Joe Galloway: Commentary: Hope gives way to ‘No, We Can’t’

[unhappycamper]

Commentary: Hope gives way to ‘No, We Can’t’
By Joseph L. Galloway | McClatchy Newspapers
Posted on Thursday, October 22, 2009

You may remember all those Obama campaign cheerleaders for change chanting, “Yes we can!” during last year’s campaign events.

This year, in the 10th month of his presidency, it doesn’t really seem that they can, or that he can. Nothing much has changed except the size of the federal budget deficit and the National Debt, both swelling and swollen by the humongous bailout of Wall Street and the big banking corporations.

Any hope that we’d witness and celebrate a return to the rule of law after the departure of George W. Bush and his unindicted co-conspirators has long gone a’ glimmering. President Barack Obama would rather face an uncertain future than look back at an ugly past.

Never mind that this nation was founded on the concept that no man, however powerful, is above the law, not even a king.

The president-to-be promised a swift withdrawal from the Iraqi quicksand, but that hasn’t come to pass, either. Instead, we witness a slow-mo pullout that will sort of end things on the Bush administration’s timetable of late 2011 for the last American combat troops to be gone, and God only knows when for the rest to leave. That’s if the Iraqi parliament can pass a new election law in time for elections to be held on schedule in January.


Rest of article at: http://www.mcclatchydc.com/340/story/77614.html

[babylonsister]

1. Galloway seems to have missed some facts.

Obama never promised a swift withdrawal, he promised one that would hopefully be accomplished by 2011.

I stopped reading there.

I appreciate that he wants out of all wars, as do I, but that doesn't give him the license to twist facts.

[Connie_Corleone]

4. Good thing you stopped reading. It just went downhill from there.

[Toots]

10. I heard Obama say with my own ears

"Beginning on day One"...."One Brigade a Month" to be accomplished "in sixteen months" Maybe sixteen months is not swift to you, nor his Promise to "begin on day one" but I assumed he actually meant it.. what a fool I was.

[elleng]

2. Anyone with one ounce of common sense

had to know that 'Yes we Can' did NOT MEAN that we can make good on these 'promises' quickly.

Its a big country, and a bigger world.

[atreides1]

8. You Have A Point

None of this can be done quickly.

So, when is enough time for you?

If he hasn't done it already, President Obama will sign a law giving the SecDef the ability to control any release of photos of the torturing of detainees, the DoJ seems to be moving like molasses uphill in winter on any investigation of possible crimes committed by our intel boys and girls, and the administration keeps sending its lawyers to fight cases against equality for gay Americans.

I'm willing to give it a little more time, but not forever.

[Connie_Corleone]

3. When did Obama promise a "swift" withdrawal from Iraq?

Actually, the plan to withdraw is on track and we might even be out of there earlier than thought based on reports.

And Gitmo will be shut down next year. It might not be in January, but it will be soon after that. I mean Obama has to deal with Congress on this. It's not like Obama is just sitting on his hands, not doing anything about it.

And Healthcare reform looks like it WILL include a public option after all. As far as Afghanistan, instead of Galloway assuming what's going to happen, why doesn't he wait and hear it from the President himself?

This whole editorial is nonsensical. Check back with me in 2012.

[jonnyblitz]

5. K & R. FUCK the apologists. nt

[izquierdista]

9. Uh-uhhhhh

Wait until 2012.





Then FUCK the apologists.

[KharmaTrain]

6. Yet Another Pony Not Delivered....

This proves the old adage..."what have you done for me lately". Guess his hasn't arrived in the nice little bow he thought President Obama promised him. Dare it to be said yet again, you can't turn around 8 years of abuse of the executive, 12 years of almost complete rushpublican control of the legislature and 30 years of "Raygunomics"...all that contributed to Iraq and many other problems overnight. Add to that a country that was on the verge of financial collapse...I'm just grateful we're not worse off than we are.

We elected President Obama for 4 years, not 10 months.

[Vickers]

7. I stopped reading after "cheerleaders"...

:eyes:

[spanone]

11. pfffft

[Toasterlad]

12. "It's Only Been 10 Months!"

Coming soon:

"It's only been a year!"

"It's only been 18 months!"

"It's only been 2 years!"

"It's only his first term!"

"If he'd been re-elected, he would have fixed everything in his second term! Now we'll never know, so we'll have to assume he would have been the BEST PRESIDENT EVER!"