"Obama's choice" pure politics

[mymojorisin]

To say that Obama he sent 30,000 more troops to Afghanistan because he did not want to break a campaign promise so is just ridicules. He has not worried about breaking any other campaign promises. Lawrence Wilkerson is a tool of the elite just like Colin Powel was.

[robtherub]

the world had so much hope for obama, the corporate media, the WMD papers & fraudulent news channels have done a fairly good job of destroying this hope and keeping the world at war. We MUST maintain a grass roots street level peace movement and work out how to get Obama to hear US rather than the industrial complex and zionist and U.S imperialist warmongers determined to continue this conflict right up to the destruction of the earth.Amos5.18, you baptists,do not pray for the coming of the day

[computer241]

what kind of commender in cheif talk like that obama is weaker commender in cheif ever america had

[jpcortijo]

What a party hack - do you think he's ever considered the question of the world's biggest terrorist operations being run out of Washington? Obama is a marketing trick and the USA is effectively a one party state. It is now as it was founded, an expanionist empire.

[markcerny]

Please. Of course he's thought about it. He's an intelligent liberally educated person isn't he? You want him to come out and announce it or something?

[jpcortijo]

So, he's fine with being the leader of the world's biggest terrorist operations, you mean?

[robtherub]

i doubt obama is 100% happy with the way things are working out, call me naive but i still like to believe he meant what he said about stopping the wars. Reality is biting though, let's hope he's not one of them zionist retillians, either way, we need a peace movement, i think it would be a shame if he was unelected in 2012 with both wars still ongoing, worse than a shame, i know what it would do to the hearts of billions, never mind the biosphere (or the casualties). WE NEED A PEACE MOVEMENT

[andie2244]

If bush stayed in office and announced the same increase there would've been mass protests. It really puts into perspective how much being a good orator really influences people.

[DanMorgan98]

I totally agree. I actually have friends who are liberals, like myself, who have attempted to rebuke me for criticizing Obama's foreign policy. I also pointed out that if Bush announced this policy they would have the opposite reaction. There is no getting through with some people.

[Webins]

Well, we see the same thing with alot of liberals who actually have the audacity to claim that Clinton's Presidency was a time of peace!

[robtherub]

@Webins...

clinton's presidency was a time of comparitive peace indeed... remember how they dragged him through the mud in the world's media and the worst they could pin on him was a blowjob!!

Now the whole world knows the entire republican party is guilty of war crimes for which the corporate media has failed to even make a single comment about.

ONE blowjob versus TWO unprovoked aggressive imperial (and stupid) wars, which do the fake media choose to punish? the blowjob

FREE THE MEDIA!

[Webins]

Really?

I think the people of Iraq, Somalia, haiti, Sudan, Afghanistan, and former Yugoslavia would all disagree with you.

Not to mention aggression that the US supported indirectly, like with Israel, Indonesia, and Colombia.

[robtherub]

there was loadsa crap but it was looking better than it was throughout the bush years, hence the word "comparative", The terror of the youth and the hopelessness of the grown ups, since the republican parties most foolish response to 9/11 is totally incomparable to the clinton years, clinton was still an american president, yes, and representing the wannabe superpower population so his moves weren't great, but in comparison to the dimwit hick president bush he wasn't at all bad, in my opinion

[robtherub]

i was in Yugoslavia during that war, they blamed the german's, funnily enough, and the american diplomatic service, i never heard anyone criticise clinton directly, in 1995, similarly, the somalians in london are now militantly anti west (in the main) as a direct result of bush and this WASN'T the case during the Clinton years. I know nothing of haiti, fill me in? Sudan i only know third hand info but my Pashtun linkage (r.e.Afghanistan) definately prefered Clinton to Bush

[Webins]

The point is that these were all targets of US military activity.

Nothing peaceful about Clinton.

America hasn't had a "peace" president since Hoover.

[robtherub]

point taken... the world was really hoping Obama would be a peace president, how can we help him? i feel he was foolish to attempt to reach out across party lines because the republicans in the main seem inclined to remain anti-democrat under all circumstances to the detriment of america and the world if necassary so his effort to compromise has gained him nothing and lost him the massive power he potentially had. This observation of mine is the reason for my anti-response to u

[robtherub]

are you pro-peace? are you in favour of stopping the wars? i do hope so otherwise your initial comment is doubley annoying - it was clearly intended to be annoying - to the "liberal" who obviously annoys u so much, why do they annoy you so much? did you oppose the iraq war? were u in favour of retaliation for 911? has the "right" considered the reason it finds the left so annoying is that the left tends to expose their lack of rightness? i am not a lefty, btw, i bet i am more conservative than u

[robtherub]

thought i'd check my history, 1st results:

William Jefferson "Bill" Clinton was the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001

The Bosnian War, also known as the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina, was an international armed conflict that took place between March 1992 and November 1995

the U.S. intervention in Somalia 1992-1994

spotting a pattern with regard to republicans starting wars and blaming the democrats for them, more when i get it

help me with details?

[Webins]

I don't know if this is intended for me or for whome.

No. I am neither left nor right nor libertarian nor progressive. I oppose all but immediate defensive wars, and thus despise all presidents that came after Hoover (my favorite president).

Obama may be anti-Iraq War, but he is a supporter of the American Empire like all post-FDR presidents.

Also, the Bosnian conflict began may've begun in 1992 but US intervention occured under Clinton. Same with Somalia.

