Round up of right-wing reactions to Obamas Afghanistan decision
Good or bad, President Obama’s decision to send 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan was sure to incite some hilarious responses from teevees finest talking egos. Media Matters and Huffington Post did a great job tracking them down. Without further ado:
First up, Bill O’Reilly. From MediaMatters, ‘Did O’Reilly Even Watch Obama’s Afghanistan Speech?’:
Following President Obama’s speech at West Point addressing the war in Afghanistan, Fox News’ Bill O’Reilly criticized Obama for supposedly not “saying, ‘Look, these are bad guys. We’re fighting evil” and for not warning Americans that “[i]f we lose, this is going to lead to more bloodshed all over the world.” In fact, Obama referred to Al Qaeda as “extremists who have distorted and defiled Islam … to justify the slaughter of innocents,” he called the Taliban “a ruthless, repressive, and radical movement,” and he warned that withdrawing from Afghanistan now “would significantly hamper our ability to keep the pressure on Al Qaeda and create an unacceptable risk of additional attacks on our homeland and our allies.” [Media Matters]
Next up, Glenn Beck: Here’s Stephen Colbert mocking Glenn Beck’s backward logic in wondering why the Commander in Chief wasn’t following his orders:
[via Huffington Post]
And now, Sean Hannity. Another catch from MediaMatters:
On the December 1 edition of his Fox News show, Sean Hannity falsely suggested that President Obama waited until December to deploy additional troops to Afghanistan by airing a video montage of Obama’s December 1 announcement that he will deploy an additional 30,000 troops followed by on-screen text stating, “But … What has taken so long?” and video clips of Obama throughout 2008 calling for additional troops. However, Obama approved a significant increase in the number of troops serving in Afghanistan in February and March, a fact Hannity blatantly ignored to assert that Obama has had a “less-than-consistent stance on the issue of Afghanistan.” [Media Matters]
Last and certainly least, Steve Doocy:
Echoing the latest talking point from conservative media, Fox & Friends co-host Steve Doocy claimed that President Obama never said the word “win” during his December 1 West Point speech on the war in Afghanistan, and on-screen text stated, “Pres never spoke of winning the war.” In fact, Obama repeatedly referred to a “successful” end to the war. [Media Matters]
[sigh]