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August 13, 2008 - 9:37am
News
Merkley stumbles over Georgia question
By Britten Chase, PolitickerOR.com ReporterA questioner at a campaign event for Oregon House Speaker Jeff Merkley (D-Portland) on Saturday caught the U.S. Senate candidate off guard when he asked about specifics regarding the Russia-Georgia conflict, and now Republicans are starting to question Merkley’s ability to lead on foreign policy issues.
“This was two days after the invasion happened,” National Republican Senatorial Committee spokesman John Randall said of Merkley’s inability to answer the question posed to him on Saturday. “And with the Olympics going on, it’s obviously a huge issue.”
The encounter was caught on tape, which shows Merkley eating while he was questioned on what position the U.S. should take in the conflict.
“I haven’t heard what’s happening in Georgia,” Merkley said, two days after the Russians began the invasion of the tiny central Asian country. “Oh the country of Georgia,” Merkley responded to the questioner between bites. “I was thinking Georgia, Jimmy Carter…”
In the video the questioner acknowledges that Merkley may have been on the road for the past several days and unable to keep up on the news, but Republicans believe it implies he cannot keep up on the very issues he would have to deal with if elected to the Senate.
“Campaigns are a great way to highlight an ability to do a job,” Randall said. “This video highlights Merkley’s inability to do this job."
According to Merkley spokesman Matt Canter, Merkley had in fact been on the road. Canter also said that Saturday was the first day the conflict made the front page of the newspapers, and while Merkley had been caught off guard, he is now fully up to speed.
“The past two days, Jeff Merkley had been doing something Gordon Smith never does; talking to Oregonians about the challenges they face,” Canter said. “Thousands of Oregonians have had the chance to hear Jeff Merkley talk about his experience in the Pentagon and his work in conflict resolution. That opportunity will lead to more than any cheap political attack from Gordon Smith and his operatives.”
But as to whether Merkley is ready to deal with Russia, Georgia (the country), or other foreign policy issues, U.S. Sen. Gordon Smith’s (R-Pendleton) campaign spokeswoman Lindsay Gilbride thinks that this video may have summed up Merkley’s readiness for Washington D.C.
“Jeff Merkley and his hot dog say all we need to know about his foreign policy expertise - and his table manners,” Gilbride said.
Watch the video here.
Syndicate
So what kind of judgement
So what kind of judgement does it take for a person to knowingly vote to start a war in a country that never attacked us because of a lie?
Smith can run from Bush and Cheney, but he can't hide forever.
Smith really needs a new spokesperson
Is Smith's spokesperson seriously talking about electing a U.S. Senator based on the way they eat a hot dog? Is that what the Smith campaign has finally been reduced to? Sheesh.
Given Merkley's depth and breadth of foreign policy experience vs Smith (who has virtually none), it would be a serious mistake for Smith to get too over-the-top on this one.
Merkley was a foreign exchange student in a village in Ghana. He worked for a Quaker organization as well, building and operating a camp involved with environmental issues (and traveled throughout Central America while there as well) and an editorial intern for Foreign Affairs magazine. Merkley also spent time in Europe--and also traveled through the West Bank.
In addition, he was an intern for the Foreign Service New Delhi, India, and traveled in that area. Merkley was a Presidential Fellow working in the Pentagon, studying issues related to deterrence, nuclear deterrence and force survivability.
He also worked as a nuclear arms analyst for the Congressional Budget Office.
Attempting to pound something that in context is really pretty bogus only gives Merkley more opportunity to talk about his vast policy experience--something that's a serious deficit for Smith.
Please!
Gordon Smith has been back in Oregon since the recess and I haven't heard word one about a public event. How is this news - that while Merkley was out working hard to meet and listen to Oregonians on Friday and Saturday he didn't have time to become fully briefed on a conflict that had been going on for less than a day? Yawn. Merkley has good national security credentials. Gordon Smith supported the war in Iraq and THAT was a national security blunder.
Gordon Smith diverts from his own record
Gordon Smith is running from his own record by attacking Merkley on how he eats a hotdog? Pathetic.
