One aspect of Pompeo's background that bears heavily on his limited worldview and dangerous adventurism is he is an indoctrinated extremely conservative Christianist. A "godly" activist, he cannot bring the necessary diplomatic objectivity to his work as SecState and is a disastrous, ham-handed appointee to represent America. ("Disastrous" may be taken literally as well, for at least subconsciously he is surely a proponent of apocalyptic Armageddon, and fomenting strife in the Middle East enables such delusional biblical prophecies.)
Another key aspect is that Pompeo is 100% a Koch acolyte, Koch having backed him in business ventures and served as his patron in pursuing his political career. It's just bidness, right?...
His work on this tour is to rep the unholy alliance among Likud extremism, the US right-wing evangelical industry, the mostly US/UK multinational military-industrial complex and energy interests, and authoritarian Sunni regimes that are now perversely partnering with Tel Aviv and the Trump administration to repress the Arab and Muslim worlds (and just incidentally compete with Shia energy interests).
It's the same ol', same ol' money, oil and power game, greatly exacerbated by the supremacist arrogance held by the extremists of all three Abrahamic religions. Sometimes it's complicated to parse out exactly who's using whom in a revolving humanitarian tragedy without a scorecard, but one thing is sure: Pompeo's a handy if inartful frontman for this ugliness.
11
This level of fact checking needs to continue to be done with every utterance from trump and anyone working for him -- at least the information will be on the record for those who care to look.
6
This article is an almost darkly comical parody of the almost unbelievable shallowness of technocratic "fact-check" liberalism: a perfect example of power-serving conformism and genuflecting subservience to the state and its violence, barely concealed beneath the surface of savvy nitpicking on trivialities around the periphery.
"Fact-checks" such as this masquerade as some kind of stubbornly heroic struggle in defense of truth, yet they instead only serve to reaffirm the most pernicious and pervasive propaganda which is absolutely central to both the very issue at hand and many of the world's most pressing issues.
The article begins by quoting Pompeo's hilariously deranged assertion that "America is a force for good in the Middle East", an absurd propaganda claim made by every colonial and imperialist power throughout history while they massacred their colonial subjects by the millions and plundered the wealth of those they bestowed their great benevolence upon.
But does the Times dare challenge this easily disprovable "force for good" claim? Of course not.
Instead, the article continues: "Yet Mr. Pompeo's speech was not always accurate", positively reaffirming the most central underlying false claim.
Meanwhile:
"This investigation comes to the conclusion that the war has, directly or indirectly, killed around 1 million people in Iraq, 220,000 in Afghanistan and 80,000 in Pakistan, a total of around 1.3 million."
- Body Count, Physicians for Social Responsibility (2015)
6
And it is fairly clear that when anyone in this administration says "troops" they are referring only to people who move on the ground carrying or crew-serving weapons. The air assets, intelligence assets, and associated HQ, support and logistics are not "troops" in their account and will be there until the 7th veil drops.
1
Ms Qiu's web link to Mr Bombastic:
"Secretary of State Mike Pompeo laid out his vision for America’s role in the Middle East on Thursday, telling a university audience in Cairo that “the age of self-inflicted American shame is over” ... He vowed to “expel every last Iranian boot” from Syria, but offered no plan to achieve that goal at a moment when the American force of 2,000 troops is scheduled to withdraw."
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/01/10/world/middleeast/mike-pompeo-speech-middle-east-obama.html?module=inline
And in her opinion, Ms Qiu produces President Obama's actual words; and Pompeo gets pantsed as "Mr Fantastic" Liar.
2
Did not the terms “statesman,” and “statesmanlike” develop for a reason? Pompeo is anything but.
And, if his comments were made by a Democratic secretary of State, the Republicans would be jumping out of their skin. When will this end?
4
Too bad Pompeo is not a student of history. One can not even begain to understand the Middle East without a deep knowledge of history. The last time we supported an Iranian revolution we overthrowed a democratically elected government and installed the Shah. And this is but one example of American and European assistance in our quest to share democracy with our Muslim brothers. America has both been a beacon and a blighte in the Middle East. Which America does Pompeo propose in his speech?
6
"America is a force for good in the Middle East."
False.
As much as I love my country, and would like to be proud of U.S. foreign policy, the facts don't support this statement.
U.S. foreign policy has never even tried to be good for the Middle East. It has always been about controlling oil supplies.
