George Orwell, is that you? Did you come back from the dead and write the script for yesterday’s events? Nah, this was too bizarre and bleak even for you.
To recap, for anyone who just got back from Mars:
On the 11th anniversary of 9/11, the U.S. embassy in Cairo was attacked by a mob chanting “Obama, Obama, we’re all Osama.” This happened despite(?) a miserable attempt at appeasement by an embassy staffer, who took to the Internet to bemoan the First Amendment because it can lead to hurt feelings. The Obama administration is currently trying to decide whether or not this was a good idea. (Current status: No, probably.)
Also on that day, the U.S. ambassador to Libya, Christopher Stevens, and three others were murdered. It was the first time a sitting U.S. ambassador has been murdered since 1979. Stevens was then either dragged through the streets in victory or gently escorted to the hospital, depending on your level of credulity after looking at these photos. And now we’re learning that the U.S. consulate in Libya was almost completely unprotected, and Stevens was probably lured into an ambush.
So of course, it’s Romney’s fault for saying something about any of it.
Don Lemon:
By slamming the Obama administration as the U.S. ambassador and three other Americans were killed in Libya, the Republican nominee has given the appearance of exploiting an international tragedy. Whether his criticism is warranted or not, the timing seems insensitive—as if Romney is more interested in scoring political points than mourning the deaths of U.S. diplomats.
Chuck Todd:
The tragedy in Benghazi that cost Ambassador Stevens his life, unfortunately, has been overshadowed by the desperate reach of Mitt Romney to secure a political advantage.
Several more unnamed members of the palace guard:
That’s just a quick sampling. Hey, remember all those times the press called out Obama for criticizing Bush’s foreign policy? That was awesome.
The worse Obama screws up, the more furious the attempts by his thanklessly subservient media enablers to cover for him. He’s the good guy in their eyes, so when he’s in trouble of his own making, they need to divert, deflect, and distract. Sure, it’s bad that one of our ambassadors was murdered for the first time in decades, on 9/11, in a country Obama invaded unilaterally, less than a week after the Democratic Party whipped up their faithful into fits of jingoistic ecstasy with every mention of Bin Laden’s death. But why does Romney have to be so mean??
They’re not attacking Romney because they think he doesn’t look presidential. They’re attacking him because they think he does.
And how is Obama reflecting on all this? Washington Examiner:
President Obama told his campaign volunteers in Nevada that he is “really proud” of them after comparing them to the U.S. ambassador and embassy staff murdered in Libya.
“And obviously [our] hearts are broken for the families but I wanted to encourage those folks at the State Dept. that they were making a difference,” Obama told volunteer leaders in Las Vegas, according to the pool report. “The sacrifices that our troops and our diplomats make are obviously very different from the challenges that we face here domestically but like them, you guys are Americans who sense that we can do better than we’re doing….I’m just really proud of you.”
This is an example of why comedians tend to leave Obama alone. It’s not that they’re afraid of being called racists. It’s because he’s beyond parody.
Update: Embassy protests spread to other “Arab Spring” nations. Damn you, Romney!
Update: Inside the public relations disaster at the Cairo embassy. Does Larry Schwartz still have his job? If so, why?