Cain's Foreign Policy Fogginess

The Wall Street Journal ^ | 11-23-2011 | Allysia Finley

[TitansAFC]

"I'm not supposed to know anything about foreign policy," said Republican presidential hopeful Herman Cain the other day after fumbling a question about President Obama's actions in Libya. "Because you run for president [people say] you need to have the answer. No, you don't! No, you don't!" His dearth of knowledge and interest in foreign policy was on full display in last night's GOP debate....

...On the Patriot Act, Mr. Cain was even more hazy. "If there are some areas of the Patriot Act that we need to refine, I'm all for that. But I do not believe we ought to throw out the baby with the bathwater." Again, he wouldn't specify which areas of the Patriot Act he disagreed with or thought should be amended. Neither would he say with any clarity whether he'd support an Israeli strike on Iran to destroy its nuclear weapons program.....

....Finally, when asked whether he would support a no-fly zone over Syria, he muttered that he would rather "work with our allies in the region to put pressure to be able to try and get our allies and other nations to stop buying oil from Syria." (The European Union implemented an oil embargo against Syria in September.) Then he pivoted to "growing this economy....

[Southnsoul]

What utter bullcrap from the WSJ.

Cain didn’t “mutter” any of his three answers in the debate, and clearly said “No” to a no-fly zone over Syria.

I despise the media.

[5th MEB]

That may be true for some of us; but while we concentrate on all of these different topics that come up on Free Republic and have time to do our own research, perhaps Mr. Cain does not. He has been a pretty busy man most of his life and may never have had the time for the same research.
In regards to the necessary research; I think he needs to fire some of his campaign staff and try to find some people who actually know how to do a little research on current topics of interest to the slime media, those are the questions they are going to try to button hook him on. If there is any one out there in Freeper Land who has some connection to his campaign it would probably help if they told him to check out Free Republic for about 2 hours a day. If not in person, at least one of his staffers and try to anticipate what communist Ostupid supporters will ask.

[old curmudgeon]

I will bet that y ou were not an adult when Reagan was running for the office.

The libs, the inside the beltway rinos said the same about him.

Cowboy.

Wanted to shoot someone. Would start WWIII...

An actor with not enough stuff to be President.

[BagCamAddict]

Yes indeed! LOL

Yeah, many of us keep talking about Cain/Gingrich, but Cain/Rice would be something to see!

Now Rice is a woman who knows how to act Presidential. I like Bachmann’s views, her intelligence, her love of America, her tenaciousness... but she doesn’t come across as Presidential. She always takes her arguments to the “whining woman” stage, and she loses me at that point.

Condoleeza Rice, on the other hand, can look you in the eye and call you an idiot, with a smile on her face, and you walk away respecting her and probably agreeing with her. Her calm, intelligent, mature, rational/reasonable, and knowledgeable demeanor project Leadership and garner respect.

[onyx]

I know I keep saying the same, because it’s true, “not one primary vote has been cast”, but I think Newt Gingrich will likely beat Romney for the nomination, and I base my prediction on foreign policy along with Gingrich’s debating skills.

You’re dead-bang right, when you state that the GOP has always prided itself for being the knowledgeable foreign policy party.

Last night, Ollie North said that Newt Gingrich knows more about foreign policy than all of the candidates on the stage combined. A lot of voters probably agree.

The very thought of Iran with nukes scares every thinking person, but maybe that issue will soon be moot. Who knows? If not, it’s almost a guarantee that under obama’s watch, Iran has clear sailing unless Israel acts alone and then the US is forced to help.

[Cringing Negativism Network]

Condi can look me in the eye and call me an idiot any time.

Dr. Rice is one of the people I most respect.

Let’s not drop this idea. She could be a very valuable “anti-Hillary”, should the need arise.

[VinL]

Feeble reporter is right. He writes: “when asked whether he [Cain] would support a no-fly zone over Syria, he MUTTERED.....-”

One thing one must concede about Mr. Cain- he doesn’t “mutter”. _:)

[onyx]

HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!

and Good Night!

[PhilDragoo]

Foggy? Where was Obama born? At two Hawaii hospitals and in Mombasa.

What was his nationality on his passport on his 1981 trip to Pakistan when Americans didn't go there.

Why did he not come to the defense of the Iranian people in 2009 when Mamoud Ahmadinejad sent thugs to shoot and beat them.

Why has Obama removed secular regimes in the region to allow Muslim Brotherhood to take over.

Why has Obama allowed China to drill but U.S. companies not so much.

Why has Obama armed Mexican drug gangs and declared war on our Border Patrol.

When we need jobs and oil, why did Obama block the pipeline from Canada.

Why does Obama bow to the Saudi king and the Chinese dictator but give Americans the finger.