Installing the Shah in Iran was bad. Shooting down an Iranian commercial airline was bad.
Helping Mubarak stay in power in Egypt for decades was bad and supporting Sisi is worse.
Supporting and arming Saudi Arabia, which beheads more people than ISIS, exports extreme Islamic terror propaganda, and is terrorizing the citizens of Yemen with mass starvation is bad.
Helping the Suadis create Al Queda in Afghanistan to oppose the Russians turned out to be bad.
Helping Saddam Hussein target Iran with chemical weapons was bad.
Invading Iraq based on lies, killing five thousand Americans and 500,000 Iraqis, and destabilizing Iraq and Syria and creating ISIS in the process, all so global oil corporations could control Iraq's oil, was really bad.
And our support for Israel, is at best mixed.
No one on the Middle East would care about the USA if We had not spent sixty years messing with their internal politics, propping up dictators, and dropping bombs on them.
They don't hate us because we are free. They hate us because we keep killing them and helping dictators suppress them.
And it's not just Republicans, but both parties that have been mounting this aggressive campaign.
12
@McGloin How many people who "support" Trump know or understand any of this? How many of them, if they knew, would believe you? How many would care?
Trump is terrible and Pompeo (Mr. Pompous?) is just as bad but not knowing any of this is the worst. We have a population of uninformed citizens who think that the man in the WH is always right because FOX tells them so every day. Brainwashed.
Thanks for your comments.
6
I wish the NYT did this for the Obama Admin. There would be just as many half truths. I hope if there is a Democrat in 2020 elected they will continue to do this.
1
@J I wish Trump et. al. would tell half truths. It would be a 50% improvement.
7
Ms Qui:
You took the bait: you're defending Obama and deflected from criticizing Bush. How about the fact checking around Iraq's WMD? ( But hey, who needs facts when folks like Tom Friedman are pushing for a "war of choice").
The GOP has no policies other than demonizing Obama ( and Pelosi). Facts are immaterial.
4
Pompigo's speech was a disgrace, full of lies and bad policy choices, which America's soldiers will pay for in blood, and civilians, too.....
They seem to be baiting terrorists to act. Why ? To justify a disproportionate response ?
.... every day, this administration achieves new lows in American behavior
7
West Pointers should be better than this blowhard. Just a waterboy fo Trump.
10
"Force for Good"? More like force for destabilization and breakup of nation states, to that resembling what was there prior to WW1. Chaos and destruction is the strategy. People should figure it out.
8
What is the use of fact-checking when Republicans as a whole do not trust any media outlet other than Fox New? With Trump calling any other source of news "fake" and declaring them (and us Democrats, evidently) "enemies of the people"? What is the way forward in a democracy when one major party are like North Koreans watching only state-controlled TV, and who repeat after Pompeo, "There is no contradiction."
7
Mr Pompeo states that America is "a force for good in the Middle East". Do those Iraqis and Syrians who have lost family members in those countries because of American military intervention in the region consider America a force for good?
12
@RLW
Correct. You forgot Yemen and the humanitarian crisis going on there thanks to American aid and support of a corrupt and authoritarian murderous regime in Saudi Arabia.
2
Pompeo gave a speech? I forgot already. I will remember that he is working for the worst U.S. president in history, and for years to come, and that as Secretary of State, he ignored violence and poverty in Mexico and Central America so his boss could make a bad situation worse for political gain.
A competent Secretary of State, and even U.N. Ambassador (looking at you Nikki), would have used their offices and departments, like USAID, and the international community, like the U.N. and the International Red Cross, to assist these countries. But no, you all want to build a wall and cut funding for foreign aid. Despicable.
21
Trump is a liar. Pompeo is a liar. Both act in service to the racist fox Creed that any lie is ok against minorities and Democrats.
19
I am so glad the NYT is fact checking - thank you, you serve as one of the pillars of democracy.
11
Ms. Qui, I appreciate your fact based effort to fact check Trump, Pompeo and this administration.
But it’s fairly simple, Trump and this administration lie continuously and constantly. Very major proclamation is a lie. Trump even lies about the least consequential, minor item. He is a pathological liar.
19
Pompeo is no statesman. Recall he was briefly CIA director and should have known better to go against his former agency when it reported that there was overwhelmingly evidence that the Saudi government directed the killing of Jamal Khashoggi. He also did a lousy job cleaning up after his boss declared on Twitter that U.S. troops were coming home from Syria now, leaving an obvious vacuum for the Russians and Iranians to fill and leaving the Kurds as sitting ducks. Pompeo is nothing but another sycophant for this horrible president and administration.
