - after 9-11, some of them WOULD.

I guess it is easy to forget that Clinton wanted to in 98, and the fact that he didn't was because he was sensible enough to not go in without more allies.

[Brundle_Fly]

66. Even without 911

nor any allies, Bush would have gone in...

[blm]

69. true - and would've done it without an IWR, too.

They had intended to use the original UN res. from 1991.

[MrSlayer]

2. Carter tells it like it is.

Kudos to him.

[Vexatious Ape]

3. Good.

As I drive by the Carter Center in Atlanta tomorrow, I'll give him a salute.

[undergroundpanther]

4. What do you expect from a guy

with a big W etched into his friggin forehead??!!

cloggie.org/proggold/2006/09/

[tanyev]

20. Dayum. The mark of the beast.

:wow:

[OwnedByFerrets]

52. OMG!!! The mark of the Beast!!

[calimary]

67. Is that tony blair's forehead??? Holy COW!

It IS the mark of the beast.

[IndianaGreen]

5. Once again, Jimmy Carter hits the bull's eye!

His description of Blair's role as abominable and as that of a subservient lapdog is right on target.

[emilyg]

56. Yes Sir!

[dave_p]

6. Audio

The interview's here btw, starting 9 min into the audio segment.

[Posteritatis]

7. Ouch! Bahahahaha. (nt)

[rcdean]

8. Carter has long been known for nobility. He's reaching now for statesmanship.

Al Gore, the only other true statesman in the panoply of US public figures, has shown the way.

Hooray for JC. The book on the middle east was exceptionally gutsy. These so true statements about the poodle are equally correct and welcome. Tony blew it big time.

[IndyOp]

32. Al and Jimmy have shown each other the way...

Carter apparently called Gore repeatedly to encourage him to step into the Presidential race in 2004. In an interview, Carter said that he called so often that Gore told him bluntly to STOP calling. Carter has said that Gore is his choice for 2008 - I hope Jimmy has better luck nudging Al to run this time.

:hi:

[JoFerret]

46. Gore-Edwards '08

Gore - Edwards = dream team. (Won't happen but too bad.)

[ProudDad]

47. Gore/Obama

would be too bad either.

It would probably be a lock on the White House in '08...

[JoFerret]

49. Maybe. But what a shame to dump the great ideas

that Edwards has been developing. He seems to have the best platform of all the candidates.

[ProudDad]

50. Don't get me wrong

I like Gore/Edwards too.

[gizmonic]

60. Fuckin' ay, Bubba!

Only thing is that Gore could only serve one term because he has already been elected once before.:mad:

[rcdean]

51. Fascinating info. Many thanks, IndyOp.

Al's new book convinces me his thinking has matured to the point of wisdom. His intentions re '08 are inscrutable. But, unlike just a few years ago, I now trust that he knows very well what he's doing.

[LeftishBrit]

9. Carter is right of course. Blair has been a disaster..

even worse because he claimed to be 'Labour' and seemed to represent hope after 18 years of Tory rule.

[tomp]

25. sound like certain democrats? nt

[ProudDad]

48. A disaster for the working classes

blair's "labor party" is to the actual principles of the British Labor Party

as

The DLC's "democratic party" is to the actual principles of the Democratic Party of Jefferson...

[Prophet 451]

10. Thank you Mr. Carter

Admittedly, most Brits already hold this opinion but it's nice to have someone remind the rest of the world.

[bonito]

11. K&R

[bonito]

12. Good on Him.

[anotherdrew]

13. Carter/Clark for prez 2008?!?! n/t

[malaise]

14. Go Jimmy Go!

We love you.

[opihimoimoi]

15. He has won the NOBEL...something that evades W

[Kurovski]

57. Is there anything--outside of a farting contest--that W could win?

[daleo]

58. If they ever create a Nobel War Prize

Bush might have a shot.

[Kurovski]

59. I remember now...

he's won the contempt of the entire world.

