RK ARCHIVE - VIDEO: Jon Soltz debated former Bush Special Assistant Ron Christie on Hardball!

As many people probably know, I am a very big fan of Jon Soltz and VoteVets.org and I like to help promote the good work that they are doing in my posts:

Submitted by Mitch Dworkin on August 22, 2007 - 6:10am.
Jon Soltz debated former Bush Special Assistant Ron Christie about Iraq on Hardball last Tuesday, September 4. Here is the video link to see this excellent, informative, and very fast paced dialogue which I highly recommend watching:

Sept. 4: President Bush offered a glimpse into what he will be doing after his term ends but should he be talking about money while still in office? Ron Christie, former Special Assistant to President Bush, and Jon Soltz of VoteVets.org debate.

Right below is the Hardball transcript of this debate from Tuesday, September 4.

Jon Soltz in my opinion did an excellent job of exposing his opponent Ron Christie as being a Neocon, of asking the tough questions that people need to hear in the national dialogue now, and of putting Bush to shame for his talking about making money after he is out of office right now while he is currently sending our soldiers to die in Iraq:

JON SOLTZ, CO-FOUNDER, VOTEVETS.ORG: I'm glad you feel that way as a neo-conservative political pundit. Those of us who fought on ground...

Well, as a soldier who fought on the ground in Iraq, and as the chairman of the largest political organization of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, I find it absolutely offensive he would use these words.

I mean, how about taking care of the soldiers you sent to war? How about post-traumatic-PTSD research? How about traumatic brain injury research?

You're going to pad your coffers? I mean, come on, 50,000 bucks a speech? You could send a soldier to Iraq for two years, and they won't come home with that kind of money. This is the commander in chief. And this is just more evidence that he doesn't understand his responsibility in leading the armed forces of the United States.

Could you imagine General Petraeus saying he's going to cash out to write a book for a couple million dollars right now?...

I think this is a joke. We've got guys who are fighting in combat every day, trying to win a war, and you've got a commander in chief that, as the commander of our Armed Forces of the United States, is distracted by how much money he's going to make at a speech. I couldn't imagine if my commander in Iraq stood up and said hey guys, I can't wait to retire so I can get a big fat paycheck..."

Jon Soltz is a very sharp, articulate, and powerful speaker when he debates in my opinion!

Here is the YouTube video of Jon Soltz debating former coalition spokesperson and FOX News contributor Dan Senor on Hannity and Colmes recently which is on the VoteVets.org website:

Jon Soltz, Iraq war veteran and Chair of VoteVets.org, appears on Hannity and Colmes to talk about the lack of progress in Iraq, and an ad that some networks are refusing to air.

Supporting and promoting Jon Soltz and VoteVets.org is an excellent way I can see how to help raise the level of the national dialogue right now concerning Gen. Wes Clark's and Sen. Jim Webb's foreign policy message, how to help avoid an unnecessary war of choice with Iran, and also how to help bring more public attention to the issues that really matter the most when Gen. Petraeus gives his report about Iraq to Congress!

http://securingameri...
StopIranWar.com: "War is not the answer"
Submitted by Wes Clark on February 21, 2007 - 11:40am.

http://www.securinga...
Listen to Gen. Wes Clark fight for Dems on Sean Hannity's radio program: An excellent example for all of us to follow and what we all need to be doing to help fight back against extreme right wing Neocon smear propaganda!

'Hardball with Chris Matthews' for Sept. 4
Read the transcript to the Tuesday show

Guests: Bill Maher, Robert Draper, Ron Christie, Jon Soltz, Jill Zuckman, Howard Fineman

President Bush offered a glimpse into what he will do after his term ends, when he told author Robert Draper, who was just on HARDBALL-quote -- "I will give some speeches just to replenish the old coffers. I don't know what my dad gets. It's more than $50,000, $75,000. Clinton's making a lot of money"-those all quotes from the president.

Well, should President Bush be talking about how much money he's going to make on the lecture circuit when he leaves office, especially when we're at a time of war? That's the HARDBALL debate tonight.

Ron Christie served as-we have had him on many times-as special assistant to President Bush. And Jon Soltz is an Iraq War veteran now with an organization called VoteVets.org.

Ron Christie, any problem with the president talking to an author of a book about him about how much money he's going to make after he leaves giving speeches?

It's interesting. If you listen to the-the interview that you had with Robert Draper just a few moments ago, Draper admits that he asked the president, what are you going to do once you leave office, not the president sitting around and saying...

If you look at the prologue of the book, rather than the epilogue, where this quote is, Chris, the president talks in great detail about the solemn responsibility of sending men and women into battle and dying.

CHRISTIE: And the president talks at great length about the decisions that the commander in chief has to make.

So, I do not have a problem with the president musing about what he might do. He also mentions he's going to start a Freedom Institute once he leaves the White House, to talk about giving speeches. I don't have a problem with that.

MATTHEWS: Jon Soltz, your view of the president's words this weekend that got out?

JON SOLTZ, CO-FOUNDER, VOTEVETS.ORG: Well, as a soldier who fought on the ground in Iraq, and as the chairman of the largest political organization of Iraq and Afghanistan veterans, I find it absolutely offensive he would use these words.

I mean, how about taking care of the soldiers you sent to war? How about post-traumatic-PTSD research? How about traumatic brain injury research?

Could you imagine General Petraeus saying he's going to cash out to write a book for a couple million dollars right now?

SOLTZ: And, so, I have served there. And I don't need to be lectured by some person who's never worn the uniform. It's absolutely offensive...

MATTHEWS: Well, I invited Ron Christie on to debate you, so he has the right to debate you.

SOLTZ: ... people who have served on the ground to have their commander in chief talking about...

I do have the right to debate you. And I am very pleased and honored by the fact that you chose to wear the uniform of this country.

But I also chose to serve this country. And I have been involved in public service, serving the United States and the American people, for most of my professional career. So, I do have the ability to judge the president, not only as one who is a very strong man and one who knows exactly what he's doing.

But, unlike you, Jon, I have actually sat in the Oval Office. I have sat in the Cabinet Room and listened to the president talk about the solemn responsibility that he and he alone must bear as the commander in chief, who you reported to as a soldier, and recognize that he knows exactly what's at stake. He knows exactly what the consequences are for sending men and women in battle.

So for you to suggest that the president is only trying to cash out, he knows and that's why he was outraged by what happened at Walter Reed.

SOLTZ: We haven't even implemented the recommendations of the Dole/Shalala Commission. It's going to be become like the 9/11 Commission report. This is a president who threatened to veto a 3.5 percent pay increase for the men and women in uniform. That's absolutely ridiculous behavior. This is a president I listened to when he said there are weapons of mass destruction, when he said our military's not over-extended, when he said that we're not going to break our military.

This is a president that less committed to beating al Qaeda than his obsession with his legacy and, more importantly, this is a man after his administration, cares more about cashing out than taking care of the people he sent to war. Let me tell you-

CHRISTIE: You can end your filibuster. Let me tell you something. This is a man who takes his responsibility his-again, as I said, his responsibility as commander in chief far more seriously than you can imagine when you've never had the opportunity to talk to him and see exactly the deliberation that he goes through.

Let me take that a step further. For you to suggest without knowing what the commander in chief looks at, by way of intelligence-let's go back to the Clinton administration, let's go back to the previous administrations, people who were convinced that there were weapons of mass destruction, and, in fact, Senator Clinton, many others in the Democrat side of the aisle, believed that Iraq posed an imminent threat to the United States. The reality-

MATTHEWS: Let me go back to a fact here before we continue. Robert Draper, as you know, he did ask the question of what are you going to do after you leave the White House. You're correct in that, Ron. But he told me on the air-and you heard it-he was surprised the president answered in the way he did. He was amazed that the president so openly discussed money and how much he's going to make as a windfall to having been president at the time he's serving as commander of a war.

He is surprised. He also told me when he got off the air the White House isn't happy about this. They don't like the fact that the president is perceived a guy whose out to money grub, having led men and women into battle. So you're defending what the president finds a bit shameful, that he's now being portrayed by his own words. You don't find his words offensive, but apparently the president embarrassed by his own words, as they've appeared in print now.

his aides-what Mr. Draper perceived was that he would be perceived as being upset by that. We don't know what the president is going to say, because neither you nor I have talked to the president about this. What I am defending is the fact that this president of the United States has taken his solemn responsibility as commander in chief and done everything he can

SOLTZ: I'm glad you feel that way as a neo-conservative political pundit. Those of us who fought on ground.

MATTHEWS: You're a gold star mother-imagine your gold star mother to be in the next couple of weeks. You lose a son or daughter and you have in your mind, oh, by the way, the commander in chief has been talking to a reporter-an author how much money he's going to make after he leaves the White House. Ron, your reaction if you're a gold star mother today.

CHRISTIE: If I'm a gold star mother, I know for a fact from listening to the president say this in my presence, that he talks to people who have lost a loved one and he understands the solemn sacrifice that that son or that daughter has made giving their life in service to this country.

The president of the United States understands that he's going to leave office soon. For those to suggest that he's only trying to cash out or using his presidency to make money is absurd. You know it and I know it and John knows it.

MATTHEWS: Go ahead John, because I read it. That's what the author thought. What do you think?

SOLTZ: I think this is a joke. We've got guys who are fighting in combat every day, trying to win a war, and you've got a commander in chief that, as the commander of our Armed Forces of the United States, is distracted by how much money he's going to make at a speech. I couldn't imagine if my commander in Iraq stood up and said hey guys, I can't wait to retire so I can get a big fat paycheck.

MATTHEWS: All I know is some people are on their fifth deployment over there and the president is talking about how it's been good to him financially. Thank you Ron Christie. Thank you John Soltz. Up next our HARDBALL round table on all of today's news. This is HARDBALL, only on MSNBC.

Comments

Dude! (The Grey Havens - 9/10/2007 12:16:16 PM)

You're doing great work...

But quit putting links in your diaries and figure out how to EMBED VIDEO!!!!!

For crying out loud, you're sending away 90% of your readers!!!!

I feel I have to appologize for Christie (teacherken - 9/10/2007 8:55:58 PM)

it seems that not all of our alumni (Haverford College) can avoid drinking the kool-aid. We get our share of Republicans, although that used to me more common in the past - Sen. Chuck Mathias and Rep. Rob Simmons. More recently we have had Rep. Charles Canady and Asst. AG Ralph Boyd. But I at least view them as competent, while I am not sure what Christie has ever done except be a designated talking head on behalf of Republicans. I got a chance to see him up close in an event in Alexandria for an African-American group for which he stood in for Allen, while by contrast Webb found the time to appear for himself.

So while apparently Christie had the chance to get a good education, he also apparently managed to avoid learning critical thinking???

Sorry, couldn't resist the snark.