20
With reference to Syria Pompeo said “There’s no contradiction whatsoever. This is a story made up by the media.” Although the article tried to make this statement a lie, today NY Times reports that the army started to withdraw our soldiers. So who is right and who is lying? From this article it is clear that Fake News is acting as opposition and is trying its best to discredit Trump administration and pop up the past failed administration. No wonder why Trump and his supporters love to make fun of the fake news.
1
@Alex E
Maybe you might try going to the same reading school as Trump. Here is the headline of the article you refer to.
"U.S. Equipment, but Not Troops, Begins Exiting Syria in Chaotic Withdrawal"
and
"The officials said the number of American troops might actually increase slightly in Syria, to help protect the final process of pulling out — an operation that is still expected to take at least four to six months to complete."
@Alex E
I believe both were reported by "Fake News". "Fake News" also reports its errors and severely chastises reporters who don't do the same. Something I haven't heard lately from non"Fake News".
4
@Alex E
.....do you know the word obfuscation? The media is pointing out contradictory statements by Trump and other officials in their own words. IN THEIR OWN WORDS. This is not fake news, it is fact-checking. If you don’t understand the difference, I am making a futile attempt; my prediction for the Cult of Trump.
5
The Cairo speach was self serving and dishonest. Lying Mike Pompeo is unworthy of his office, and is a stain on our nation in his role as Secretary of State.
21
@Eric Williams
I was really embarrassed lisenting to this guy who is representing America.
Shame on him and trump for trashing Obama in front of the world while praising dictators that lock up people for wanting freedoms and human rights.
Truly disgusting.
15
Do we have an ambassador to Saudi Arabia yet? How can we say that we aim to have a positive interaction with the Muslim world when we can't even tie our shoes?
10
@Mike Benjamin Tie our shoes? Pompeo can't even see his shoes.
1
What's that point of all this fact-checking? I just assume that everyone in this administration lies. No need for endless reading of how much they lie and about what. They lie. Period. Saves time.
7
So Pompeo verbally crucifies President Obama for supposedly doing nothing during the so-called "Green Revolution". (What did he expect him to do - send in the 82nd Airborne?) But if memory serves correct, Trump recently claimed that there is currently rioting in "every" Iranian city - a very similar situation. So now's your chance, tough guys, to show how it should have been done back then. But why do I suspect that our chest-thumping "America is back" response will be nothing more than the same inane bluster, lies, posturing, and braggadocio that we've come to expect from Cadet Bone Spurs and his fawning, enabling toadies.
12
Without a doubt two of the least patriotic and most dishonest individuals to ever participate in governing the United States of America. Both are incompetent and an embarrassment to our Nation. Their ongoing support of authoritarian leaders and dismissive attitudes towards our allies and past leaders does nothing but sow internal division while emboldening our enemies. This administration cannot end soon enough.
11
I can just imagine Trump watching tape of this talk saying, “That’s my boy!” Sheesh.
4
How disgusting of Pompeo to use this speech as an opportunity both to tell lies about the president he serves and to tell more lies about the president who preceded him. Which leads me to ponder: Were all these people liars and weasels before they joined the trump administration, or did serving a corrupt president do this to them?
And if Pompeo was honest about looking backwards to assign blame, why didn't he go to the actual source and criticize Cheney's horrible decision to invade Iraq on false pretenses? That misguided decision cost our nation trillions of dollars, many lives, and only strengthened Iran and anti-American forces throughout the Middle East. If he really wanted to tell the truth about the loss of American influence in the Middle East, he should start right there. But Pompeo clearly isn't interested in truth.
How did our country try sink so low?
12
@Caveat Emptor , How did our country try sink so low?
- Right wing radio spewing lies and division for decades.
- A Republican party who created a base of fearful, angry people who now control them.
- A vast, monied PR campaign to confuse and misinform Americans.
The republicans do not even know how to legislate anymore, but have become proficient in division and misinformation, gerrymandering, voter suppression and tax cuts for the super rich. That's their specialty, lying and cheating. Cowards all.
6
Attacking a U.S. president while he stands on foreign soil.
Pompeo has no shame.
Where is this man's sense of honor?
16
Obama was not silent on the "Green Revolution" in Iran, voicing support, but with awareness of our checkered history of meddling in Iran's affairs with disastrous results (i.e. The Islamic Revolution and rise of Khomeini and the mullahs). Intervening could have led to a backlash against the Greens or further radicalization of the Islamists. With his pompous bluster, Pompeo reflects the same ignorance of history and arrogance of his boss.
9
Pompeo is another Trump lackey, blinded by racism and xenophobia, willing to lie endlessly to justify the ends. He has no credibility left and is a stain on the armed forces he once represented.
6
Thanks Linda. We need you to point out this Administration's blatant lying and contempt for the truth, as well as the GOP's corrosive and self-serving double-standard for accountability.
4
All of your “fact checks” are completely subjective and are starting to backfire. It means that your fact checking is actually proving that he was telling the truth.
3
@Kev
Contradictory statements are easy to check. That one of them turns out to be what happens is not truth-telling. It is accidental governing. If enough statements are made, one of them must turn out to be what happens, and the Trump-tellers claim victory.
1
@Kev
The man is a liar and a disgrace and you are hurting this country by repeating there endless lies.
1
@Kev
Your comments are oddly enough, completely free of "FACTS".
2
The truth is much easier to tell than these lies. Further, to lie on the world stage puts us in a whole different category of despicable people. It is bad enough when our President lies to us daily, and by the minute, but when his emissary then goes out to the world and lies to its inhabitants, on his behalf, we have reached a whole new level of lower than low.
This speech was inexcusable. To have not told the truth to folks in one of the most unstable parts of the world is to invite more instability. Pompeo is a disgusting individual.
7
Lowercase ‘t’ in “truth” huh? The symbolism there, for non-gullible, reasonable people who understand the pattern of behavior in this administration, is obvious.
1
The gratuitous insults and misstatements in his Cairo speech shows they are just a continuation of typical Mike Pompeo tactics.
Back in the 2010 Kansas Republican campaigning for the 4th District Congressional seat, Pompeo sparked controversy when his campaign's Twitter account shared, then later deleted, a blog post calling his Indian-American opponent, State Rep. Raj Goyle,
a "turban topper" and then-President Barack Obama an "evil Muslim communist." After the embarrassing post caused an uproar, Pompeo apologized to Goyle, said he was shocked by it and that it was a communications error (like his Cairo speech).
8
Let’s quit using polite terms such as “ this needs context” or “this is an exaggeration” and just cut to the chase. Just come right out and say they lied.
15
Dear Ms Qiu,
I see that you are the official Trump administration fact-checker for the NYT but I find your efforts to be more in line with providing another point of view or splitting hairs.
Regarding the Iran comment, we certainly were reluctant to wield our influence, weren't we? President Obama's platitudes that you quote accomplished nothing and were essentially the equivalence of silence, never denouncing the regime.
You say that Mr. Pompeo's numbers regarding the troop levels in Iraq are accurate so why are you writing about it? We don't need the history of our troop levels in Iraq from you here except if you want to put in a plug for the former president. There is plenty of that in this paper everyday so we don't need that from you in a "fact-checking" article.
I will grant you that there have been conflicting signals from this administration about the timeline for the withdrawal of our troops from Syria. I think you did a good job laying out the discrepancies. This is the only one of the three that was worth covering in your analysis.
Please try to neutral in the future. Fact-checkers are expected to be. Part of that neutrality would be to start reviewing the words of some of our Democrat leaders. Why not start by doing a deep dive into Senator Schumer's assertion that "walls don't work". Thank you.
2
@Jimbo
You have written well, but I'm going to take issue with your first two points.
Firstly, Obama's support for the protesters in Iran and and condemning of violence against them may not be "wielding American influence in Iran", but what alternative was there? Regime change? How well has that worked out for America in other nations? Alright, there is a disagreement in policy or methods by Trump, albeit with 20/20 vision of the past, but why bring up prior policies that you think were wrong? Why not go even further back? These statements just serve to undermine America's influence going forward. Why trust them now?
As to the withdrawal of troops from Iraq, the author correctly points out that this occurred during Obama's tenure. That's only important in this article because Pompeo had just criticized Obama's policies minutes earlier.
In other words, like in all other things, Trump and his minions like to take credit for anything they perceive is good and not for anything they perceive was or turns out poorly - then "the buck stops with everyone.
@Jimbo
Walls don't work. Thank you.
@PBB
Really? That's all you have? I would guess you haven't read any of the interviews with the border control agents. I think it would be a great topic for Ms. Qui to tackle next.
