Iran's pro-democracy protesters to Obama: With us or against us? What a difference 30 years makes

Thirty years ago, Iranian militants stormed the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, taking American diplomats hostage for 444 days, chilling relations between the two countries for decades and nailing the coffin in President Jimmy Carter's political career. The Iranian Revolution had begun.

Today, the fundamentalist government in Tehran held protests to commemorate the event, as usual burning the American flag and encouraging shouts of "Death to America."

This time, pro-democracy protesters -- many wearing the movement's signature green -- were heard to shout, "Death to dictators."

But the demonstrators, who risked beatings, imprisonment and even death to stage their rebellion, also had a message for the White House.

Witnesses said the protesters could be heard chanting: “Obama, Obama — either you’re with them or you’re with us.”

The Obama administration has so far been reluctant to convey American support for the demonstrators, fearful it would undercut the protest movement and allow President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad (who some claim can be seen in the 1979 photo above as a young revolutionary) to brand the pro-democracy movement as the work of foreign agitators.

So the White House has so far kept its distance from the movement as the West attempts to negotiate with Iran over its nuclear facilities.

Will today's plea change minds in Washington? Do you think it should?

-- Johanna Neuman

Photos: Associated Press

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What Obama won't say about the Afghan war today, at least publicly

This is a messy time for the nation's politics. And this seemingly serene autumn day is quietly crucial.

Despite all the excitement and promise of a fresh Barack Obama administration cleaning house from eight years of Republican rule and with a Congress in the lopsided control of his own Democratic party, the nation's capital is mired in partisan pushing over healthcare, among numerous fractious issues. And it's likely about to enter a bitter war over war.

Despite the largest single spending bill in history, a whopping $787 billion, despite VP Joe Biden's best talking and a $9.5-million refurbished recovery.org website, the nation still sees the economy in a recession with high unemployment and perhaps worse to come, rampant fears and uncertainty and awful consumer confidence.

Biden has been reduced to arguing not that anything is getting better, but that things are not going bad now as quickly as they were last winter, a challenging pitch to make convincingly entering a congressional midterm election year, when White House parties historically lose seats on the Hill anyway.

A new ABC News study finds that with three-quarters of 2009 complete, the country is on....

Sunday shows: Gates, Bond, McCain, 2 Clintons

ABC's "This Week" with George Stephanopoulos: Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) and a round table with Bob Woodward,  ABC's Martha Raddatz and George Will.

Bloomberg's "Political Capital" with Al Hunt: ex-presidential advisor John Podesta.

CBS' "Face the Nation": Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.).

CNN's "GPS" with Fareed Zakaria: Libyan Leader Moammar Kadafi.

CNN's "State of the Union" with John King: Gates, Sens. Evan Bayh (D-Ind.) and Bob Corker (R-Tenn.) and CNN's Mary Matalin and James Carville.

"Fox News Sunday" with Chris Wallace: Sens. Christopher Bond (R-Mo.) and Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), Virginia governor candidate Bob McDonnell (R), filmmaker James O'Keefe and a panel with Fox News analysts Dana Perino, columnist Charles Krauthammer and NPR's Mara Liasson and Juan Williams.

NBC's "Meet the Press" with David Gregory: President Bill Clinton (D), N.Y. Gov. David Paterson (D), Sens. Jon Kyl (R-Ariz.) and Jim Webb (D-Va.).

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Photo: Associated Press (Gates).

Obama on G-20: No pancakes, but good groundwork

Someday a world leader, perhaps even an American, is going to walk out of one of these monthly G-8, G-20, G-28 summits and pronounce it a colossal disaster, a complete waste of time to gather two dozen guys and a couple of women in suits at the cost of millions of dollars (or more valuable currencies) with thousands of assembled security, staff functionaries and protesters to talk for two days, eat well and pose for pictures in exotic places like Pittsburgh to consult on the same problems over and over.

But not this time.

If these things accomplish so much foundation-laying, where's the ensuing superstructure, a checklist of concrete accomplishments? And why, then, do they need so many more?

Anyway, with the predictability of the Chicago Cubs' autumnal fade, President Obama pronounced his G-20 summit a success this afternoon, laying important groundwork for the future and bringing leaders together in agreement on things their staffs agreed on back home weeks ago. Obama was especially pleased with his new favorite city of Pittsburgh.

He saw progress on economic recovery, and more government financial regulations, curbing excessive executive pay and human greed. He called for "a new era of engagement that yields real results for our people." He professed to see progress in allied solidarity about the need to be talking with Iran about its ongoing nuclear weapons program, while skipping over the question about a possible military response.

He minimized the Pittsburgh protesters as a smaller crowd than at other summits, and he maintained his commitment to denying Al Qaeda safe haven in Afghanistan (calling it a national security need of the U.S.) but didn't say much about establishing a stable nation there. As for polls revealing war support melting like a Tennessee iceberg, Obama said that he understood war weariness and that people should ask tough questions because so was he before committing his second troop surge there.

As for the pancakes, the president regretted not getting to Pamela's, which will get him on TV all over western Pennsylvania. And that'll be a good photo op come 2012.

Here, as provided by the White House, are the president's complete remarks and answers to a few media questions. And there's also a news summary video below.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Remarks and Answers by President Obama at G-20 News Conference, Pittsburgh, Sept. 25, 2009

THE PRESIDENT: Good afternoon. Let me, first of all, thank Mayor Luke Ravenstahl, County Executive Dan Onorato, and the people of Pittsburgh for being just extraordinary hosts. Last night during the dinner that I had with world leaders, so many of them commented on the fact that sometime in the past they had been to Pittsburgh -- in some cases it was 20 or 25 or 30 years ago -- and coming back they were so impressed with the revitalization of the city.

A number of them remarked on the fact that it pointed to lessons that....

British PM gives American president spine, again (text)

The array of world leaders was familiar. Against the backdrop of an international summit, this time the G-20 meeting in Pittsburgh, and an international crisis -- disclosure that Iran has for years been building a second nuclear weapons facility -- British Prime Minister Gordon Brown put some spine in President Obama's warnings to Tehran.

While Obama talked about "a direct challenge to the basic compact at the center of the nonproliferation regime," Brown talked about an Oct. 1 deadline. Confronted by the serial deception of many years, the British leader said, the international community has no choice today but to draw a line in the sand. 

The specter of a British prime minister adding bulk to an American president's rhetoric and perhaps resolve is nothing new.

In 1990, after Iraq's Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, President George H.W. Bush was inclined not to get involved. In his first statement on the invasion, Bush said he was not contemplating intervention. But during a meeting in Aspen, Colo., and several phone calls afterward, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher reminded the president of their shared history.

In her memoirs, Thatcher recounts that she told Bush that appeasing Adolf Hitler in the 1930s had led to a world war and that Hussein would have the whole Gulf at his mercy -- and 65% of the world's oil supply with it -- if his aggression were not quickly checked. "This is no time to go wobbly, George," she told Bush.

And no doubt Winston Churchill bucked up President Franklin D. Roosevelt as he tried to figure out how, in the years before Pearl Harbor cemented American public opinion, he could help Britain fight off the Germans without direct U.S. involvement. The Lend Lease Law was one result.

In Obama's defense, he was speaking for four world leaders, reading a text that had been approved by diplomats from Britain, France, Germany and the United States, while they were free to speak for themselves. Still, the difference in their tone was striking.

The British press has complained for months that Obama, perhaps wary of Brown's low popularity, has regularly snubbed the British prime minister. As if hoping to douse talk of a snub, today the White House announced that Brown and Obama will hold a bilateral meeting this afternoon.

You can read their full comments -- along with those of France's Nicholas Sarkozy -- below.

-- Johanna Neuman

Photo Credit: Reuters

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Chummy chatter from Obama and Russia's Medvedev

Not surprising perhaps after President Obama gave Russian President Dmitry Medvedev the gift of scrapping the U.S. missile defense plans for Europe recently, but the two men emerged from their bilateral meeting in New York this afternoon all smiles, chummy and first-namey.

No evidence that the two talked about how excited the Washington Redskins are to face the still winless Detroit Lions this weekend.

Besides all the efficiencies and cost-effectiveness that Obama claimed for the missile decision that left Poland and the Czech Republic swinging in the wind, the unspoken desire of Obama is that Russia finally put some real pressure on Iran to halt its nuclear weapons development. Since nothing else has worked so far. This would provide helpful evidence for Obama's claim that talking diplomatically can bring some positive results.

Of course, nothing concrete emerged today. Medvedev apparently agreed to consider such new efforts. Key word there: consider. Obama raised the possibility of additional serious sanctions, but did not elaborate.

The clock, however, is running on Iran's weapons gains -- and Israel's patience.

Obama cited progress in jointly reducing U.S. and Russian weapons stockpiles. He didn't say he'd looked into Medvedev's eyes, but Obama did say he feels they have an "excellent working relationship."

For his part, Medvedev mentioned "very positive changes" in the Russia-U.S. relationship, presumably contrasting them with the previous administration of Republican George W. Bush, whose toughening Russian stance and missile defense plans Obama has now abandoned.

The full transcript of their remarks -- and one reporter's hasty question -- is below.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Remarks by Presidents Obama and Medvedev after their bilateral meeting, New York City,
as provided by the White House
PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Well, first of all, I want to welcome President Medvedev to the United States and New York. As you all know, I had the great pleasure of visiting him in Moscow [see photo above], and he extended extraordinary hospitality to both myself and my family. More importantly, we got a lot of work done that I think will be bearing fruit in the months and years to come.

And I have to say publicly how much I appreciate the excellent working relationship that....

Hillary Clinton, after weeks on sidelines, retakes center stage with warning to Iran

 

She's back.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton -- hobbled by a fractured elbow that forced her to cancel two overseas trips during the last month, eclipsed by a globe-trotting President Obama who seemed to do just fine without her in Russia and Italy -- reemerged today.

As part of her comeback tour, Clinton is about to deliver a speech today to the Council on Foreign Relations. Tomorrow she heads off on a trip to India and Thailand, the first since she broke her elbow in a fall on her way to the White House. And just in time, according to policy wonks.

"She is seen as glamorous and in many countries as a valuable symbol of the United States, but it is not at all clear that she has an in-depth influence on foreign policy," said Reginald Dale of the Center for Strategic and International Studies in an interview with the Associated Press. "She needs to decide if she wants to be the administration's mascot or have an impact on actual policy." 

Mindful that she and Obama had harsh words over how to approach Iran as opponents during the presidential campaign, Clinton has been faithful to the White House script that was enunciated by Obama during his inaugural address: "If countries like Iran are willing to unclench their fists, they will find an extended hand from us."

But with Washington increasingly concerned about Tehran's crackdown against protesters in the streets and about the regime's nuclear ambitions, Clinton uses today's speech to deliver a warning.

"Neither the president nor I have any illusions that direct dialogue with the Islamic Republic will guarantee success," Clinton says, according to excerpts released by the State Department. "But we also understand the importance of trying to engage Iran and offering its leaders a clear choice: whether to join the international community as a responsible member or to continue down a path to further isolation."

Then she adds, "We remain ready to engage with Iran, but the time for action is now. The opportunity will not remain open indefinitely."

Watch her upcoming travels for further signs of Clinton's comeback strategy.

-- Johanna Neuman

Photo: Martinez Monsivais / Associated Press.

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It's always the media's fault; Robert McNamara talked about Vietnam

As The Ticket reported earlier, John F. Kennedy's secretary of Defense, Robert McNamara, died today at 93. He was a key architect of the disastrous U.S. military involvement in Vietnam who later admitted his mistakes.

In this C-SPAN archive video from 1995, McNamara discusses with Brian Lamb the role of the often-attacked media in that Southeast Asian conflict, specifically about whether the critical American press coverage caused the loss. It's worth a listen in light of subsequent events.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Photo: U.S. Air Force

Video: C-SPAN

Weekly Remarks: McCain-U.S. must speak out on Iran; Obama-Happy 4th and we need health reform

This week's Republican speaker may look somewhat familiar to Americans. John McCain was recently his party's unsuccessful candidate for president and is aspiring to earn a fifth term to the U.S. Senate in next year's November elections.

In recent week's he has taken up in no uncertain terms the cause of Iran's freedom demonstrators and made an emotional Senate speech about them and the slain young woman known now as Neda, as The Ticket reported here with a video.

Today he speaks out again, saying that on its 233d birthday, this country has a "mortal obligation" to speak in support of the courageous protesters in Tehran. McCain, who spent nearly six years as a POW without freedom in North Vietnam, dismisses outright the claim that Iran's current rulers will then blame the U.S. for the turmoil, saying they already are and we haven't spoken out.

The president's remarks also celebrate the nation's birthday. He uses the founders' brave spirit to say we need the same attitude now to change many things in this country including schools and the healthcare system.

He says, without naming names, that many would keep the existing healthcare system, although the recent debate seems more about how to change the existing system by adding the government component, not whether to keep it. And how much all this will cost Americans, at least those not covered by the broad congressional/federal plans.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Weekly Republican Remarks by Sen. John McCain of Arizona

Hi, I’m Senator John McCain.

Today, we celebrate our independence, declared 233 years ago, achieved through the trial of a long and difficult war, and preserved through the years with the blood and sacrifice of millions. It’s an occasion for Americans to reunite with family and enjoy a mid-summer holiday with picnics and barbeques, ballgames and golf, and other recreation. 

Our appreciation for what happened on a hot summer day in Philadelphia all these years ago is often limited to a fleeting, warm feeling about an ancient generation of Americans who....

Sunday Shows: Odierno, Sebelius, Romney, Barbour, Axelrod

ABC's This Week with George Stephanopoulos: David Axelrod, Sen. Charles Grassley (R-Iowa). Round table with Michael Dyson, Georgetown University; Peggy Noonan, Wall Street Journal; Kathleen Parker, Washington Post.

Bloomberg's Political Capital with Al Hunt: Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius and interviews with former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and former National Security Advisor Sandy Berger.

CBS' Face the Nation with Bob Schieffer: U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice and Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour.

CNN's GPS with Fareed Zakaria: Former Prime Minister Tony Blair and Robert Baer, author of "The Devil We Know: Dealing with the New Iranian Superpower," on Iran and election. Hoover Institute's John B. Taylor on economy and healthcare.

CNN's State of the Union with John King: Gen. Ray Odierno, Commander, Multi-National Force-Iraq and Gov. Tim Pawlenty (R-Minn.) on Iraq, Iran and war on terrorism. Mary Matalin and James Carville on healthcare debate and Obama's response to Iran. T. Boone Pickens, chairman and CEO, BP Capital, on energy.

Fox News Sunday with Chris Wallace: Topics: Healthcare with Sebelius and Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.; Iraq with Gen. Ray Odierno, Commanding General, Multi-National Force, Iraq.

NBC Meet the Press with David Gregory: Mitt Romney, David Axelrod, Sen. Lindsey Graham with roundtable of David Brooks of N.Y. Times, NBC's Mike Murphy and Dee Dee Myers.

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Photo: Associated Press