If you liked George W. Bush, you’re going to love Willard “Mittens” Romney

Posted by AzBlueMeanie:

Willard "Mittens" romney was critical of President Obama's announcement of the end to the war in Iraq today. First Read – Republicans criticize Obama over Iraq withdrawal:

Mitt Romney issued a scathing rebuke Friday of President Obama's decision to withdraw all U.S. troops from Iraq by year's end, joining a chorus of Republicans critical of the president's decision.

Romney sharply criticized the announcement this afternoon by Obama that all troops would leave Iraq by the end of 2011:

“President Obama’s astonishing failure to secure an orderly transition in Iraq has unnecessarily put at risk the victories that were won through the blood and sacrifice of thousands of American men and women," Romney said in a statement. "The unavoidable question is whether this decision is the result of a naked political calculation or simply sheer ineptitude in negotiations with the Iraqi government."

Obama's decision technically follows through on an agreement struck late during President George W. Bush's administration which set a goal of full withdrawal from Iraq by the end of 2011.

So would Mittens have been equally critical of George W. Bush had he fulfilled his agreement with the Iraq government?

Context is everything. A couple of weeks ago, Willard "Mittens" Romney announced his team of foreign policy adivsors — many of whom are the very Neoconservative war mongers from the George W. Bush administration who lied us into an unnecessary war of choice in Iraq in their pursuit of their dream of a Pax Americana empire. Mitt Romney taps foreign policy, national security advisers – The Washington Post:

Here are the 22 special advisers and brief biographies, as announced by Romney’s campaign:

Cofer Black, Vice President of Blackbird Technologies; Director of the CIA Counter-Terrorism Center (1999-2002); United States Department of State Coordinator for Counter-Terrorism (2002-2004)

Christopher Burnham, Vice Chairman of Deutsche Bank Asset Management; United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Management (2005-2006); United States Under Secretary of State for Management (2001-2005)

Michael Chertoff, Chairman of the Chertoff Group; United States Secretary of Homeland Security (2005-2009); Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (2003-2005)

Eliot Cohen, Director of the Strategic Studies Program at the School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University; Counselor to the United States Department of State (2007-2009); Defense Policy Advisory Board Member (2001-2009)

Norm Coleman, Chairman of the Board, American Action Network; Adviser to the Republican Jewish Coalition; United States Senator (R-MN) (2003-2009)

John Danilovich, Member of the Trilantic European Advisory Council; CEO of Millennium Challenge Corporation (2005-2009); Ambassador to Brazil (2004-2005); Ambassador to Costa Rica (2001-2004)

Paula Dobriansky, Senior Fellow at the John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University; Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs (2001-2009)

Eric Edelman, Visiting Scholar at School of Advanced International Studies at Johns Hopkins University; Under Secretary of Defense for Policy (2005-2009); Principal Deputy Assistant to the Vice President for National Security Affairs (2001-2003)

Michael Hayden, Principal of the Chertoff Group; Director of the Central Intelligence Agency (2006-2009); Director of the National Security Agency (1999-2005)

Kerry Healey, President, Friends of the Public-Private Partnership for Justice Reform in Afghanistan; Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts (2003-2007); Trustee, American University of Afghanistan

Kim Holmes, Vice President of Foreign and Defense Policy Studies at the Heritage Foundation; Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs (2001-2005)

Robert Joseph, Senior Scholar at the National Institute for Public Policy; Under Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security (2005-2007)

Robert Kagan, Syndicated Columnist; Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution in the Center on United States and Europe; Board Member of the Foreign Policy Initiative

John Lehman, Chairman and Founding Partner, J. F. Lehman & Co.; National Security Advisory Counsel for the Center for Security Policy; Secretary of the Navy (1981-1987); Member of the 9/11 Commission

Walid Phares, Professor of Global Strategies at the National Defense University in Washington; Member of the Advisory Board of the Task Force on Future Terrorism at the Department of Homeland Security (2006-2007)

Pierre Prosper, Partner at Arent Fox; United States Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues (2001-2005); Special Counsel and Policy Adviser to the Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues (1999-2001)

Mitchell Reiss, President of Washington College; Director of Policy Planning at State Department (2001-2005); Special Envoy for Northern Ireland (2005-2007)

Daniel Senor, Partner at Rosemont Capital; Coalition Provisional Authority Spokesman and Senior Advisor (2003-2004); Director and Co-Founder, Foreign Policy Initiative

Jim Talent, Distinguished Fellow at the Heritage Foundation; United States Senator (R-MO) (2002-2007)

Vin Weber, Managing Partner, Clark & Weinstock; Member of the United States House of Representatives (R-Minn.) (1981-1993)

Richard Williamson, Partner at Winston & Strawn; United States Ambassador to the United Nations Commission on Human Rights (2004); Special Envoy to Sudan (2008-2009); Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs (1988-1989)

Dov Zakheim, Senior Advisor at the Center for Strategic and International Studies; Under Secretary of Defense (Comptroller) (2001-2004); Deputy Undersecretary of Defense for Planning and Resources (1985-1987)

Read the entire article. Mitt Romney taps foreign policy, national security advisers – The Washington Post. Every right-wing Neoconservative think tank is represented. They have been thoroughly discredited; none should ever serve in government ever again.

Should this country be foolish enough to elect Willard "Mittens" Romney president in 2012, Americans will have opened the door to the return of the very people who lied us into the war in Iraq, many of whom personally profited from the war, but none of whom have been held accountable for their crime. And they have another mission in mind: their hearts are set on Iran.

Romney's advisors are like Neoconservative war monger Sen. John McCain who declared that U.S. troops could stay in Iraq for 100 years, and that "would be fine with me." Because they believe in military occupation to a Pax Americana empire. Romney is not to be trusted.

UPDATE: Hey Johnny, remember when you said this?  ”Well, if that scenario evolves, then I think it's obvious that we would have to leave because – if it was an elected government of Iraq…I don't see how we could stay when our whole emphasis and policy has been based on turning the Iraqi government over to the Iraqi people.” (John McCain, April 22, 2004).