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BRIDGE BRIEFING: Mitt Romney On Osama bin Laden
Romney Said It Was “Not Worth Moving Heaven And Earth” To Capture Osama Bin Laden Because America Would See An “Insignificant” Increase In Safety After His Capture. In an interview with Liz Sidoti of The Associated Press, Romney said, “the country would be safer by only ‘a small percentage’ and would see ‘a very insignificant increase in safety’ if al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden was caught because another terrorist would rise to power. ‘It’s not worth moving heaven and earth spending billions of dollars just trying to catch one person,’ Romney said. Instead, he said he supports a broader strategy to defeat the Islamic jihad movement.” [The Associated Press, 4/26/07] Romney Attacked Obama For Promising Unilateral Action Against Al Qaeda Targets in Pakistan. Accoridng to Retuers, “Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney criticized Democrat Barack Obama on Friday for vowing to strike al Qaeda targets inside Pakistan if necessary as the Obama camp issued a strident defense of his plan. What had been an internecine foreign policy battle between rival Democrats Obama, an Illinois senator, and New York Sen. Hillary Clinton, spilled into the Republican arena in the heavily contested state of Iowa. ‘I do not concur in the words of Barack Obama in a plan to enter an ally of ours... I don’t think those kinds of comments help in this effort to draw more friends to our effort,’ Romney told reporters on the campaign trail. Obama on Wednesday said if elected president in November 2008 he would be willing to launch military strikes against al Qaeda targets inside Pakistan with or without the approval of the Pakistani government of President Pervez Musharraf. ‘If we have actionable intelligence about high-value terrorist targets and President Musharraf won’t act, we will,’ Obama said.” [Reuters, 8/4/07] Romney Said Using U.S. Troops In Pakistan Was Not “Civilized.” According to the Associated Press, “Romney spoke at a luncheon meeting of young Republicans in Des Moines and later with reporters who asked for his reaction to Obama’s comments. In a speech this week, the senator from Illinois issued a warning to Pakistani leaders that if they didn’t do a better job of rooting out terrorists who use that country as a sanctuary, the U.S. might intervene with force. Instead of issuing threats, the U.S. should work with nations to root out extremist forces which may exist, Romney said. ‘We want as a civilized world to participate with other nations in this civilized effort to help those nations reject the extreme within them,’ Romney said. ‘That doesn’t mean that our troops are going to go all over the world.’” [Associated Press, 8/3/07]
TPM: Romney Spit-Balls His Way To Privatizing Veteran’s Benefits
On November 11, 2011, Talking Points Memo reported:
Over barbecue and sweet tea with 12 veterans here Friday, Mitt Romney appeared to brainstorm a fundamental change to the way the nation pays back the people who put their lives on the line in the military. Talking with the veterans about the challenge of navigating the Veterans Affairs bureaucracy to get their health care benefits after they leave active duty, Romney suggested a way to improve the system would be to privatize it. [...] The plan did not go over well with one veteran among the 12 discussing the VA with Romney. Auston Thompson, a veteran of the Iraq War and former Marine, told TPM after the session that though the idea of the plan was sound to his fiscally conservative ear, the implementation would likely lead to problems.
Romney Wants To “Add At Least 100,000 Troops To Our Boots On The Ground Capability"
ROMNEY: If, if there are some [bases] that are, that no longer have strategic significance for us, then those clearly can be closed, and we can bring troops home here, I don't believe in reducing the number of troops, I would add at least 100,000 troops to our boots on the ground capability. I also don't believe in cutting the military budget. You might say 'but isn't there a lot of waste in the military budget?' Absolutely, and I would go after that waste and streamline to the extent possible our defense op-operation, but I would use those funds to, one, expand our number of troops and number two to update our Navy and our Air Force.
Washington Post: Allen criticized for voting against equipment for soldiers in Senate
On July 14, 2011, the Washington Post reported:
"Former governor and senator George Allen was captured on video while campaigning in Franklin on Wednesday talking to a soldier’s father about the need to properly equip troops with body armor. Allen, a Republican, said it was “deplorable” that the soldier’s family had to provide his own equipment, specifically gloves. [...] But American Bridge 21st Century, the Democratic-leaning group that has been tracking Allen while he is campaigning for the U.S. Senate next year, pointed out that the former senator voted at least twice against equipment for soldiers during his one term.
Mitt Romney On Defense And Homeland Security
Mitt Romney Wrote That One Of The Agendas For A Free And Strong America Was To “Add At Least 100,000 Troops To Our Ground Forces…” In his book “No Apology” Mitt Romney wrote that one of the agendas for a free and strong America was to “Add at least 100,000 troops to our ground forces; provide top quality care and benefits to our veterans.” [“No Apology” 2011 Pg. 320]