[calimary]

68. How about the Nobel Fuckwad Prize?

The Nobel Idiot Prize?

[Kurovski]

70. The Nobel Sleaze Prize?

There has to be something appropriate to award a man who can't seem to get impeached no matter how hard he tries.

[cureautismnow]

16. Rock on, JC.

Poodle-boy will have innocent blood on his hands for the rest of his miserable life.

[Vidar]

17. Thank you, Jimmy.

[kurth]

18. Bush's eloquent servant

Thanks, Jimmy. Those were perfect adjectives for Britain's embarrassment.

[Preening Fop]

19. If You Would Like To Listen To The President Carter Interview....

The interview occurs during the first half
of the programme's second hour.

To move closer to the interview,
click 4 times on the 15 minute Forward Button
when the BBC broadcast card comes up on screen.

Here is the BBC Radio 4 link to the "Today" programme:
http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio/noscript.shtml?/radio/aod/radio4_aod.shtml?radio4/today_sat

Truly, well worth listening to a very sincere President Carter.

This programme is available for "Listening Again" for
a period of seven days.

[xxqqqzme]

35. Thanks for posting & the perfecty servicable instructions

Most appreciated. President Carter is one of the extremely rare leaders we have been fortunate to have. I keep thinking back to his sensible energy policies and wonder at how different the world would be now, if those policies had been embraced.

[ima_sinnic]

21. Carter was truly a president "of the people" and that's why the Reagan

thug machine was able to overpower him with their dirty hostage dealings.

He was sincere, noble, compassionate, and gentle--exceptional qualities except when dealing with the filth that passes for repukes, who are unconscienable in their greed for power and blood.

[treestar]

26. And honest, and don't you just hate it when they portray that as "weak?"

Weak is refusing to face reality like so many Reaganites.

[Lochloosa]

22. Someone needs to tell the BBC the proper way to address MR. Carter

It's PRESIDENT Carter.

[tabasco]

23. Tell it like it is, President Carter!

If he ran this time I would vote for him.

He is the heart and soul of the Democratic Party.

[blondeatlast]

24. Carter was a leader as president; unafraid to do the unpopular for the good

of his nation. I am proud to say my very first vote went to him and I was invited to the inaguraul after meeting him very briefly.

We won't see his kind again soon.

Thank you, sir. :patriot:

[Joe Bacon]

27. Go Mr. President, Go!

President Carter gave ol Phony Blair the smackdown he has deserved for years!

[vssmith]

28. Bush's poodle

[disndat]

29. President Jimmy Carter

is living up to the nobility of the Nobel Prize Award given to him for his gutsy efforts to bring peace to the Middle East turmoil. No past president has been so utterly trashed by the Repthugs. For all his courage he was made to look like a wimp. Remember the October Surprise like the Swift boating of John Kerry?

[Faygo Kid]

30. Thank God for Carter's plain speaking. Blair is an unfortunate footnote to history.

It should be shouted from the rooftops as Blair leaves office: This is the legacy Blair has chosen, and this is how he will always be remembered, as Bush's poodle, as a man who had a platform to stand up to evil and who could have at least tempered it, and chose instead to be an enabler and a cheerleader. Say what you will about Thatcher or Churchill - and there's plenty to say - even if they had supported this madness, they would not have allowed themselves to be subservient to Bush, to be Wormtongue to his Saruman, BooBoo to his Yogi. It's an ironic coincidence and historic tragedy that Tony Blair was prime minister at the same time the worst and most venal president in U.S. history took the stage.

Thanks for telling it like it is, President Carter.

[bvar22]

42. I believe that Blair has also chosen a $position$

There is a persistent if undocumented rumor that Tony Blair will be rewarded with a position with the BFEE in The Carlisle Group.

Blair says, "Fuck the World, gimme the $MONEY$. It doesn't bother me to have blood on my crumpets!"

[LibDemAlways]

31. I have always wondered about the reasons for

Blair's blind lapdog support of these crooks at the risk of his own career and stature at home.