Gordon Smith and his fellow Republicans are responsible for the worst foreign policy blunders in our nation's history.
The facts speak for themselves. Smith is the one who needs to get up to speed and be held accountable.
Yuck!
That was the grossest thing I have ever seen. Talk about awful manners. His mother should be ashamed. As a Georgia-bred "peach" I can tell you he is no gentleman with manners like that.
That was the grossest thing
That was the grossest thing I have ever seen.
So the war in Iraq, the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, so many Americans in poverty/homeless..that's not more gross to you?
Merkley really needs a new surrogate
Smith really needs a new spokesperson
posted by Carla
Is Smith's spokesperson seriously talking about electing a U.S. Senator based on the way they eat a hot dog?
The point is that Jeff Merkley can't seem to follow the news and chew photo-op hot dogs at the same time.
Carla, you may get paid to brag on Jeff's resume' but you might want to give it a rest. The best thing you can hope for is for this video to go away (which it won't). Short of that, exaggerating his foreign policy cred only serves to highlight his own previous demonstrated shortcomings in this arena.
Remember when he was afraid to oppose that GOP "support the troops" measure and so he voted to "acknowledge the courage of George W. Bush"? And then he pretended that he gave an anti-war floor speech. And when that turned out to be an... "exaggeration," he claimed he published an "anti-war" article. But it turned out to be just an internal newsletter for a global think tank he used to run.
And do you really want to bring up his "experience" in the West Bank? That coupled with his flip flop on the Israel/Palestine politics caused him to lose all his previous prominent support from notable local Palestinian activists.
I am sorry to say that Merkley is not ready for the big leagues.
Smell the desperation
People have died because of naked aggression in Iraq and Georgia and the likes of Gordon Smith and East Bank Thom are worried about a friggin' hot dog??????
Hello!!
As for the " big league" East Bank Hans refers to... he was campaign manager for a legislative candidate who got shot down by voters by such a large margin that I can't even remember his name.
EBH's own record proves that he hasn't a clue where the big leagues are even at let alone how to qualify for them. Which of course comes as no surprise to those unfortunate enough to be familiar with his lunatic rants.
"The point is that Jeff
"The point is that Jeff Merkley can't seem to follow the news and chew photo-op hot dogs at the same time."
The point is, the guy with the camera was just ambushing. He didn't ask "What do you think about the Russia-Georgian conflict." He asked vague question about "Georgia" without any context at a lunch.
The second point is, the story had broken fewer than 24 hours before. The vid was shot on Saturday. The news broke Friday. Yeah, his staff should have briefed him. But it's not like four days had passed.
Which leads us to the third point: Smith, who would have us believe he's much more savvy on the issue, has done or said ... what? Anything on this issue at all besides try to score political points? What's worse ... not knowing about a 1-day old news story as you're out in the hinterlands campaigning, or being a sitting senator who has all the facts, but doesn't act? I say the latter is far more troubling.
Faltering
I'll still vote against Smith, but this, coupled with the email I received today as part of a mass mailer from Jon Isaacs in which he misspells Merkley's name, makes me very dubious about Merkley's chances of not just beating Smith, but being any sort of effective senator.
Hello webmaster
I agree completely that smith can run from bush he it is highly impossible to hide from him...
what do you say webmaster?
beauty 101
So the war in Iraq, the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, so many Americans in poverty/homeless..that's not more gross to you?
regards,
beauty 101
Why Hurricane, Katrina are
Why Hurricane, Katrina are ropped into the political based article i dont understand
regards
short term health insurance
Hey short term Health
Hey short term Health Insurance you are really dumb, i guess you have not gone through the conversation. beauty 101 is comparing the situations.
What he had said is absolutely rite.
Thanks
Abstract Paintings
what kind of judgement does
what kind of judgement does it take for a person to knowingly vote to start a war in a country that never attacked us because of a lie?
Smith can run from Bush and Cheney, but he can't hide forever
Singles Digest
So the war in Iraq, the
So the war in Iraq, the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, so many Americans in poverty/homeless..that's not more gross to you?
regards,
SSNLocator
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