[Peace-discuss] McCain, the peace candidate (on Pakistan)

[C. G. Estabrook]

[From tonight's debate. --CGE]


OBAMA: ...every intelligence agency will acknowledge that al Qaeda is the 
greatest threat against the United States and that Secretary of Defense Gates 
acknowledged the central front -- that the place where we have to deal with 
these folks is going to be in Afghanistan and in Pakistan.

...we've got to deal with Pakistan, because al Qaeda and the Taliban have safe 
havens in Pakistan, across the border in the northwest regions, and although, 
you know, under George Bush, with the support of Senator McCain, we've been 
giving them $10 billion over the last seven years, they have not done what needs 
to be done to get rid of those safe havens.

And until we do, Americans here at home are not going to be safe.


MCCAIN: Now, on this issue of aiding Pakistan, if you're going to aim a gun at 
somebody, George Shultz, our great secretary of state, told me once, you'd 
better be prepared to pull the trigger.

I'm not prepared at this time to cut off aid to Pakistan. So I'm not prepared to 
threaten it, as Senator Obama apparently wants to do, as he has said that he 
would announce military strikes into Pakistan.

We've got to get the support of the people of Pakistan. He said that he would 
launch military strikes into Pakistan.

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