They must have something incredibly embarrassing and humiliating on him. Perhaps one day, when he's a very old man wanting to set the record straight so that history won't judge him too harshly, he'll reveal it. In the meantime he's going to have to live with a tarnished reputation as another Bush sycophant and toady.

[flaminbats]

33. voters rejected Blair but not the Labour Party..

I wish our system worked more like this, so that we could vote against political pawns like Tony Blair without being forced to vote Republican as the only alternative. this is what happened in the Humphrey-Nixon race, and something tells me our party would be allot strong today if Humphrey lost the nomination in 1968!

Jimmy Carter always speaks his mind without any reservations, and I pay attention whenever he endorses someone in the primaries.

[kiteinthewind]

Jimmy Carter, man of truth!! Go, Jimmy!

:patriot:

[kiteinthewind]

34. Dupe

[Crunchy Frog]

37. I'm so glad we have a former President who isn't afraid to speak his mind.

I hope Carter lives for another 20 years, and always continues to speak out.

[oberliner]

38. Former President Carter blasts Bush

Source: AP

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. - Former President Carter says President Bush's administration is "the worst in history" in international relations, taking aim at the White House's policy of pre-emptive war and its Middle East diplomacy.

The criticism from Carter, which a biographer says is unprecedented for the 39th president, also took aim at Bush's environmental policies and the administration's "quite disturbing" faith-based initiative funding.

"I think as far as the adverse impact on the nation around the world, this administration has been the worst in history," Carter told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette in a story that appeared in the newspaper's Saturday editions. "The overt reversal of America's basic values as expressed by previous administrations, including those of George H.W. Bush and Ronald Reagan and Richard Nixon and others, has been the most disturbing to me."

Carter spokeswoman Deanna Congileo confirmed his comments to The Associated Press on Saturday and declined to elaborate. He spoke while promoting his new audiobook series, "Sunday Mornings in Plains," a collection of weekly Bible lessons from his hometown of Plains, Ga.

Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070519/ap_on_re_us/carter_bush;_ylt=AgmPLFYljRBeYM6TAa.rME2s0NUE

[LeftishBrit]

39. Certainly he's the worst in recent history...

and that's with such competition as Nixon and St Ronnie!

[Morgana LaFey]

45. No, no, the worst ever is precisely correct

So bad we may not recover from it. Any analysis that comes up any less than "worst ever" is simply ill-informed. I'd kill to have had either Nixon or Reagan back and erase everything since 2000. Seriously. They had their faults, but there were NOTHING like the cosmically destructive, thoroughly fascist, would-be-dictator George W. Bush.

[ohtransplant]

40. Worst Ever!

President Carter carries a lot of weight with the world outside the USA - outside the control of our corporate media. We might not see this reported on our evening news but the rest of the world will.

More high profile Dems who aren't currently office holders should join the chorus(ahem). Amurkins (except the 30% who won't pull their head out)know what a disaster * is.

As we get closer to '08 more and more Republics will abandon ship - and show themselves to be the flip-flopping chickenhawks we always knew they were.

Thanks President Carter. You are a patriot indeed.

[bagimin]

43. Jimmy Carter...

truthteller.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

53. I expect if bliar hadn't supported the Iraq war he would have died mysteriously?

[LeftishBrit]

64. I doubt it...

after all Annan, Chirac, Putin and many other international opponents of the war have managed to survive!

[ItsTheMediaStupid]

54. Carter is above calling Blair an ass-kissing poodle.

I'm not.

[provis99]

55. its one thing to be the Village Idiot, like Bush..

Blair never even reached that lofty post. He was just the Assistant to the Village Idiot.

[Hekate]

61. Don't hold yourself back, sir, tell us what you really think!

:D

Hekate

[Virginian]

62. A similar story on AOL with POLL.

Questions are, "Do you agree with Carter:" /all/some/none of the comments... and
"Which is/was the better President" Carter/Bush

I can't believe 38% said Bush:eyes: