CNN’s Bill Schneider suddenly feels the resentment of foreign leaders preaching policy to Americans. Of course, it’s a conservative blasting a liberal U.S. politician. Australian Prime Minister John Howard explained why terrorists are rooting for Barack Obama.
Howard: "He’s a long way from being president of the United States. I think he’s wrong. I think that would just encourage those who want to completely destabilize and destroy Iraq and create chaos and a victory for the terrorists to hang on and hope for an Obama victory."
Senator Obama shot back
Obama: "I would suggest that he calls up another 20,000 Australians and sends them to Iraq. Otherwise, it’s just a bunch of empty rhetoric.
Anchor Kyra Phillips clearly did not approve of Howard’s remarks and asked "why is Australia’s prime minister butting in?" Schneider agreed when he added "a lot of Americans take offense at an Australian criticizing an American politician." So what has Schneider been saying the past few years over many foreign leaders blasting Bush’s foreign policy?
Schneider of course thinks Obama’s response is "very effective" and he "can score some points" if he continues. The entire transcript is below.
Kyra Phillips: "Well, the war in Iraq also came up, like you said, for another Democratic contender, that's Barack Obama. But this time it came from an unlikely source, Australian's prime minister. Let's hear his statement and the Senator's response."
Australian Prime Minister John Howard: "He's a long way from being president of the United States. I think he's wrong. I think that would just encourage those who want to completely destabilize and destroy Iraq and create chaos and a victory for the terrorists to hang on and hope for an Obama victory."
Senator Barack Obama (D-IL): "I would suggest that he calls up another 20,000 Australians and sends them to Iraq. Otherwise, it's just a bunch of empty rhetoric."
Phillips: "So Bill, why is Australia's prime minister butting in?"
Bill Schneider: "He has troops committed in Iraq, he has committed himself to George Bush's strategy and I think he has to defend his own policy, not just Bush policy, but he has adopted that as his own policy, so like President Bush, he is very angry at critics like Obama. It happens that, of course, Obama is an American, he is an Australian. And a lot of Americans take offense at an Australian criticizing an American politician."
Phillips: "So the way Obama came back and responded, what do you make of that? What's this saying about his strategy?"
Schneider: "I think it's very effective. He played off Howard's comment very skillfully by saying, all right, if he's signed on to Bush's policy, if he's a supporter of this war, why doesn't he supply the additional troops that are needed to pacify Baghdad and to pursue Bush's strategy for resulting in a victory? Why doesn't he put his money where his mouth is? And I think Barack Obama can score some points very effectively on that."
