http://www.philly.com/inquirer/opinion/20080706_Back_Channels__He_s_brave_and_he_s_honest.html

To the editor:

Kevin Ferris (Currents, 7/6) has deliberately mistaken the remarks of
General Wesley Clark by taking an isolated sentence out of context. He
is not alone in the right wing sliming, but he should read the actual
remarks instead of echoing the right wing sliming.
http://www.cbsnews.com/htdocs/pdf/FTN_062908.pdf
I think being president is about having good
judgment, it's about the ability to
communicate. As one of the great presidential historians, Richard
Neustadt, said, `The greatest
power of the presidency is the power to persuade.' And what Barack
Obama brings is incredible
communication skills, proven judgment. You look at his meteoric rise in
politics and you see a guy
who deals with people well, who understands issues, who brings people
together and who has good
judgment in moving forward. And I think what we need to do, Bob, is we
need to stop talking about
the old politics of left and right and we need to pull together and
move the country forward. And I
think that's what Barack Obama will do for America.

Because in the matters of national security
policy making, it's a matter of
understanding risk, it's a matter of gauging your opponents and it's a
matter of being held
accountable. John McCain's never done any of that in his official
positions. I certainly honor his
service as a prisoner of war. He was a hero to me and to hundreds of
thousands of millions of others
in the armed forces as a prisoner of war. He has been a voice on the
Senate Armed Services
Committee and he has traveled all over the world. But he hasn't held
executive responsibility. That
large squadron in the Navy that he commanded wasn't a wartime squadron.
He hasn't been there and
ordered the bombs to fall. He hasn't seen what it's like when diplomats
come in and say, `I don't
know whether we're going to be able to get this point through or not.
Do you want to take the risk?
What about your reputation? How do we handle it publicly?'
SCHIEFFER: Well, General, maybe--could I just
interrupt you?
Gen. CLARK: Sure.
SCHIEFFER: I have to say, Barack Obama has not had any of those
experiences either, nor has he
ridden in a fighter plane and gotten shot down. I mean...
Gen. CLARK: Well, I don't think riding in a
fighter plane and getting shot down is a qualification
to be president.
SCHIEFFER: Really?
Gen. CLARK: But Barack is not--he is not running on the fact that he
has made these national
security pronouncements, he's running on his other strengths. He's
running on the strengths of
character, on the strengths of his communication skills, on the
strengths of his judgment, and those
are qualities that we seek in our national leadership.
So, after Schieffer imposed a double standard on Obama and McCain,
Clark called Schieffer's bluff. Moreover, Clark praised McCain, which
was spoken on the air, but not included in the official CBS transcript:

http://www.wtop.com/?nid=213&sid=1431024
"In the matters of
national security policy making, it's a matter of understanding risk,"
he said on CBS'
"Face the Nation." "It's a matter of gauging your opponents and it's a
matter of being held accountable. John McCain's never done any of that
in his official positions. I certainly honor his service as a prisoner
of war. He was a hero to me and to hundreds of thousands and millions
of others in the armed forces, as a prisoner of war..."
The main stream media, far from skewing left, have gone out of their
way to break to the right for McCain. They have made a disgrace out of
a realistic assessment. Kevin Ferris should look more deeply before
echoing CBS censorship, and Fox right-wing Swift Boating.

Ben Burrows
406 Shoemaker Road
Elkins Park, PA 19027
215-266-2029