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By Mark Kilmer Posted in Face the Nation | FOX News Sunday | Late Edition | Meet the Press | Special Features | Sunday Morning Talk Shows | This Week — Comments (1) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »

Sunday, November 11, 2007

On FNS, Democrat Presidential hopeful Bill Richardson demanded that the United States cut off all aid to Pakistan. Richardson based the necessity for his Iraq "plan" – run away – on the words of retired General Ricardo Sanchez. When host Chris Wallace pointed out that Sanchez had been removed from Iraq in June of 2004 following the Abu Ghraib incident, Richardson proclaimed that Sanchez had been "on the ground" and thus would know that the surge had failed.

Later on FNS, Republican Presidential hopeful John McCain stated that he is the only Republican frontrunner with any foreign policy experience. McCain also offered, as a matter of fact: "I will win New Hampshire."

When asked about his inexperience by host Tim Russert on NBC's Meet the Press, Dem Presidential hopeful Barack Obama proclaimed: "There is no real training for the Presidency than the Presidency." I assume Hillary agrees.

On ABC's This Week, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice had some kind things to say about Pakistani President/dictator Pervez Musharraf, all the while clarifying that the United States supports democratic principles in Pakistan rather than Musharraf, whom she had described as the democratic principal.

Also on TW, Chris Dodd whined and griped.

On CBS' Face the Nation, GOP Presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee, when asked by host Bob Schieffer if he would run as Rudy's veep, answered that he hopes to do well enough in Iowa and New Hampshire to take the nomination.

Next on FTN, GOP Presidential hopeful Ron Paul said that his giant fundraising day of last week was orchestrated by someone he's never met, not his campaign. He said it is all about the power of the message, not about him. As for his chances of winning the nomination, Ron Paul said that he knows it's not likely, but his name is on the ballot and his supporters do not believe that it is not possible.

On LE, Dem Presidential hopeful Joe Biden talked of his recent telephone conversation with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf and dismissed Rudy Giuliani as something of a flake.

Read More for the show-by-show review.

BILL RICHARDSON ON FOX NEWS SUNDAY. This morning, FNS host Chris Wallace's first guest was Democrat Presidential long shot Bill Richardson. He opened by thanking our veterans. He said that he did not believe a word from the maw of Pakistani President/dictator Pervez Musharraf, whom Richardson declared is not "going after al-Qaeda." He called this perceived problem, "A failure on the part of the Bush Administration."

As President, Richardson said, he would cut off all aid to Pakistan as retribution.

The best policy for Iraq, Richardson declared, would be to withdraw all of our forces with a year, after putting in a plan for diplomacy involving Syria and Iraq. Wallace asked Richardson if his Iraq plan weren't outdated, what with the progress being made by the surge. Wallace listed the progress in statistics, and Richardson replied: "I don't believe the surge is working." Wallace asked him how he could believe this when the evidence showed that the surge was indeed working, and Wallace answered that General Ricardo Sanchez had said repeatedly that the surge was not working.

Wallace pointed out that General Sanchez had been removed from Iraq in June of 2004 following the Abu Ghraib incident, long before the surge had begun. Richardson answered that Sanchez "was on the ground. He should know if the surge is working."

Governor… ?

Richardson declared that Iraq was a quagmire and that there were no military solutions, which does indeed sound like what was being said in '04.

Wallace asked Richardson about the Space Aliens at Roswell, New Mexico. Richardson explains that he sometimes has to pimp the Space Aliens because it was good for tourism. He does not believe in UFO's himself, but the truth is out there, and the federal government should release all the information it has regarding the incident at Roswell in 1947.

JOHN MCCAIN ON FNS. Presidential hopeful John McCain, by satellite from New Hampshire, was Wallace's next guest on FNS, When asked about UFOs by Wallace, McCain joked that he had never seen one as a Navy pilot but that he had "kept looking all the time."

