RAPID FIRE - Silver Bullets

as far as Clark's progressive bonafides, here's a paragraph:

Clark's '04 tax proposals; his stance on singlepayer health care; his education benefit proposals for lower and higher education ($6,000 for first two years of college to those of families making under $150,000 and universal pre-school system--not tax credits)proposals; his renewal energy stance and work on Global Warming, his '04 primary endorsement by various gay and minority groups, his public calls for the fairness doctrine to be reinstated; his work on fair and secure election via his podcast programs; his fight for Affirmative Action via written support via Supreme Court case; his Aids program proposal touted by Jesse Jackson; his work on Rwanda, Kosovo and Darfur against Genocide; his stance against going into Iraq starting in 2002; his public claim to the word "Liberal" on national teevee, his televised defense of Michael Moore via the right to Free Speech when no one else would; his public discussions and denouncements of PNAC/Neocons in print and electronic media; his tireless work for Democrats in the 2004 and 2006 elections; his making it known that military budgetary items would be "on the table" for cutting if he were to be elected as President; his announcing we should be working to install a counterprevailing institution to the Military Industrial Complex via a similar organization as Kucinich's Peace Department and that we should resign ourselve to "buying" our oil at the going rate as opposed to attempting to manipulate the world markets; his public calls that we talk to Iran not Bomb them (before anyone else did); his supporting fair trade not free trade; his innovative ideas on Labor Unions and how they can return to the power they once were in our economic system; Publicly criticizing the politization of our science--all actions and words that clearly defines General Clark as more liberal than most-- But yes, Gen. Clark is actually a stealth liberal who is perceived as a moderate based on his 37 years of military service; which makes his progressiveness that much more powerful and effective.

Please Read on, cause there is sooo much more!

WESLEY CLARK SLAMS MEDIA CONSOLIDATION

"I don't think it is in the American public interest to further consolidate the media." Answering this reporter's question, the candidate said media consolidation "is damaging to putting out diverse opinions and fostering public dialogue. ... We need to distribute the ownership in media. We need to have the fairness in broadcasting rules put back in place."
http://www.fradical.com/Presidential_candidate_slams_media_violence.htm

There is a current resurgence by certain Democrats who would like to believe that Wes Clark would have voted for the Blank Check Iraq Resolution that passed back in 2002. This may be occurring partially because so many of the Dem potential Candidates for 2008 did indeed vote for it, and so it would be useful for misery to have company.

One of the items used for their “proof” is that 2002 article that I previously discussed here
But there is one additional piece of evidence that has recently been pulled out again as proof of General Clark’s intent in terms of what he might have done had he been in congress.

It’s that ditty of an article written by Adam Nagourney based on an interview with General Clark on the day that Wes announced his candidacy in September of 2003. At the time, this article actually worked quite well in its aim (to squelch the General’s candidacy in the Democratic Primaries) due to the “headline” the New York Times so kindly decided on, and based on what was billed as a 90 minute “free rolling” interview by its author, Mr. Nagourney. Here’s a reprint of the original article http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/0919-01.htm

Now on first glance the article “seems” damming! However, in closely reading this article, I had more questions about Mr. Nagourney's agenda than I did on Gen. Clark’s position on the Iraq Resolution.

During the last presidential Democratic Primary, there was what I would term a "swiftboat whisper campaign" that began as soon as General Clark, the most decorated officer since Eisenhower, decided to enter the presidential race. Whisper campaigns are what members of the GOP do best (see Bush vs. McCain, Bush vs. Kerry. Allen vs. Webb), in particular to anyone who threatens their monopoly on National Defense or their political well being and in most cases if there is little else in harmful "noise" at hand.

The attempted swiftboating campaign revolved around the unsubstantiated opinion of one General Hugh Shelton who uttered a smear against General Clark when asked if he would vote for the man. Gen. Shelton, a Republican, who just happened to have been the military advisor for John Edwards, another Democratic candidate who was running at the time, responded by attacking Wes Clark's integrity and character but conveniently left out the fact that it was he, Shelton, who had played a major role in Clark's early retirement in 2000.

John Edwards was queried in writing by the Clark campaign as to why he would directly associate with someone speaking nonsubstantiated smears against one of his Democratic challengers yet call himself a "positive" campaigner? "By associating with General Shelton on this campaign, you seem to have given in to the negative politics that you say you have risen above," Clark's Communications Director wrote to John Edwards.....to which John Edwards snootily replied without really addressing the issue of the smear; "Whatever your personal views on General Shelton, I'm sure you agree that he is a respected military leader who served our country with distinction".

Although Shelton never publicly elaborated further than his initial statement, low and behold, our Corporate press didn't "bother" to request further clarification from Shelton, , but instead went on the hunt, armed with the smear, to locate co-operating opinions from the rest of the military brass. As hard as "they" tried, "they" couldn't find any other high ranking generals to back up Shelton's comments, and "they" had to dig deep to find a few who had never worked with the General, but had "heard" of him. In fact, what the press found was that many of the General's cohorts held and hold the General in High opinion.

