We’re going to try something a little different this year and have the July Potluck as a Picnic and on a Saturday.  We will be holding it in the Picnic Area by the North Park Community Center (4044 Idaho St.).   Drinks, Flatware, and Desert provided.  Come one and come all.  San Diego County Democratic Chairman Jesse Durfee will speak at noon and install the newly elected officiers.

John McCain in trying to distance himself from years of failure in Iraq.  When asked if it was fair for him to be painted as a huge supporter of the Iraq war McCain said “It’s entertaining, in that I was the greatest critic of the initial four years, three and a half years.” (Iraq war start: March 20 2003). Following are several quotes from Mr. McCain.

Sept 24, 2002 CNN: “I believe that the success will be fairly easy”

Sept 29, 2002  CNN: “I believe we can win an overwhelming victory in a very short period of time”

Sept. 29, 2002 CNN: “We’re not going to get into house-to-house fighting in Baghdad.  We may have to take out buildings, but we’re not going to have a bloodletting of trading American bodies for Iraqi bodies.”

Jan. 22, 2003 CNN: “I think the President is just about right.” and “We will win it easily”

Mar. 12, 2003 NYT: “Isn’t it more likely that antipathy toward the United States in the Islamic world might diminish amid the demonstrations of jubilant Iraqis celebrating the end of a regime…”

Mar. 20, 2003 NBC: “But I believe, Katie, that the Iraqi people will greet us as liberators”

Apr. 9, 2003 ABC: “It’s clear that the end is very much in sight.”

Apr. 23, 2003 MSNBC: “There’s not a history of clashes that are violent between Sunnis and Shias.  So I think they can probably get along.”

Apr. 7, 2004 ABC: “I’m confident we’re on the right course.”

Oct. 31, 2004 CBS: “I think the initial phases were so spectacularly successful that it took us all by surprise.”

Dec. 8, 2005 NBC: “Overall, I think a year from now, we will have a fair amount of progress [in Iraq] if we stay the course.”

Nov. 12, 2006 NBC: “…we’re either going to lose this thing or win this thing within the next several months.”

and finally…

Apr 17, 2008 Hardball: “We can look back at the past and argue about whether we should have gone to war or not, whether we should have invaded or not, and that’s a good academic argument.  But we’re there now, and the quesiton is, what we do in the future.” 

Over 4,000 U. S. military dead, over 90,000 documented Iraqi deaths, over 4.2 million Iraqi’s displaced, and over a trillion dollars spent – quite the “academic argument”.  Voters wouldn’t want to consider who was on board with the Administration that led us into this debacle would they.