McCain declared that Don Rumsfeld had mismanaged the war. McCain said that he is the only candidate of the "Top Three" with any national security experience. (By "top three," he meant Rudy Giuliani, himself, and Mitt Romney; thus, he must have been talking about the "top three" in New Hampshire only.)

Asked about Keating Five, McCain said that he would match his ethics against those running for President.

McCain dismissed Richardson's notion that we should cut off all aid to Pakistan, pointing out that this would cost us our last leverage. McCain pointed out that Musharraf had come to power to replace a "failed state" – a term thrown around wildly these days – reminding us that both Benazir Bhutto and her daddy, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, were booted from government for corruption.

McCain's theme of the morning was that only he on the Republican side was qualified to carry on the foreign policy of this nation, that only he knew the people, places, and circumstances. This sounded a tad Bidenesque, but not a lot of people much care about Biden or his campaign.

Wallace showed a new poll showing the top three as Rudy, a resurgent McCain, and a stagnant Thompson.

McCain stated as a matter of fact: "I will win New Hampshire." Wallace asked for the standard, "if you don't" qualifications, but John McCain seemed to be genuinely confident.

BARACK OBAMA ON MTP. Host Tim Russert did another part of his "Meet the Candidates" thing on NBC's Meet the Press this morning, and it was Barack Obama's turn. He talked about something being the "equivalent of a donut hole, as opposed to the bad donut hole which Bush has set up."

Er, lockbox.

Obama pontificated: "There is no real training for the Presidency than the Presidency."

Hillary knows this.

Obama proclaimed: "I was a consistent critic of the war." He wanted to change course, but when the President would change to whatever course looked good to Obama at the time, he became a war critic, Obama explained.

Obama explained his debate gaffe of several weeks ago concerning his offer to meet with Fidel, Hugo, and Ahmadinejad. Obama said that he had answered only that he would be willing to meet with them without the preconditions Bush would impose.

CONDOLEEZZA RICE ON THIS WEEK. To discuss Pakistan and Musharraf, the Bush Administration's take thereupon, TW host George Stephanopoulos had on Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Reacting to Musharraf's Sunday message that elections will be held in 60 days, etc., Rice responded that Musharraf dropping his military career and holding elections soon were of vital importance, but that his state of emergency must be dropped A.S.A.P.

Stephanopoulos pointed out that Musharraf fires Supreme Courts and that the one which will certify him as President will have been handpicked by Musharraf. Rice answered: "George, this is not a perfect situation." Pakistan has come a long way, she reminded, since its 1999 coup and since 2001, when it pledged to be an ally in the war on terror.

"The key is to take this in steps," she said. The first step, she added, is to drop the state of emergency.

Secretary Rice was attacked by a fly.

Rice underscored what a rotten place Pakistan had been prior to their alliance with the United States – land of the madrassas – and how far it has come since 1999, 2001. "We're trying to build a foundation for a more democratic Pakistan," she said, and it is Musharraf's reforms that we want to build upon as we do so.

Steph argued that, just like we [Jimmy Carter, George] stood by the Shah of Iran for too long, we risk standing behind Musharraf for beyond his use. Rice countered that we're standing with democratic principal in Pak.

CHRIS DODD ON TW. Dem Presidential hopeful Chris Dodd was host George Stephanopoulos's next guest on ABC's This Week. Chris Dodd whined and griped.

HUCKABEE ON FTN. On Face the Nation, host Bob Schieffer first spoke, in that political sense, to GOP Presidential hopeful Mike Huckabee. A taped interview, with Schieffer arguing that Huckabee is being taken seriously because

Huckabee joked that it was the Chuck Norris endorsement, in that people are now afraid not to vote for him. He spoke of the influx of volunteers to his campaign and the upgrades to his web server.

Huckabee said that, with the Hollywood writers on strike, Fred Thompson is "looking for lines" and came up with the bit about Huckabee being a "pro-life liberal." Huckabee said that he is flattered by the attacks. No one points a gun at a dead carcass, he suggested.