Do Pompeo (and Trump) think Egyptians haven't been paying attention and don't know the reality? I'm surprised his audience didn't break out in laughter (like the United Nations response to Trump) and may have if Sisi wasn't in charge. The world is watching and laughing at the U.S. thanks to Trump and his minions.
10
Thank you for this article
You demonstrate the consistent traits of the Trump administration's policy decision making and statements :
its obsessive competition with Obama's presidency, its imagined version of facts.
This is Trump's standard operating procedure from years in the real estate business : make a dubious or wild claim typically favorable to himself, state it is a fact and repeat over and over.
7
Sorry but why can’t we call these “inaccuracies” what they are- lies. I continue to be baffled why the press continue to employ cute euphemisms to describe lies. Pompeo’s remarks were intentional not a slip of the tongue.
9
America has always sought its own self interest. When Nixon ended Bretton Woods making the dollar the world's reserve currency it initiated economic hegemony.
The debate if whether the USA is a force for good is moot the world is facing problems that if not addressed will change life on this planet dramatically and America has given us the Trump Administration to give the western democracies the finger.
America's timing is the only thing that might save us. China is now the leader in new technology and countries like The Netherlands, Canada and Mexico are ready to step up to the plate even as countries like Brazil orbit closer to the USA.
The USA has been decaying from within for many decades and shows little sign of ever again being united.
You can usually tell the character of a man by the company he keeps and Russia, China, The Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Egypt explain why so many of my fellow Canadians no longer trust our closest ally.
The debate on whether the USA is friend or foe to our country's ethics and values has been going on for decades and being on the winning side of the debate is little consolation for someone who grew up loving America. President Obrador has demonstrated he knows how to build effective walls. He has promised to fix Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvatore.
We know whose side we are on in the Middle East and everyday it looks more like we are in opposing camps.
4
The older, more experienced Kurd fighters say that the "mountains are the only friend". Trump throws our allies under the bus on a regular basis so I guess we shouldn't be surprised on this one. He has no honor or loyalty to anyone but himself and maybe his family. But we should expect more from Pompeo, Bolton, Graham and the rest - they beat their chests about integrity but in their actions they are simply toadies to an ignorant and incompetent man occupying the White House. Come on, fellas. Work for the USA, not the corrupt and craven GOP.
14
@Vern Castle, They have already chosen their side and it is not working for the American people and our nation. How people cannot see trump for the disgusting sicko that he is is confounding. Our education system needs upgrading, just like our infrastructure, tax code, election and campaign reform and our ethics and morality. We are falling so fast it's scary.
Only yesterday Mike Pompeo was publicly trashing President Obama's Middle Eastern foreign policy as -- what was it he said? -- "when America retreats, chaos often follows. When we neglect our friends, resentment builds. And when we partner with enemies, they advance."
Yup, for sure Mike, but you have the wrong president.
15
The dereliction of duty of this so-called “commander in chief“ is profound.
He’s a loose cannon who has no idea what he’s doing or what he’s jabbering about one minute to the next.
And Pompeo is essentially a lackey and consigliere.
86
@srwdm And yet...once again we're respected by those in the ME who are our friends..and feared by those who are our enemies.
With regards to the Middle East, that's exactly the outcomes of policy you hope to achieve in a lifetime.
These guys have done in just 2 years.
1
@Erica Smythe
Sorry if I don't just take your word for it. How about some facts to back that up.
1
@Erica Smythe, we are not respected by most whether enemies or allies, we are in cahoots with and doing the bidding of our enemies, and any who fear us is because trump is an impulsive and unpredictable bad person.
2
Bolton was a George W Bush advisor and one of the architects of the Iraq invasion that was justified on false intelligence about WMD. That war cost trillions and killed a half million people and eliminated Iran's worst foe. After Bremer fired all of the Iraqi Baathists, they began an insurgency that prolonged the death, destruction and cost of the Iraq War and eventually spawned ISIS.
John Bolton should have never been allowed back into the US government in any position. It is clear that he is still an operative of the Saudi royals, who pushed Bush hard for the Iraq invasion.
But Trump foreign policy is a mass of contradictions and Bolton fits right into that. This is unlikely to turn out well.
100
How about the big lie: “the US has always been a liberating force.”
38
How about we side-step the nit-picking of lie/falsehood/misleading/etc. that seems to cause so much angst and just accurately quote the statement, then follow it up with "Evidence to the Contrary". Let readers decide the classification.
