Finally, Hillary Clinton Concedes On Iraq

MSNBC debate - Cleveland, Ohio

Russert gets Clinton to admit she was wrong about Iraq

Senator Hillary Clinton, when asked whether there was a single vote she regretted or would take back, finally conceded that Iraq was a mistake.

Over the last week, I’ve been considering the faults of both the Obama and Clinton campaigns and how they might lead to a failed run at the Democratic nomination.   One issue that I’ve continuously returned to is Hillary Clinton’s failure to address her Iraq vote and get onto the anti-War bus that most Americans are riding in.

Last summer, I wrote a piece called “Hillary Clinton is dead to me,” and what I wrote in that piece was an angry and pointed attack on Hillary Clinton’s foreign policy approach.  In my view, she used Bush’s Iraq War rhetoric to deal with Iraq for too long.  She used Republican talking points last summer to deal with the anti-War message of Barack Obama and has recently switched to the “I’ll withdraw troops within 60 days of becoming president” response.

For the most part, it satisfied my anti-War sentiment, but I’ve always felt that she can’t be trusted on Iraq because she has never publicly apologized for assisting President Bush in pushing his war of aggression in Iraq.   As an American, I feel vindicated by this Democratic response (one that I’ve often applauded Ron Paul for on the conservative side).  Although it may be too late if the race doesn’t get past Texas / Ohio, I’d still like to thank Hillary Clinton for showing the courage that it takes to be a strong American leader.

Fred Soto is an Attorney and Entrepreneur from the Silicon Valley.
Email this author | All posts by Fred Soto