Hill on Zarqawi [Hillary weighs in]

Human Events Online ^ | June 9, 2006 | Hillary Watch

[AZLiberty]

Today Sen. Clinton issued a statement on the death of Abu Musab al Zarkawi. Here it is in its entirety:

"As a leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq, Abu Musab al Zarkawi was responsible for despicable attacks that claimed the lives of too many Iraqis and Americans. I saw firsthand the terrible consequences of Zarqawi's terrorist network when Bill, Chelsea and I visited the hotel ballroom in Amman, Jordan last November where Zarqawi's followers had detonated a bomb at a wedding, killing and wounding innocent people. We owe our thanks to our men and women in uniform and others in Iraq who have been fighting the Zarqawi and other insurgents and who are responsible for today's success.

I hope that this will be a blow to the insurgency in Iraq and affords an opportunity for the new Iraqi government to build on this success and provide greater security and stability for the Iraqi people."

While it figures that Hillary would insert herself into this story, it is true that she and her family were there and seemed visibly moved. It was also a bit surprising that she didn't react as many liberals have, which is by briefly saying Zarkawi's death is a good thing and then quickly moving on to criticize the administration. Way to show some restraint, Hill.

[rjp2005]

This is not surprising at all. Why is anyone surprised? The Senator's every move for years has been plotted on a course towards winning both the DNC nomination and the Presidency.

She will insert her comment into every major positive accomplishment on the war from here on out. She needs to look hawkish to win. And she'll crush any Dem that dares to chide her for it.

[BallyBill]

It is frightening that she is one of the few dems that I even understand anymore. She ain't fooling me, but I at least know what she is saying and where she is coming from(most times).

[American Quilter]

This woman is so insincere that it took her 24 hours to decide what she should say about a major US victory in the war against Islamofascism. And even then she allowed the "too many" faux pas into her statement.

If she hadn't been married to Boy Clinton, she'd still be an extreme left-wing lawyer in some scandal-ridden law firm somewhere, and few of us would ever have heard of her. By no measure is she of presidential caliber.

[YaYa123]

"despicable attacks that claimed the lives of too many Iraqis and Americans."

Hillary should fire her handlers. I mean, how many lives are "too many". Careless phrasing. But loud and clear we get the image of Bill, Hillary and Chelsea, together, just like a family, agonizing over the suffering of others. How precious is that?

[rod1]

Actually that can go beyond humerous. I think it might be useful given Clinton's media driven exaulted heights around the world to launch the rumor that Clinton has challenged the very foundations of Islam claiming that he Bubba is entiteled to a majority of any vigins "earned" through jihad-associated martyrdom. It is completely believable he woudl want and claim it and who knows--maybe clinton is supposed to get anything Osama et. al. get credit for after having let him go when offered the terrorist.

[Michael.SF.]

It was also a bit surprising that she didn't react as many liberals have,

A surprise to who?

Remember, Hillary is moderate, as she keeps telling us.

/sarcasm

[Michael.SF.]

We owe our thanks to our men and women in uniform and others in Iraq who have been fighting the Zarqawi and other insurgents

This B has absolutely no class. She gives not one iota or nod to President Bush. This statement will do her absolutely no good in raising anyone's respect for her. She just could not bring it to herself to say anything about him or even mention his name.

I just cannot stand that woman.

[rightinthemiddle]

LOL

[martin_fierro]

it is true that she and her family were there and seemed visibly moved.

[SICSEMPERTYRANNUS]

I thought I heard that Chelsea was jogging by the hotel when the incindent occured.

[mass55th]

"When he heard that Iraqi rebel leader Al-Zarqawi had gone to meet 72 virgins, it’s rumored that Bill asked, 'Why wasn’t I invited to that meeting?'”

That's because he'd misheard Zarqawi was going to be blown by two, 250 pound bimbos.

[Renegade]

Physically she has NO balls so she is toast in a presidential election .

[Reactionary]

Hilly makes it real "personal" for the same reason she does everything else: She is such a reptile she can't imagine anything other than the lowest and most brutal form of self-interest.

Hillary Clinton is a freak.

[italianquaker]

yeah same way she was by the WTC, pretty soon chelsea will be jogging on the Titanic, Hurrricane Katrina znd Pearl Harbor when they finish writing there version of history

[dead]

[dpwiener]

Hey, everybody, we all know that Hillary is running for President and trying to position herself as a moderate who the general public will accept as someone they can trust to protect our security. We also know that Hillary's statements are carefully calibrated to achieve her political goals, and have no necessary relationship to her underlying beliefs.

That being said, I think she deserves credit for doing what too many other Democrats are unwilling to do out of abject fear of the crazies on the left: Hillary unambiguously denounced Zarqawi and his terrorist network; unambiguously praised our military forces for their success in eliminating him; and unambiguously expressed the hope that it would be a blow to the insurgents and would lead to greater security and stability in Iraq. There were no "buts" in Hillary's statement, and no gratuitous swipes at the Bush Administration.

So sure, you can always find things to carp about in some slightly inept phrasiology ("too many") or in the things you think she should have added. And of course she tried to relate the event to her personal experience; all politicians do that. So what? Give her credit for issuing a decent statement.

If you always criticize someone no matter what they do or say, even when a neutral observer would expect that you should agree with (or at least not disagree with) that person, then you lose all credibility with everyone except those few who are singing in your personal choir.

[TheCrusader]

"We owe our thanks to our men and women in uniform and others in Iraq who have been fighting the Zarqawi and other insurgents and who are responsible for today's success."

Hillary just reduced Zarqawi from bloodthirsty TERRORIST down to the more benign category of "insurgent". Doesn't she know that Zarqawi was a foreign terrorist?

[sachem longrifle]

Is this the same woman who instructed no uniforms of military in the white house when bill was president???