Crossposted with some revisions from Daily Kos: http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2007/10/26/123221/85
THE big chill between the US and Iran has deepened, with the White House imposing its toughest sanctions in almost three decades on the rogue nation amid concerns the countries are headed for war.
Ben Smith and msnbc report that Senators Clinton and Obama support the Bush move on sanctions, although Senator Obama is verbally a little less hawkish and seems to support them with caveats.
This is a defining moment in the presidential race. John Edwards opposes these sanctions and Bush’s march to war:
Hillary backs sanctions
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That’s not a difference from Obama, who, Greg Craig wrote today, ” supports strengthening economic sanctions against Iran.”
.It is a difference from Edwards
John Edwards today:
“When Senator Clinton voted to declare Iran’s Revolutionary Guard a terrorist organization, she only aided and abetted George Bush and Dick Cheney’s march to war.
Edwards To Clinton: American People Deserve The Truth – Not More Doubletalk – On Iran
More after the fold about enabling Bush’s march to war.
In announcing sweeping new sanctions against an elite unit of the Revolutionary Guard Corps in Iran, Bush administration officials took pains to offer assurances on Thursday that at least for now, the United States is not going to war with Iran.
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The move designated the Quds force of the Revolutionary Guard and four state-owned Iranian banks as supporters of terrorism, and the Guard itself as an illegal exporter of ballistic missiles. The decision thus raised the temperature in American’s ongoing confrontation with Iran over terrorism and nuclear weapons.
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After 18 months in which the administration has touted the virtues of collective action against Iran by the United States and its allies, the sanctions are a major turn toward unilateralism.
It is not a surprise that after her vote for Kyl-Lieberman, Senator Clinton agrees with Bush on this policy:
“I believe that a policy of diplomacy backed by economic pressure is the best way to check Iran’s efforts to acquire a nuclear weapons program and stop its support of terrorism, and the best way to avert a war,” she says in a statement.
Indeed, Bush really is not hawkish enough for Clinton:
The United States is not accusing the entire Revolutionary Guard Corps of being a terrorist organization, a step advocated by Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, who voted in favor of such a measure last month and has since come under attack from antiwar members of her Democratic party. Some conservatives in the administration had also pushed for the broader declaration.
Democratic Sen. Barack Obama said he supports tough sanctions on the Revolutionary Guard, but he contended the measure Clinton supported “made the case for President Bush that we need to use our military presence in Iraq to counter Iran – a case that has nothing to do with sanctioning the Revolutionary Guard.” Obama missed the Senate vote on the Revolutionary Guard, campaigning in New Hampshire
Romney is like Bush on steriods:
“If for some reason they continue down their course of folly toward nuclear ambition, then I would take military action if that’s available to us,” Romney remarked.
He added that “bombardment of some kind” must be an option that should be made readily available.
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Edwards urged the Bush administration to try more diplomacy to end Iran’s nuclear ambitions.
John Edwards is standing up to Bush and Clinton:
Presidential contender John Edwards criticized Democratic and Republican rivals alike Thursday for threats and a vote against Iran, accusing Hillary Rodham Clinton of helping a GOP march to war.
Earlier in the day, the Bush administration announced new sanctions against Iran and Republican candidate Mitt Romney said he would consider a military blockade or “bombardment of some kind” to prevent Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon.
“You expect that from Republicans, but the Democrats don’t need to be helping,” Edwards told a group gathered in an Iowa high school. “We need to stand up to these people. We need to stop them and we need to be strong in our opposition.”
Edwards, a Democratic former senator, said Clinton made a mistake when she voted recently to declare the Iranian Revolutionary Guard a terrorist organization because President Bush could use the designation to launch military attacks.
John Edwards has called on Senator Clinton to stop enabling the Bush/Cheney/Romney march to war with Iran:
The Bush Administration has been making plans to attack Iran for many months. At this critical moment, we need strong leadership to stand against George Bush’s dangerous `preventive war’ policy, which makes force the first option, not the last.
“I learned a clear lesson from the lead up to the Iraq War in 2002: if you give this president an inch, he will take a mile – and launch a war. Senator Clinton apparently learned a different lesson. Instead of blocking George Bush’s new march to war, Senator Clinton and others are enabling him once again.
“I have called for strong, capable diplomacy to deal with the challenge of Iran, and a carrots and sticks strategy aimed at results–not the Bush/Cheney path, which would escalate tensions, enable attacks, and lead to unintended consequences.
Edwards Statement Calling On Senator Clinton To Stop Enabling George Bush’s Path To War With Iran
Even General Clark, who supports Senator Clinton, opposes this move by Bush. In an email today, he said:
There are 3 choices in dealing with Iran. You can engage them. You can isolate them. Or you can attack them.
These sanctions could be part of any of the 3 strategies. The sanctions themselves can only be evaluated within the context of the overall policy. Currently, the administration has chosen a path of isolation with the threat of an attack.
This is the wrong strategy. The Bush-Cheney Administration’s failure to use diplomacy in conjunction with these sanctions is unlikely to change Iran’s behavior.
Please join VoteVets.org and me. Send a message to President Bush to use diplomacy to deal with Iran. War is not the answer.
Jim Webb also is calling them out. On Hardball, Webb talked with Chris Matthews:
Matthews: “…But these guys, Kyl – Kyl and Lieberman are not diplomats, they’re hawks.
Webb: “Well, the Cheney element of the administration is well represented in the United States Senate.”
John Edwards today:
“When Senator Clinton voted to declare Iran’s Revolutionary Guard a terrorist organization, she only aided and abetted George Bush and Dick Cheney’s march to war.
“We now have clear confirmation that the administration is planning attacks on Iran. This morning, NBC reporter Andrea Mitchell reported that Defense Secretary Robert Gates told reporters on a flight back to the United States last night that there are `contingency plans for an attack on Iran’ and that `the planning has been done.’
“Republican candidates are also beating the drums of war. In an interview yesterday, Rudy Giuliani also said the military stage is `closer than some of the Democrats believe.’
“Even though she’s cozying up to the Republican approach when she’s inside the Beltway, when she’s in Iowa, Senator Clinton tells a different story. But with a question so critical, the American people deserve the real truth, not more doubletalk. And they need members of Congress to stand strong and fight the president on his march to war with Iran – not quicken the pace.”
Edwards To Clinton: American People Deserve The Truth – Not More Doubletalk – On Iran
We need to stop the new war! Democrats must stop enabling Bush. John Edwards is right to stand up to Bush, Romney and Clinton on the march to war with Iran. We have to stop the new war before it starts!!