11
Other than semantically, how would that be different?
5
@ddbbuu
It isn't the "nitpicking" of what kind of lie it is that causes "so much angst", it is having a president and cabinet that need fact checking, constantly.
5
Disgusting, especially on the home turf of a ruthless dictator. See the 60 Minutes interview.
19
Another member of our fascist regime lying through his teeth and condoning violations of human rights. The damage to international relations and US prestige is irreparable. This hatred of Iran and embracing of tyrants leads to actions like Saudi killing of Khashoggi and Israeli shooting and killing of protesters in Gaza with no US recriminations.
Both Condi and Obama had consistent speeches in Cairo about US ideals and democratic values. Pompeo just trashed both speeches.
No wonder Pompeo and Trump never condemned concentration camps in North Korea
34
Why not call these articles "this is how you should think about this speach/statement". Calling this a fact check only hurts your creadability. Although at this point you have none left with respect to reporting on the president. What it does is illustrate how much you are willing to obfuscate and cherry pick.
9
@Brian, I'll admit that the article leads the reader by the hand, but cherry-picking? Trump communicates at the level of the sound bite/sloganeering/empty rhetoric. There's nothing to work with but this low-hanging fruit and so your charge isn't so much accusatory as these "cherries" are all that the media has to work with.
When Trump throws us a tweet, which is then walked-back or "re-interpreted" by his minions, the end result of this rhetorical morass is exactly what you charge the NYT with: obfuscation.
5
@Brian, when a Secretary of State says something, those to and for whom he/she speaks should be able to believe them. We all cannot run about checking everything we hear from people whom we employ. Liars know that. Challenge from the press pushes them on to the back foot of defence. How do you defend a lie? Ask Trump.
1
@Brian
Really?
No-one is obfuscating - just reporting the truth.
Whether you accept the truth or not is up to you and your concept of reality.
You apparently prefer "fantasy world".
The majority of the thinking world does not - we prefer substantiated information so that we can make informed rational decisions.
8
Egypt is the national homeland of the lead 9/11 hijacker Mohammed Atta and the current head of al Qaeda Ayman al Zawahiri.
Saudi Arabia is the homeland of the founder of al Qaeda Osama bin Laden and fifteen of the 9/11 hijackers.
Iran did not attack America on 9/11/01.
The 6 million Christian Muslim Arab Palestinian Israelis living under the dominion of 6.1 million Zionist Jewish Israelis by occupation, blockade/siege, exile and 2nd class citizenship are denied their divine natural equal certain unalienable rights of life,liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
23
blackmamba: I often agree with you, but I believe Osama bin Laden was originally from Yemen, and along with his 60 odd brothers and sisters, lived in Saudi in furtherance of his father's construction empire. the underlying point is that none of these places in the Middle East is actually a country; they are desert areas sparsely populated by various nomadic Bedouin tribes, members of competing religious factions, with some more powerful tribes temporarily rising to prominence, only to be subsumed later when others gain power or forge alliances, as it has been for centuries. in the last 100 years or so, maps drawn by the British and French in their collapse of empire following WWI were superimposed upon this endless conflict, with predictable results.
7
@Blackmamba Excellent reminders. (You need "or" between "Christian" and "Muslim".)
Diogenes searched the world over and couldn't find ten honest men, and that was before politics. We know that Trump lies, as well as, the rest of his crew and their "alternate facts", but, Mr Pompeo seemed like a straight arrow. How do people, at this level, knowing that the world is watching and has the resources to fact check their statements, still make untruthful statements?
20
@Dan O
Trump cannot abide honesty or integrity. Pompeo has long ago lost any credibility as an honest patriot; he is nothing more than an opportunistic sycophant to a corrupt degenerate.
48
@Dan O
literacy statistics show over 40% of Amerixcans fall into a 3rd grade level. Many do not read widely. They listen only to Fox & like the president they take Fox statements for reality. We are now governed by a bunch of reality folk who make things up as they wish. So honesty and truth are hard to find.
6
These fact check stories are great. But I think the media needs to take next step and simply report the lies directly as they are made. In this case the lede on the original story could have read:
“Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told several lies today in Cairo during a speech continuing the misinformation campaign that infects the Administration.”
In that way, everyone would know immediately without needing to wait for a fact check. The next step would be to cover the event and if they lie, refuse to report it.
