I wonder about Down Under

I was shaking my head in disgust today when I read a story on Google News about Australian Prime Minister John Howard.

In it, Howard, a noted sycophant of President Bush, is quoted as saying this about 2008 DemocratIC presidential candidates, specifically Barack Obama :

"If America pulls out of Iraq in March 2008 [as Obama has called for] it can only be in circumstances of defeat,'' said Howard. "If I were running Al-Qaeda in Iraq, I would put a circle around March 2008 and be praying as many times as possible for a victory not only for Obama but also for the Democrats.''

First off, wanker, mind your own country. Howard Stern makes more sense than you do, Mr. Howard.

Do I even need to discuss how outrageous it is that Howard would make such a claim? Who did this guy call for political advice, Dick Cheney? (Who can forget Cheney's remarks in the fall of 2001 that legislators who dared to vote against the USA Patriot Act were "siding with the terrorists." I know I won't let people forget.)

To his credit, Obama didn't take those remarks sitting down.

"I would also note that we have close to 140,000 troops in Iraq, and my understanding is Mr Howard has deployed 1,400, so if he is ... to fight the good fight in Iraq, I would suggest that he calls up another 20,000 Australians and sends them to Iraq,'' Obama told reporters in Iowa.

If Howard did not take up the invitation, Obama said the comments would become nothing more than "empty rhetoric.''

Good call, Obama. Australia's criticizing Obama and our DemocratIC presidential candidates? Who's next, Poland? (Remember Bush in '04? He snickered, "You Forgot Poland!" to John Kerry in a presidential debate when Kerry was talking about the War in Iraq and the "massive" coalition Bush had gathered before the war.)

"I think it's flattering that one of George Bush's allies on the other side of the world started attacking me the day after I announced [I would run for the 2008 Democrat presidential nomination]," said Obama.

Ya heard?!?

Two things were very clear about Obama on the very day his 2008 campaign officially kicked off - this guy is no John Kerry, and he's not going to be Swiftboated.