General Colin Powell on CNN - 9/28/03: "I've known Wes Clark for 20 years. He's one of the most gifted soldiers that I have ever had work for me. And beyond that, I really feel it's appropriate for me to recuse myself from any further comment now that he is a political candidate."
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0309/28/le.00.html

The Late Col. David Hackworth who initially pinned the "Perfumed Prince" tag on Clark, but later recanted commented on the whispers...."No big surprise, since he graduated first in his class from West Point , which puts him in the super-smart set with Robert E. Lee, Douglas MacArthur and Maxwell Taylor."
'All this book leanin' is unbecoming for an officer. The yankees got all the smart ones, and look where it got them."
http://www.command-post.org/oped/2_archives/008539.html

General McCaffrey:
"(He-Clark) is probably the most intelligent officer I ever served with," McCaffrey said. "(He has) great integrity, sound judgment and great kindness in dealing with people. He is a public servant of exceptional character and skill."
http://www.projo.com/extra/2003/candidates/content/projo_20030921_wpclark.6873b.html
McCaffrey told the Washington Post: "This is no insult to army culture ... but he was way too bright, way too articulate, way too good looking and perceived to be way too wired to fit in with our culture."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,1044293,00.html
"I have watched him at close range for 35 years, in which I have looked at the allegation, and I found it totally unsupported," said retired Gen. Barry McCaffrey, who taught with Clark at West Point in the 1970s. "That's not to say he isn't ambitious and quick. He is probably among the top five most talented I've met in my life. I think he is a national treasure who has a lot to offer the country."
McCaffrey acknowledges that Clark was not the most popular four-star general among the Army leadership. "This is no insult to Army culture, a culture I love and admire," McCaffrey said, "but he was way too bright, way too articulate, way too good-looking and perceived to be way too wired to fit in with our culture. He was not one of the good old boys."
http://www.projo.com/extra/2003/candidates/content/projo_20030921_wpclark.6873b.html

First watch this Segment of Wes Clark on Charlie Rose dated September 23, 2002.
Watch here or here

As you clearly see and hear, General Clark was not for going into Iraq at the time, and felt that the U.N. should be totally involved, in addition to NATO....and that our priorities should have been getting Osama Bin Laden and Al Qaeda and working on strategies to fight a sensical war on terror utilizing our Allies as much as possible! In fact, the General clearly states towards the end of the Video, that a thorough Weapon Inspections program should be the goal, and it would most likely do the trick.

This video really tells the tale of the General's position on Iraq right prior to the IWR vote. He was definitely for the Levin Amendment to go the the UN and come back to congress for a vote....and since this was BEFORE the Resolutions existed, I'm sure that he was the one that provided the insight that led Sen. Levin to formulate the only Resolution that should have passed if congress would have been doing its job back in 2002.

Too bad that so many Senators and Representatives caved in and gave Pres. Bush a blank check instead!

If only we could turn back the hands of time, we could have avoided the biggest strategic blunder known as Iraq, and if not, we could have, at least, put Wesley Clark into the White House in 2004 as a minimum!

I'm telling ya, that there is too much common sense in what Clark states in this uncut segment for me to believe that we ended up doing exactly what he warned NOT to do. My heart is breaking for those dead civilians and soldiers who didn't have to be! For those who have suffered irreversable injuries; for all of the money that we have spent to date in Iraq for a cause that has only intensified the passion in our enemies and created thousands of new ones!

Senators Hillary Clinton, John Edwards, John Kerry, Joe Biden, and Chris Dodd...... y'all were wrong! General Wesley Clark, you were right from the start. Those are the scores that count, and those are the scores that I am keeping.

John Edwards, in particular....if you would have just watched Charlie Rose on September 23, 2002, you'd have been a lot smarter for it, and maybe....just maybe, you woudn't have had to apologize for being "misled" in October of 2005. If you were not watching TV, you could have read Wesley Clark's OP-Ed published 2 days before the vote, or listened when he testified in front of congress. Not only were you lied to as you claim, but most importantly, you were simply just not paying attention to voices of reason. That is your burden to bear, and I will not reward you for not being more attentive and informed in respect to War and Peace. Leading from the rear is simply unacceptable.

and so I say

WES CLARK FOR PRESIDENT IN 2008!
Because you never know when you will need more life saving common sense decisions made. We are living in a dangerous and unpredictable world, and the leader of the Free World must make sense from the getgo!

Wesley Clark was also right on Rwanda

The United States, however, wouldn't invade Rwanda, although Clark pushed his mentor, General John Shalikashvili, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, to push for an intervention. Shalikashvili declined after Clark told him twenty thousand troops would be required, and as Clark says now, "I watched as we stood by as eight hundred thousand people were hacked to death by machete."
http://www.esquire.com/features/articles/2003/030801_mfe_clark_4.html

and Kosovo

and Dafur before it became "fashionable" and politically correct,
(More on Clark's work on Darfur here).

On how we should have approached the War on Terror (Op-Ed from Clark three days after 9/11)

and now, Iran.

One has got to wonder why the Corporate Media Pundits who barely mention Wes Clark's name as a potential presidential candidate in '08 would prefer that he just "fade away"!

Also read my posts on on Clark's Domestic issues
and how well Clark did last time he ran!

Read the following for more on Wes Clark's stance on the Iraq War:
"Clark Says He Would Have Voted for War "- Dissecting Adam Nagourney's '03 NYT article
What Wes Clark said prior to The Iraq War
The Iraq War Resolution - Did Clark support "a" resolution or "the" resolution?
Mining and finding Prescient Gems-Clark's 2002 Iraq Congressional Testimony
Clark's 2002 Congressional Testimony - Youtube w/t Transcript
The Levin Amendment- The Resolution that Wes Clark was "For"!