McCain: Talking to terrorists is OK if you're a Republican

Yet another McCain Flip-Flop for Political Gain example. When will people learn this guy is the biggest phony to walk the earth. You thought Kerry was a flip-flopper? Get a load of this guy!

Typical "progressives" incapability to make distinctions, a hallmark of left wing thought. Neither of the links you give suggest McCain says anything at all like Obama who proposed unconditional talks with Iran. But even Obama criticised Carter for talking (like a fool) to Hamas. The left fails to understand the simple distinction between "talking with" and "talking at". One of your links leads to some further lefty spin that has McCain "contradicting" himself on talking to Syria, i.e. Powell giving ultimatums to Syria. To "liberals" this sounds like negotiating. McCains comments on talking to Hamas reflect no such thing, and imply contingencies. He does NOT say we should talk to Hamas unconditionally. His comments that: it's a new world in the Middle East do not suggest talking; it suggests that everyone better understand (and that includes Iran, Syria and their proxies) that the status quo will no longer work.

I say we do NOT talk to Hamas. I also say that if sometime in the future they denounced their explicit vow to destroy Israel, and amended their charter to reflect it, and announced publicly to the world their views have changed, and demonstrated that they have changed, then: talk to Hamas? Sure, why not?

Now, the liberal media can claim TIO contradicts himself: says talk to Hamas, says don't talk to Hamas.

And you guys can run with it. Of course, anyone with reasonable reading comprehension would understand it. Likewise, understanding McCain poses no great challenge, except to liberals.

A negotiation is not a date. Some negotiations end in an ultimatum and sometimew war. Swat teams negotiate with hostage takers before deciding to accept the risks of violence. Israel has been trying for weeks to negotiate a cease fire with Hamas.Latest reports say the talks have stalled over Israel's demand that Hamas free the Israeli soldier it captured a while ago.

The issue has been so politicized by those who have a vested economic or political interest in a state of war that even as thoughtful a person as Obama can't think straight on this issue. Hamas is not just a terrorist organization, it is also an elected government with de facto authority over well defined territory. Peace between the Palestinians and Israel cannot be made without the agreement of Hamas.

The Bush administation has set an objective of a peace agreement between Israel and the Palestinians by the end of this year. No one in the Bush administration or Israel has explained how this is going to be achieved without the participation of Hamas. Deep down the Israelis must think Bush and his people are a bunch of simpletons.

Peace between the Palestinians and Israel cannot be made without the agreement of Hamas.

then it cannot be made, as the avowed objective of Hamas is to eliminate Israel.

Hamas is not just a terrorist organization, it is also an elected government with de facto authority over well defined territory.

the same point was being made when Hamas and Fatah were killing each other. Only when Hamas renounces violence, do negotiations make sense. Hamas has always explained that cease fires, hudnas, are always a half-way measure to achieve their objective: can you guess what that is?

Have you ever heard Hamas renounce their objective to eliminate Israel? How hard with that be, right? If they did, there would be nothing to justify their existence. For any of it to work, the status quo must go...and that's precisely what McCain said, and meant when he said that everyone must recognize that the ME is changing. He did not say, absolutely under any circumstance, no talking to enemies. Never happened. Context makes all the difference in the world.

Bush will be gone this January, Incredulous :) Obama will be president. And he will do exactly the opposite of what you want - supported by a burgeoning majority in this country, and you're going to have to learn to live with it :)

Could we please stick to the facts here?

Could we please stick to the facts here?

McCain has switched positions on this.

If "this" is his position on Hamas, I'd like to see some evidence that he's changed his position. From the video, you have what liberals are pushing as a flip flop. It would help to re-read the actual question he was aked, but here's the damning evidence

"They're the government; sooner or later we are going to have to deal with them, one way or another, ..."

To those unable or unwilling to make distinctions, American diplomats dealing with the Palestinian government one way or the other means negotiate with Hamas as a terrorist organization. But he didn't say two years ago that we should negotiate with Hamas. And he doesn't say it today. So, what's the problem?