Cowgirl Clinton's Rhetoric More Dangerous than Bush's

I am absolutely flabbergasted by the rhetoric coming from the mouth of Democratic Presidential hopeful Senator Hillary Clinton in the past few days. We know Senator Clinton has tried to stake out moderate ground on foreign policy as opposed to her more dovish and inexperienced opponent, Senator Barack Obama, but her recent statements not only show Clinton to be a poor campaigner, but possibly too reactionary to be trusted as Commander in Chief.

Senator Clinton discusses her qualification to answer the phone at 3am in a recent television advertisement and consistently berates her opponent for the Democratic nomination as inexperienced and naive. However, two comments by Senator Clinton in the last week have me, a liberal Democrat believing John McCain would be a more responsible leader when it comes to foreign policy than Senator Clinton. (I do not however think Senator McCain has the depth of understanding of domestic and economic issues to be taken seriously as a Presidential candidate)

Last week Senator Clinton took a completely irresponsible and indefensible position of using nuclear weapons to protect gulf states such as Saudi Arabia and Kuwait from a potential Iranian attack. This comment made during a Presidential debate was sadly not challenged by Senator Obama. But let's get something straight. Using nuclear weapons to protect Saudi Arabia, one of the largest exporters of terror and one of the nations most hostly opposed to the ideals of Western Christendom and the secular governments of the West, of which the United States belongs is not an acceptable position for the United States to be in. Moreover, these sorts of bombastic, cowboy like statements make the job of our policymakers in the State Department, including Secretary Rice (who despite her other faults has been trying to avoid a military confrontation with Iran) much more difficult.

Now Senator Clinton has used her bully pulpit to actively advocate using nuclear weapons to defend undemocratic regimes in the gulf. Yet many of her supporters continue to claim she will be reasoned and thoughtful in office.

Following that statement Senator Clinton dug in claiming she would under the right circumstances "totally obliterate Iran in the next ten years." Liberals who have poked fun at George W. Bush's many mis-statements and have claimed his rhetoric is over the top have thus far today been silent in their denunciation of Mrs. Clinton's cowgirl rhetoric. These sorts of statements not only reflect poorly in Senator Clinton but on the entire United States. Despite President Bush's many over the top comments about foreign policy, he has never talked about obliterating countries.

I understand that some of Senator Clinton's problem is as a woman with a polarizing liberal reputation she feels she has to appear to be tough. But a fine line exists between being tough and being dangerous and right now Senator Clinton has crossed the line into murky territory.