Players Not Ready For Prime Time

Two candidates have blamed misstatements on the fatigue of campaigning.

The first was Huckabee bemoaning the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. Part of his statement included this, "...have an immediate, very clear monitoring of our border, and particularly to make sure, if there's any unusual activity of Pakistanis coming into the country. We just need to be very very thorough in looking at every aspect of our own security internally."

The second from Bill Richardson in an interview with John Roberts discussing water boarding, "... standing against terrorists like Musharraf."

There are two issues in play here. One, if careless statements are brought about by being tired from campaigning, what is likely to come from these minds bent from the stress of the Presidency?

Two, like it or not, Pakistan is an ally in our fight against terrorism. For all the rhetoric, especially from Richardson, about the need for negotiation and diplomacy, calling Musharraf a terrorist doesn't help.

We'd do well to remember Ms. Bhutto, as well as her husband, had their own ethical problems while both in and out of power. Her rhetoric wasn't to be trusted any more than Musharref's. It just fit better with our goals!  Neither faction will win awards for political sainthood!

Look at the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan. If we have any hope of crossing it in our pursuit of the Taliban, al Qada and bin Laden, we don't need a new leader with a mouth preceding the brain.

What we need is a President who will move away from the "our way or no way" mentality and realize that just because we think our way is right, those we're dealing with may not agree. And at times, they may even be correct.