Biden: Romney Will Go To War In Syria And Iran
Vice President Joe Biden on Sunday fired back at Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, saying the GOP candidate might engage in war with Syria and Iran if elected president in November.
“He said it was a mistake to end the war in Iraq and bring all of our warriors home,” CNN quoted Biden as having said at a campaign stop in Pennsylvania. “He said it was a mistake to set an end date for our warriors in Afghanistan and bring them home. He implies by the speech that he’s ready to go to war in Syria and Iran.”
During his acceptance speech after being nominated at the Republican Convention last week, Romney heavily criticized U.S. President Barack Obama’s foreign policy. He accused Obama of throwing allies like Israel and Poland “under the bus.”
“Under my administration, our friends will see more loyalty,” he promised.
Romney also warned, “Every American is less secure today because he has failed to slow Iran’s nuclear threat.” Obama said years ago that America should talk to Iran, he recalled. “We’re still talking,” he said, “and Iran’s centrifuges are still spinning.”
CNN noted that Romney has sought to adopt a tougher tone than Obama on preventing Iran from developing nuclear weapons, though in terms of policy Romney has not offered anything markedly different from what Obama currently has in place. He has not, as Biden suggested, said that he would wage outright war with Iran, said the report.
Romney acknowledged the similarity between his own viewpoint on Iran and Obama’s position in an interview with CNN in July, saying “our president has said and I have said that it is unacceptable for Iran to become nuclear.”
If all else fails, Romney said, “A military option is one which would be available to the president of the United States.”
On Syria, Romney has accused Obama and his administration of being similarly weak in dealing with President Bashar al-Assad, and has called for the United States and allies to arm Syrian rebels, noted CNN.
Biden stuck mainly to the economy at his Pennsylvania stop, using harsh attack lines to criticize the economic plans offered by his rivals.
“There’s nothing new about this plan,” Biden said. “It’s not only not new, it’s not fair and it’s not right. It won’t grow the economy, it didn’t do it before. Folks we seen this movie before and we know how it ends.”
In his speech on Thursday, Romney said, “What is needed in our country today is not complicated or profound. It doesn’t take a special government commission to tell us what America needs. What America needs is jobs. Lots of jobs.” Romney is considered to have economic expertise.
“President Obama promised to begin to slow the rise of the oceans and to heal the planet,” he told the audience. “My promise is to help you and your family.”
Romney’s campaign responded to Biden’s remarks on Sunday by pointing back to the economic policies from Obama and Biden, saying the current job situation spoke for itself.
“It’s clear that we need to move in a different direction, but Vice President Biden only brought the same failed policies and tired attacks to Pennsylvania that have not turned around our economy or helped the middle class,” Romney spokeswoman Amanda Henneberg wrote, according to CNN.
On Friday, the White House rejected Romney’s comments on Israel.
White House Spokesman Jay Carney said, “I can simply say that, under President Obama, cooperation with Israel between our military and intelligence communities has never been closer, assistance provided to Israel by the United States has never been greater than it has been under President Obama.”
Carney added, “We have an extremely close relationship with Israel, which is appropriate given our unshakeable commitment to Israel’s security.”
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