John Edwards would remove Bush's endorsement of preventive war. It's "discredited and dangerous."

[More Than A Feeling]

First and foremost, we need to ensure that the preventive war doctrine goes where it belongs -- the trash-heap of history. As he has done with so much else, Vice President Al Gore got it right about the preventive war doctrine. In 2002 -- the same year that George Bush introduced his preventive war doctrine -- Gore made a speech at the Commonwealth Club in California. He said, and I quote, "What this doctrine does is to destroy the goal of a world in which states consider themselves subject to law, particularly in the matter of standards for the use of violence against each other. That concept would be displaced by the notion that there is no law but the discretion of the President of the United States."

These are especially chilling words to read five years later -- after Iraq, Guantanamo Bay, and the president's refusal to condemn torture, and they are particularly relevant to the situation with Iran.

I believe every candidate owes it to the American people to be very clear about where he or she stands on this question. As commander-in-chief, my national security policy will be based on deterrent strength and always protecting Americans -- in short, the use of force as a last resort.

As a part of this strategy, I will ask my National Security Advisor to remove President Bush's explicit endorsement of a preventive war doctrine from my National Security Strategies. And I will ask our Joint Chiefs of Staff to form military plans in accordance with proven national security strategies that we know can keep us and our allies safe -- not discredited and dangerous ideological fancies.

http://johnedwards.com/news/speeches/20071105-a-new-strategy-for-iran/

For those of you pining for Al Gore, you'll get his outlook on war as a tool of statecraft with John Edwards. I encourage everyone to read the whole speech.

[FrenchieCat]

1. If John Edwards is our nominee, he will have a lot

more apologizing, saying sorry, and oops and xplaining to do. I don't personally look forward his to the excuses that he will have to put forth when he is attacked by the media onslaught as to why he had no problem with pre-emptive action then versus now. The doctrine itself is not only wrong now, but it was also wrong when he was advocating for it. It shouldn't have taken a preemptive action gone wrong for one with good judgment on foreign policy matter to see clearly that as a doctrine, such actions were a terrible idea. Al Gore got it right from the start......Edwards was totally wrong and has reversed himself 180 degrees.....after the fact. A clear change of mind can be a good thing, except if it occurs while running for the highest office in the land during a general election.

In other words, John Edwards will be attacked severely for his "was FOR before was AGAINST" quotes on this issue, regardless of how right he finally now seems to be.

"The path of confronting Saddam is full of hazards. But the path of inaction is far more dangerous. This week, a week where we remember the sacrifice of thousands of innocent Americans made on 9-11, the choice could not be starker. Had we known that such attacks were imminent, we surely would have used every means at our disposal to prevent them and take out the plotters. We cannot wait for such a terrible event -- or, if weapons of mass destruction are used, one far worse -- to address the clear and present danger posed by Saddam Hussein's Iraq."
Senator John Edwards (Democrat, North Carolina)
US Senate floor statement: "Iraqi Dictator Must Go"

http://web.archive.org/web/20030219152335/edwards.senate.gov/press/2002/0912a-pr.html

"We must also remember why disarming Saddam is critical to American security – because halting the spread of weapons of mass destruction, and ensuring they don't fall into the wrong hands, including terrorist hands, is critical to American security. --John Edwards

http://www.cfr.org/publication/5441/americas_role_in_the_world.html?breadcrumb=%2Fbios%2F9641%2Fjohn_edwards%3Fgroupby%3D3%26hide%3D1%26id%3D9641%26filter%3D2002

and there are so many other quotes from John Edwards in this vein....made even after it was made public that Iraq had no WMDs.

One thing is for sure....these quotes bolster the fact that John Edwards is not, nor has ever been close to the leader that Al Gore is.

[Nutmegger]

2. R&K for Edwards!!!!

:thumbsup::bounce::kick: