It’s like a boxer taking his gloves off in the final round:

“Some seem to believe we should negotiate with terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along,” Bush said at Israel’s 60th anniversary celebration in Jerusalem.

“We have heard this foolish delusion before,” Bush said in remarks to Israel’s parliament, the Knesset.

“As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, an American senator declared: ‘Lord, if only I could have talked to Hitler, all of this might have been avoided.’ We have an obligation to call this what it is — the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history.”

Joe Lieberman quickly offered his support for the President’s remarks:

“President Bush got it exactly right today when he warned about the threat of Iran and its terrorist proxies like Hamas and Hezbollah. It is imperative that we reject the flawed and naïve thinking that denies or dismisses the words of extremists and terrorists when they shout “Death to America” and “Death to Israel,” and that holds that—if only we were to sit down and negotiate with these killers—they would cease to threaten us. It is critical to our national security that our commander-in-chief is able to distinguish between America’s friends and America’s enemies, and not confuse the two.”

Bush didn’t mention Obama directly but guilt apparently drove him to issue an immediate and angry response:

“George Bush knows that I have never supported engagement with terrorists, and the president’s extraordinary politicization of foreign policy and the politics of fear do nothing to secure the American people or our stalwart ally Israel,” Obama said.

“It is sad that President Bush would use a speech to the Knesset on the 60th anniversary of Israel’s independence to launch a false political attack,” he said.

“Instead of tough talk and no action, we need to do what Kennedy, Nixon and Reagan did and use all elements of American power — including tough, principled, and direct diplomacy — to pressure countries like Iran and Syria.”

The AFP piece calls out Obama on his assertion that he would not support engagement with terrorists:

Obama said in a Democratic presidential debate last July that he would be willing to hold talks, without preconditions, with the leaders of top US foes including Iran, Syria, North Korea, Venezuela and Cuba.

In a subsequent debate in April, Obama renewed his offer for direct talks at a leaders’ level with Tehran, saying the Islamic Republic should be pressed with “carrots and sticks” to end its nuclear program.

McCain finds him naive - and I think that’s being generous:

“I think Barack Obama needs to explain why he wants to sit down and talk with a man who is the head of a government that is a state sponsor of terror that is responsible for the killing of brave young Americans and wants to wipe Israel off the map and denies the Holocaust,” McCain said.

“It is a serious error on the part of Senator Obama that shows naiveté and inexperience and lack of judgment to say that he wants to sit down across the table from an individual who leads a country that says and says that Israel is a stinking corpse, that is dedicated to the extinction of the state of Israel.”

It’s going to be tough going for Obama from here on out.

John McCain is starting to get specific about his plan for the presidency. I think this release signals a subtle shift in McCain’s campaign and I hope that he continues to add layers of detail as the race continues. This initial effort is not really a tactical plan but it does clearly lay out his objectives. More importantly, he uses fairly specific language that in essence tells the American people that he can and will be held accountable for his time in office. He covers a lot of ground but the national security portion is the most interesting piece:

After four years of a McCain administration, America will be more secure and working with its allies and partners around the world to make us safer. In 2013:

The Iraq War has been won, Iraq is a functioning democracy, violence is much reduced, and America has welcomed home most of the servicemen and women who have sacrificed terribly so that America might be secure.

The United States maintains a military presence in Iraq, but a much smaller one that does not play a direct combat role.

The threat from a resurgent Taliban in Afghanistan has been greatly reduced.

There is a functioning League of Democracies that has effectively applied pressure on Sudan to agree to a multinational peacekeeping force to stop the genocide.

There is no longer any place in the world al Qaeda can consider a safe haven. An increase in actionable intelligence leads to the capture or death of Osama Bin Laden and his lieutenants.

Through increased international cooperation and concerted use of American power, we have disrupted terrorist networks and exposed plots around the world.

The United States and its allies have made great progress in advancing nuclear security.

The size of the Army and Marine Corps has been significantly increased, and are now better equipped and trained to defend us. A substantial increase in veterans educational benefits and improvements in their health care has aided recruitment and retention.

Here he does what the Hillary, Edwards, and Obama cannot. He offers a realistic, and honest, way forward in Iraq and the greater war on terror. He knows that many people will not like what they hear but McCain is the only adult in the race. He’ll do what needs to be done and say what needs to be said even if it is difficult.

He touches on economic, healthcare, and other issues as well. You can read the entire statement on his site.

Peggy Agar’s priceless response pushed Obama into some damage control:

Obama apologized in a voicemail he left on Agar’s cell phone at 3:16 p.m:

“Hi Peggy. This is Barack Obama. I’m calling to apologize on two fronts. One was you didn’t get your question answered and I apologize. I thought that we had set up interviews with all the local stations. I guess we got it with your station but you weren’t the reporter that got the interview. And so, I broke my word. I apologize for that and I will make up for it.

“Second apology is for using the word ’sweetie.’ That’s a bad habit of mine. I do it sometimes with all kinds of people. I mean no disrespect and so I am duly chastened on that front. Feel free to call me back. I expect that my press team will be happy to try to make it up to you whenever we are in Detroit next.”

He’s a repeat offender too.

An excellent question:

Surely, given Hillary’s claim of expertise on the basis of her service as first lady, every major or ambiguous episode in her husband’s two presidencies should have been systematically reexamined by the media. I for one have renewed questions about the 1993 suicide of Deputy White House Counsel Vince Foster, Hillary’s former law partner and longtime friend, whose files were purged by Hillary’s staff before they could be examined for evidence. One must always be skeptical about Web rumors, but my interest was piqued last year by claims that Foster was shattered by the role he had played three months earlier in the outrageous order for federal agents to attack David Koresh’s ranch at Waco, Texas, producing a conflagration that led to 76 deaths, including 21 children. Why has the Waco fiasco been forgotten? It triggered the worst case of domestic terrorism in U.S. history, the 1995 revenge bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City.

It’s been forgotten because Americans like to forget their tragedies as quickly as possible. Unfortunately, the motivation for that forgetfulness does not have healthy underpinnings. It’s supported by an unholy combination of insidious consumerism and intellectual laziness. Even if concern does creep in it can’t take root in brains trained on decades of flashy, noisy, meaningless content. Next week doesn’t matter unless it’s the scheduled release date for a film or video game, and Waco is ancient history. You can’t expect them to remember Waco when they’ve already forgotten 9/11.

There are other factors too. The media, for most of Hillary’s political career anyway, has tried to avoid making her uncomfortable. The bombing of the Murrah building also had an effect. It transformed concern about the events in Waco into a fringe activity. It became an issue associated with kooks and far-right militias. Ask a random American about Waco and they will tell you that they weren’t real happy with the way it unfolded but push beyond that, into the greater political and moral implications of that decision, and they’ll just shrug. It’s just easier to forget.

I guess it gives her something to talk about as she drags this thing out:

Hillary Rodham Clinton coasted to a large but largely symbolic victory in working-class West Virginia on Tuesday, handing Barack Obama one of his worst defeats of the campaign yet scarcely slowing his march toward the Democratic presidential nomination.

“I am more determined than ever to carry on this campaign until everyone has had a chance to make their voices heard,” Clinton told supporters as the scope of her triumph became clear. “This race isn’t over yet. Neither of us has the total delegates it takes to win.”

Whatever. The real winner here is McCain. The exit polls and Obama’s incredibly poor performance here point to weaknesses that McCain can exploit. McCain can also continue to chill out while Hillary and Obama slug it out a while longer.

This Thursday Senator Cornyn (blog) will be hosting his first ever “live-blog” on the campaign’s official blog. The campaign is asking for questions to be left for the Senator in this thread. Sen. Cornyn will answer as many questions as possible during a live blogging session from 10-11 CT on Thursday. I urge all Blogs of War readers, especially those of you in Texas, to participate.

Top of the Ticket, a Los Angeles Times blog, warns that Ron Paul’s cult is up to something:

But in the meantime, quietly, largely under the radar of most people, the forces of Rep. Ron Paul have been organizing across the country to stage an embarrassing public revolt against Sen. John McCain when Republicans gather for their national convention in St. Paul at the beginning of September.

Paul’s presidential candidacy has been correctly dismissed all along in terms of winning the nomination. He was even excluded as irrelevant by Fox News from a nationally-televised GOP debate in New Hampshire.

But what’s been largely overlooked is Paul’s candidacy as a reflection of a powerful lingering dissatisfaction with the Arizona senator among the party’s most conservative conservatives. As anticipated a month ago in The Ticket, that situation could be exacerbated by today’s expected announcement from former Republican Rep. Bob Barr of Georgia for the Libertarian Party’s presidential nod, a slot held by Paul in 1988.

Nevermind Ralph Nader, Republican and Democratic parties both face….

…potentially damaging internal splits that could cripple their chances for victory in a narrow vote on Nov. 4.

Nevermind Ralph Nader, Republican and Democratic parties both face….

…potentially damaging internal splits that could cripple their chances for victory in a narrow vote on Nov. 4.

Paul’s candidacy is not a “powerful reflection” of anything. His followers excel at gaming online polls, sending hate mail, and posting blog comments but he and his cultish followers are rooted firmly in the fringe of American politics. A few disruptive protests in St. Paul will not do anything to change that.

Ed Morrisey isn’t too concerned either:

For some reason, normally sensible people like John Derbyshire continue to put their hope for electoral victory into a candidate who consorted with and exploited racists and anti-Semites for years in order to bolster his political standing. Thankfully, that 7% Revolution will have no impact on the convention or Republican politics. Next time the libertarians want a hero, perhaps they will vet him or her more carefully.

James Joyner is equally dismissive:

Paul is, at best, a nuisance candidate. He’s raised wads of cash but he spent little of it and made nary a dent in the primary process. It would be absurd to give a guy who received less than one percent of the amassed delegates at the convention a platform for harming the party.

Politrickin’ is my new favorite word and that Geico lizard line is just damn funny. I’d almost consider voting for the man if he really campaigned like this.

SNL has been giving Hillary a hard time for a while but this sketch takes it to a whole new level.

I’d prefer for this mess to drag on but Russert is probably right. It certainly is looking pretty hopeless for Hillary:

Late Tuesday, Clinton canceled her morning talk show appearances for today. She was expected to meet with superdelegates – top Democratic officials who can vote for whomever they want at the convention.

George Stephanopoulos and others are weighing in with the same verdict:

“This nomination fight is over,” ABC’s George Stephanopoulos said on “Good Morning America” Wednesday. “More superdelegates will come out today for Barack Obama –they will come three, four, five at a time, and this nomination will be locked up. . . . People close to her say that she’s more likely to stay in if she feels cornered in by the party leaders.”