Why is the Wall Street Journal pimping for the Degenerate Islamo Commie Kenyan.

Why are we in Afghanistan when president Karzai said he'd side with Pakistan against us.

Why has the poppy crop thrived there and why is China allowed to ship tens of thousands of tons of precursors to Mexican super labs for the river of meth entering CONUS.

Why do we maintain a cocaine-using homosexual traitor in the Oval Office and persecute a temperate married patriot.

Why is the Wall Street Journal attacking Herman Cain and giving Hussein the Twelfth Imam a pass.

A no-fly zone over Syria? Really? Syria was building a North Korean-style reactor--it took Israel to take it out.

By leaving Iraq Hussein is giving it to Rat Boy in Tehran.

And I'm supposed to shame Herman Cain for not knowing who catches dogs in the former Soviet Union?

HERMAN CAIN FOREIGN POLICY

HUSSEIN OBAMA FOREIGN POLICY

QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? CALL 1-800-WE-BROKE

[VinL]

Ditto.

[gardencatz]

He said he wasn’t supposed to know EVERYTHING about foreign policy not anything.

Cindie

[BagCamAddict]

Or he could just tune in to Rush or Walton & Johnson while he’s on his bus tours. ;-)

[old curmudgeon]

Our founders did not intend for the country to be run by professional politicians.

Therefore, they could not have expected their candidates to be expert on all things.

They envisioned ordinary people leaving their farms and professions to serve for one or two terms and return to their private lives.

They expected persons of common sense and good judgment to make sound decisions that were not based on improving their political future.

We have not only drifted far from that theory, we seem to be determined to prevent a return to it.

[bondserv]

Couple things that Reagan had that is lacking in Cain. Prior to his candidacy for President, Reagan wrote and spoke extensively about freedom and anti-communism for years. He developed an understanding wrote and spoke on foreign policy as he moved into his political career, which led to a successful win of the Governorship of California.

Two examples Pre-Governorship and Pre-Presidential candidacy:

http://millercenter.org/president/reagan/essays/biography/2

“During the eight years of his contract with General Electric, Reagan spoke at every one of the company’s 135 plants and to many of GE’s 250,000 employees in trips that served as a valuable political apprenticeship. Because he was afraid to fly, Reagan’s contract specified that he travel by train. He made good use of the long trips between plants to write his speeches in longhand on legal pads, transcribing them onto 3x5 (and later larger) cards. In these speeches, Reagan carefully reworked his themes of individual freedom and anti-Communism, surrounding his message with homey stories drawn from local newspapers or Reader’s Digest. The result was a basic address—known as “The Speech”—that expressed Reagan’s core convictions and was sprinkled with topical anecdotes. Reagan’s affable manner and genial optimism lightened the sternness of his warning that Americans were in danger of losing their individual freedoms.”

“Goldwater, however, had succeeded in his principal objective of transforming the GOP into a conservative party. It needed only a messenger to compete effectively with the Democrats and on October 27, 1964, a week before LBJ’s landslide victory, found one in the person of Reagan. In his nationally televised speech for Goldwater, Reagan called for leadership that would reduce the domestic reach of the federal government while simultaneously bolstering its military establishment and resisting the worldwide spread of Communism.”

[PieterCasparzen]

Patriot Act: I have no idea of the details of this act. Once Obama was briefed he decided to keep it, right ?

There are many, many details and there is information not available to anyone outside of top national security people regarding a lot of security and defense-related topics.

Steve Wynn the other day on Hannity with the poll guy (at the 4:00 mark):

http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/hannity/index.html

The President has all the information he needs or wants laid out for him: he needs intelligence and character.

Steve Wynn expressed this concept far better than I can. I’d recommend a listen at the 4 minute mark. It’s only about a minute.

[Gator113]

Hey old guy, I’m 63. I know, love and remember President Reagan. I named my daughter, our first child, after Reagan.

However, you and I see things differently, you old curmudgeon. ;>)

HAPPY THANKSGIVING .......

[TBP]

Herman Cain has been pretty clear on his foreign policy, at least the outlines of it.

But I’d rather have a President who is foggy on foreign policy than one who is committed to supporting America’s enemies, as we have now.

[gleeaikin]

If you listened to Newt, he was talking about people who have been here a long time, paying taxes, building roots in the community, etc. This used to be a normal GOP opinion.

[Sprite518]

Sorry but they are law breakers leaching off the tax payers.

Our nation is broke and we can no longer afford to house, feed, school, jail and free health care for people who have no respect for our laws.

If you listen to the Republican Candidates last night all of them are acting as if we are not bankrupt. We are 15 Trillion in debt and rising.

[Kit cat]

MAJOR,MAJOR,DITTO!!!!!!!