O'Donnell Hits Romney for His Evolving Comments on the Vietnam War

by ProudProgressive Posted 2012/06/08 12:41:39

Related Topics: Mitt Romney, Iran, War, Military, Intervention, Foreign Policy, Friday, Conflict, Romney, Lawrence O'donnell, Mitt, Foreign

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Lawrence O'Donnell Hits Mitt Romney for His Evolving Comments on the Vietnam War
By Heather
Friday June 8, 2012

Lawrence O'Donnell took Mitt Romney to task for his evolving comments on the Vietnam War and his deferments that he could have easily turned down if he was ever serious about his statements that he felt the need to serve there.

O'Donnell also laid out a stark contrast between someone like boxer Muhammad Ali and his principled stance against the war and refusing to serve there, and Romney who was more than willing to support it as long as it meant someone besides himself being the one to go over there and put their life at risk by joining the military.

Since Romney thinks it's a good idea to bring in a bunch of war mongering former Bushies to serve as his foreign policy advisers who may very well want to get us into yet more conflicts in Iran and who knows where else, I'd be glad to see more segments like this calling him out for being more than willing to send others off to die, whether it was those who served in Vietnam instead of him ages ago, or those who might serve now if he's going to push for more military interventions, and being held to accountable for those stances.

bigfoot 2012/06/08 23:05:46 (edited)

+1
this Election has nothing to do with anything beside removing President Obama at any cost and the NAZI RWNJs regaining Power and Wealth.the Ultimate Goal is to establish a Presidential False Record that enables the Racist RWNJs to Falsely State that No Person of Color is Capable of Being President of the United States.remember President Obama ?the RWNJs cannot allow Pres.O to become One of the Greatest Presidents in Hisrtory.he has already bypassed reagan and bush in the History Books.reagan?Ha!Ha!Ha! the God of Conservatism and Piss On the Ignorant Middle Class Blue Collar Workers.have another Beer.

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gocar 2012/06/08 16:41:27

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I did not support the Vietnam war and I had not trouble with people finding way to not get drafted. My problem is with those scum-bags who vocally supported the war but made damn sure they did not go. Romney doing missionary work in Paris of all places does not qualify. He did support the war and was part of the cheering section. Disgusting I call it. He was not even doing charity work in Paris he was proselytizing for the Morman Church. Why not join as a chaplin then if you support the war?

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ProudPr... to gocar 2012/06/08 21:33:13

Because sometimes people actually shoot at chaplains.

Honestly, I don't even hold it against Mitt that he didn't want to go to Viet Nam. I was 16 when we got out of Viet Nam, but I can remember trying to decide what I would do if it was still going when I was 18 and I got called up. What bothers me most is that Mitt isn't even honest about sharing the feelings of millions of other Americans about the war. You're right, he even protested the anti-war protesters! Then he says he wanted to serve, even though there was nothing stopping him from doing so. And even today he can't tell the same story twice.

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YouSirName 2012/06/08 16:23:26

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Romney reminds me of the Woody Allen film "Zelig." He is a human chameleon - just not very good at it.

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ProudPr... to YouSirName 2012/06/08 21:34:18

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Very apt. I still like the etch-a-sketch analogy better, though. With Zelig, at least there was a real person underneath all the transformations. I truly get the impression that if you strip away all of Romney's talking points there would be nothing but a blank screen left.

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boltfox20 2012/06/08 14:10:11

+2
There's a simple solution to this problem. Those who advocate war must first serve on the front lines in some fashion. I don't care if they're a doctor, or a soldier, or a commander, or even a cook. If they server on the front lines for one war, then they can advocate war if they still choose to. If they have yet to go to war and want to advocate war, then they should have to serve on the front lines during the war they are advocating.

It's all about perspective and knowledge. If they know what they are advocating, then they are more than welcome to advocate it.

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ProudPr... to boltfox20 2012/06/08 21:37:26

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In theory you make a lot of sense, but practically speaking, I think that might be a hard line to draw. President Obama, for instance, did not serve in the military, but he was "of age" at a time when there was no pressing need for increasing our military forces to deal with a major conflict.

Perhaps we ought to look to the Israelis. Most Israeli citizens are required to do some military service (with a few exceptions like medical reasons). If younger Americans learned the reality of war by living it, they might learn not to be so quick to send other people's children into harm's way for no good reason later.

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boltfox20 to ProudPr... 2012/06/09 22:53:35

Does Obama advocate war?

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GOP Poison to boltfox20 2012/06/08 21:46:58

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If every capable family member of a congressman were the first to go into a war zone if that congressman voted to go to war,there would be no wars.
Mitt Romney was asked when he was out in support of the"surge" when his sons would be signing up he replied"My sons are doing their part in the war effort by working to get me elected".After he withdrew from the primary he was often asked when his sons would be joining up and refused to even acknowledge the question.

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lstl5 2012/06/08 14:03:14

I dont hear about too many congressmen or senators that have sent their sons and daughters over there, except for Biden, but they sure like to send our sons and daughters, dont they? It is sickening. Romney will be ready and raring to send our soldiers to Iran. I am sure that is why McCain backed him. They probably made a deal.

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kudabux 2012/06/08 13:45:04

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I watched that show and was glad someone finally brought that out. Imagine a draft dodger advocating war, sending more young men and women to die for Romney's ego, like the last war monger dubya.

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Chris - The Rowdy One! #187 2012/06/08 13:19:05 (edited)
ProudPr... to Chris -... 2012/06/08 14:14:04

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Occasionally a little condescending, but hopefully that's all LOL. Larry O'Donnell is not one of my favorites, but this particular piece struck me as a lot more on target than most of his stuff. I do know his father was a veteran and he does regularly defend the military (the actual men and women who fight, not the politics over it). I was thankfully not yet 18 by the time the Viet Nam war ended, but I can remember personally the agonizing over the draft - a number of "older brothers" among my friends went over there, and not all of them came back. I don't really criticize Romney (or Clinton for that matter) for not wanting to serve; what bugs me most is the way Romney keeps changing his story and at times trying to claim that he really wanted to serve when he clearly didn't.

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Chris -... to ProudPr... 2012/06/08 20:50:48

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I can see your point. I do wish these guys could just be honest. I'd respect someone if they said "hey, I was 18, scared to death and did what I could to get out of going"......that is better than BS-ing all of us.

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ProudPr... to Chris -... 2012/06/08 21:41:59

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I agree. I would actually have some respect for a politician who said "hey, I had a chance to get out of risking my life and I took it". I just find it hard to reconcile a person who actually participated in pro-war rallies at a time when he could have volunteered and put his body where his mouth was. In all honesty, John McCain's brave service to this nation was one of the things I respected most about him, and (whether anyone believes this or not) I honestly was not 100% committed to voting for Obama until McCain was forced to take Palin on the ticket. I disagreed with many of his policy positions, but I never had a shred of doubt that he actually cared about the welfare of our nation.

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Chris -... to ProudPr... 2012/06/09 11:15:20

We agree again.

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