-By Sarah Jones
May 9, 2012- It turns out that Joel Arends, the Chairman of Swiftboating 2012 style’s “Veterans for a Strong America” and creator of the viral “Obama spiked the bin Laden football” video, is exactly what he accuses the President of being. He has politicized the Navy SEALS and exploited those who actually were on the bin Laden mission, even though not one of them are currently involved in his organization.
You know Joel, he’s the “non-partsian” (wink wink) Iraq War vet acting as the front man for the super-secret, stealthy corporate cowards who Swiftboat Democrats every election cycle because they can’t win on the issues.
This time, Joel is pretending to represent the Navy SEALS in order to Swiftboat President Obama in an ad that shows shots of soldiers while accusing Obama of being “shameless” and “despicable” for politicizing the success of the bin Laden raid.
Watch here as Alan Colmes destroys Arends’ talking points, courtesy of Fox Radio:
Joel Arends started off talking to Colmes trying sound reasonable by saying he and his “organization” have no problem with the President ordering the raid on bin Laden, but the President “spiked the football” by taking credit for the successful mission.
Colmes pointed out that if Obama had ordered the raid and it had gone bad, the Right would have attacked him like they did Jimmy Carter.
Joel refused to concede that point, claiming that he couldn’t argue a “hypothetical” but pivoted to his talking points. He claimed they are throwing a penalty flag on President Obama for “engaging in extensive celebration at the expense of the Navy SEALS and the American intelligence community–”
Alan interrupted the talking points to ask, “Ah, what do you mean at the expense? How is at the expense? And I didn’t see any extensive celebration. I don’t see him landing in a flight suit à la Top Gun on an aircraft carrier saying ‘Mission Accomplished’.”
Arends responded sounding slightly defensive, “Our ad was in response to President Obama’s ad. And –”
Colmes, “Did it bother you that George W Bush got into a flight suit and landed on an aircraft carrier and said ‘Mission accomplished’ years before the end of the Iraq war?”
Arends, “Well the President never said ‘Mission accomplished’ that was –
Colmes, “No that was on a sign that the White House constructed. A sign constructed in the basement of the White House. Why is there a double standard like this?”
Arends, “Well, I can’t answer that Alan.”
Arends then went on to list Obama’s alleged “failures”. As partial evidence of Obama’s failed policies, Arends accused the President of missing an opportunity for unity by turning the bin Laden raid into a “divisive issue.” We remember well all of the Republicans making the rounds on TV to thank President Bush for President Obama getting bin Laden — such patriotic unity. What a shame Obama had to go and destroy all of that “unity.”
Colmes, “Actually it’s the opposite…. This is just an effort on your part to in your own words ‘Swiftboat’ this President.’”