[robtherub]

bless then, extremely angry person here, most naive i was about obama, coming to terms with it

[Mahmhn]

The only reason for staying now is to stop China invading. If we leave then in 10 years there'll be no Taliban and 10 million Han Chinese living in Afghanixian.

[flyhead2]

The Chinese aren't as dumb as you think, and you think pretty dumb.

[Mahmhn]

I don't think so. China invaded Vietnam after the USA, left leading to the Sino-Vietnamese War. They've colonised Tibet and Xinjiang. I don't think China's generals think all that differently from the Pentagon, they're probably worrying about resources and Islamic extremism in the same way as US security experts. And they'd stand a much better chance of crushing the insurgency since they could very easily deploy 20 times more soldiers than the USA has in Afghanistan.

[flyhead2]

You make a fair point but I can't really see any benefit for China.

The Sino-Vietnamese war was apparently a US sanctioned punitive incursion aimed at irking the USSR and punishing Vietnam; the Chinese have battled the Vietnamese many times and must have realized that occupation was a non-starter. As for Afghanistan the risk is war with Russia, hardly a safe bet, especially given the other nuclear neighbours.

[Webins]

The Chinese haven't been involved in western Central Asia since the Tang Dynasty 13 centuries ago. I doubt very much they'll start now.

Besides, unlike America, the Chinese actually do care about maintaining good relations with Islamic countires.

[Unkn0wnGuy]

I hope Canada pulls out of nato. I agree with Ron Paul: entangling alliances only get you into trouble.

[karlkarlkarl1234]

Anyone else notice how the troops at the start are dressed exactly like out of the film adaption of 1984?

[pic103]

Well that's nice, Obama puts kids in harms way strictly for political reasons.

[markcerny]

That's the funny thing about war.

[SandCmpbll]

Why can't American news be this good?

[spits32]

@SandCmpbll

Because the reason for "American News" is to sell ads, informing the public is incidental

[flimflamman]

Wilkerson is a sycophant to power, he cannot think except in the framework established by the oligarchy.

[1984noway]

fascism on the march under the Obama /wall street leadership

[hasankhalid]

great reporting

[FOBmuzungu]

Taliban uses Islam as a front to conceal their "their" mafioso mantra...Al Quida is nothing more than a myth!!!

[EndTheFedRes]

"The first thing I will do as president is bring our soldiers home, and you can take that to the bank"

Google "Obama lies"

[FOBmuzungu]

good one!...both lines in that sentence is a lie!...esp. the bank part...lol

[AJsOwner]

This video is essential for understanding BO's decision on Afghanistan in a historical and political context. Excellent reporting and analysis.

[efectomariposa93]

Thumbs down for Obama.

Thumbs up for Ron Paul.

[modernmariorc]

Ron Paul is a sheep in wolves skin. Revolutions never work. Ron Paul is right, but his proposals will be corrupted and turned on their head while they are being implemented.

[efectomariposa93]

You are probably right about the last part, but that is what his fans are waiting for ultimately.

Obama the gatekeeper.

Watch this revolution if you have any doubts.

[bbburton]

We'd all have been better off with Ron Paul as President then the joker who now sits in the Oval Office.

[Vinseneb]

I don't trust Wilkerson. Real news is digging in the dirt for interviewees these days.

[Mennion3]

Wonderful interview. Very informative

[ShaktipatSeer]

Great interview 7*******

[DamienDragonetti]

This is just an example of what the big banks wanted to happen, it has nothing to do with either Obama or McCain. Both of them have a serious role to play in this and unfortunately its not on behalf of the American people. The US is about controlling us and slaving us via pocket (this is for every race under the elite).

Our vote doesn't count when it comes to the to evil and good, because we still end up electing the lesser of the two evils.

[ktomasz999]

The "War on Terror" is designed to forestall domestic opposition and condition people to further subjugation and new world order

[manque15]

A truer word was never spoke !

[tmason777]

Despite of his overuse of the term bona fides, I can listen to this dude talk forever!

[Pnkbong]

I voted for Obama and I am sorry I did. I'm not even going to bother voting again. What's the point? There is no democracy in America. Obama looked like he made this speech under duress. I bet Obama knows this strategy will not work.

[pedroquintero]

You should vote, but do some research on the candidates you vote for. Don't be passive and just vote for the popular candidate, chances are the popular candidate is being pushed by the monopolized controlled media.  If you would have looked at Obama's voting record prior to voting for him, you would have realized he has been a piece of scum from jump.

[DamienDragonetti]

You are right there has never been a democracy in the US.

[featherian]

remember the words afghanistan and pakistan.

so we wll heard it

pakistan.

so we know the next step.

[demerc]

Absolutely fantastic guest and interview. Can't wait for the second part. Thanks Real News.

[Pussymcfats]

why won't this dude answer the question, is Obama sending 30,000 troops for AlQada or for other geo-political reasons?

listen to his answer

it's retarded

[Parazitas999]

Yes listen to his answers, I think he tried to tell Paul and us, it's not so simple to just say "Al-Quada" or "geo-political". He brought up a lot more than real news were talking recently, it's more entangled in internal and not just external politics.

It's nice to see real news growing, a year ago it was hard to imagine they'll be able to get such high level politics to talk to.

[digimaton]

we already know the answer, problem is most so called "regular folk" are kept distracted by a smoke screen called "local issues". Governments world wide are under the impression that the realm of geo-political thought is beyond the comprehension of the general populous.

[waveoflight]

Wait, wat?