Schieffer asked Huckabee about Pat Robertson endorsing Rudy, and Huckabee could not explain it. He said that he wished that he had received the endorsement, but he congratulated Rudy for receiving the endorsement. Huckabee said that though the leaders of the SoCons have been unclear about whom to support, the followers were not and were flocking to him.

Schieffer asked Huckabee if abortion were done as an important issue. Huckabee said that we cannot leave abortion up to the States, as it would say that morality and unalienable rights are relative to geography.

Schieffer asked Huckabee if he could be on the ticket with "someone who is pro-abortion" like Rudy Giuliani. Huckabee said he hopes to do well enough in Iowa and New Hampshire to win the whole thing, and the other stuff was "months down the road." He applauded Rudy for being honest with us about his abortion position.

Schieffer asked Huckabee if he had "any foreign policy experience." Huckabee answered that he went lots of places as governor. Schieffer asked Huckabee about Pakistan. Huckabee applauded the President for bringing Musharraf and company "back to reality" by telling them that the suspension of the constitution was wrong. Huckabee believes the next terrorist attack will be "postmarked Pakistan," because that is where Osama bin Laden lives.

RON PAUL ON FTN. Bob Schieffer next interviewed Republican Presidential hopeful Ron Paul, whom Schieffer has said must be taken seriously because he raised a lot of money on the internet in one day last week. Paul said that his people didn't do it and had not control of it. He's never met the guy who did it. Ron Paul said that this shows how powerful the message is.

Schieffer asked Ron Paul if he knew a lot about the internet before he got involved in this race, saying that Paul and Schieffer were the same age, and Ron Paul said that though he doesn't know how to program computers, he'd always used the internet – as a research tool, etc.

Ron Paul said that he was scared that the other candidates were not willing to take a first strike against Iran off the table. Ron Paul said that we beat the Soviet Union by talking to them.

Ron Paul suggested that we send Pakistan no more money, that "we not reward people with nuclear weapons."

Schieffer asked Ron Paul what he thought government should do, and he went through the list of things Ron Paul thinks the government should not do. Ron Paul is "pro-liberty," pro-private property, pro-Second Amendment, etc. "Freedom is what has made America great," not welfare and our assortment of government programs.

Ron Paul said that he's not an isolationist. He said that today we have "a sort of neo-isolationism" of go-it-alone cowboyism, but he clarified that this was not just during this Administration but over the past 100 years.

Ron Paul doesn't believe in paper money. Fiat money causes inflation.

Ron Paul says that he's "very realistic," but if his name is on the ballot, he could well win. He added that his supporters are convinced that he can win.

Now if he could only lose the nuts.

JOE BIDEN ON CNN's LATE EDITION. Host Wolf Blitzer trucked out Dem Presidential hopeful Joe Biden and played for him a clip of Pakistani General Pervez Musharraf declaring that elections will be held in January. Biden said that Musharraf had called him a week ago and promised that he would lift the state of emergency, take off his uniform, and hold the elections in 60 days.

Joe Biden said that if Musharraf won't live up to his obligations, it will force the Pakistani middle class underground. Joe Biden complained that Musharraf was too busy fighting his opponents to concern himself with the tribal areas. Joe Biden thinks Musharraf believes that the United States has walked away from Afghanistan.

Blitzer played a clip of Pat Leahy suggesting that we cut off aid to Pak, and Biden said that we should take a look at that. Joe Biden said that he and John Kerry are way out front on this one, proposing legislation to trash a Pakistani aircraft.

Joe Biden suggested that Pakistan could be more dangerous than Iran, and that Pakistan could have an Islamic revolution, similar to that in Iran in 1979.

Wolf Blitzer played a clip of Rudy Giuliani telling a radio talker that Joe Biden had no foreign policy experience, and Joe Biden joked that Rudy thinks you have to be an ambassador to have foreign policy experience. "God love him," Joe Biden snickered about Rudy, "but he couldn't connect the dots."

Joe Biden said that he is the one with the experience, and that he will know more than his Secretary of State.
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That's this week. Have at it.