35
@Trg Concur 100%. Trump works the moment as he sees fit. Waiting 24 hours or more to respond loses your audience. The media needs to challenge him quickly. Perfect example recently was the CBS reporter who responded to his statement that what he said was not true. He tried again, and she retorted that was also not true. As he was on TV, Trump walked away. Aslo, when his beloved FOX News fact checked during his WH speeech the other night, it was most effective.
3
there could just be a blanket headline on every edition while the Trump administration is in power: "More Lies Today", details on page six. make it a fixture, like "All the News". it would be so much easier to make up the front page.
4
There are three forces competing for power in the middle East - The Sunnis (alas, now represented by ISIS), the Shias (Iran) and the Oligarchs (Saudi/Israel and other authoritarian governments), all pulling in orthogonal directions. When Pompeo says the previous administration's policies led to ISIS and Iran running the show, he is publicly admitting that he serves the interests of the authoritarian regimes in the middle east. ISIS and Iran cannot run the show because they run in opposite directions. Pompeo implied in public by association that killing children in the name of collateral damage, and dissolving dissents in acid and washing them down the sewer is acceptable public policy.
9
Let's just accept the fact that these people will say anything at anytime to alter anything in their favor. They have no official dignity, no personal sense of responsibility, no concern for the good name of their positions and the reputation of the country.
it is a political plague that must be tolerated until it plays itself out.
27
Once again, a trump official tells stupid childlike lies, easily disproven by undisputed facts
we are abandoning our allies in Syria not on reasoned policy but trump's whims [ and perhaps other personal reasons unrelated to legitimate policy interests ]
unfortunately due to the constant stupid lies told by trump and his administration this story falls into the " dog bites man " category. nothing unusual at all
very damaging to us and our country
it takes years to build a reputation [ of an individual or country ] and mere seconds to destroy it
43
Misleading, exaggerated, requires more context - clearly Pompeo is not blatantly lying, there are no falsehoods but this is normal political talk on complex matters, most of which are open to interpretation. When Trump says there is a humanitarian crisis at the border, the same words Obana used, you can't say one is lying and the other is not. The world ain't binary. That's the simplistic worldview of the leftist liberal. Grow up guts !
5
is this a deliberate attempt to illustrate Pompeo's game: there are words and what's behind the words and your example of the humanitarian crisis lacks context and intent (what's behind the words) and is just as much a distorsion of reality as Pompeo's utterings. IS this something endemic in the rabid Right?
16
@SD Hahahahahahaha!
Sir, the first portion of your commentary is true. However, you yourself take "the simplistic worldview" by broad-brushing a diverse group and labeling them "liberals." Anyone, especially in these times, should likewise hesitate to cast all "conservatives" into the same set.
1
@SD It is an outright lie for Pompeo to say that the Trump administration has been "very clear" regarding their plan to withdraw troops from Syria. It has been anything but clear, with contradictory statements one after another.
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Trump administration mantra: Lie Lie Lie
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Trump and his minions apparently are incapable of telling the truth. This administration is a stain on our country. That we elected them..and that they now denigrate our county publicly abroad is intolerable.
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@Cathlynn Groh. actually, we didn’t elect trump, the electoral college did. Trump did not win the popular vote
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@gfs the electoral college was outdated decades ago, yet we still have it, as in 2020.
the will of the people is not being played out in presidential elections. sad. hillary was flawed, but she is sane.
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@gfs
Neither did Bush. The Supreme Court gave the Presidency to him.
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Everyione in Trump World is a liar. That's how and why Trump selects them. Are they willing to lie for him?
It's a serious decision for any Trump nominee, because everything trump touches dies, and the reputations of everyone in the admin will surely be trashed, when we get out of this mess.
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@PRRH "Everyione in Trump World is a liar. That's how and why Trump selects them. Are they willing to lie for him?" Trump selects those "loyal" to him. This includes "lies for him".
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If you are going to fact check use someone who is middle of the road, not enamoured with Barack Obama.
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@Ratburi
Trump supporters blame Obama for everything they do not like. No other president has ever shown such disrespect for a previous administration as trump and his minions. Trump is a course, insecure person with limited intellect who has the immature idea that criticizing others enhances himself. Unlike trump, Obama really did create a positive life for himself, and others, through the fruits of his own labors. Trump has had “daddy’s unlimited money” to fall back on after his many failures. Some people can’t tolerate the fact that a person who is even half black is a scholar, a gentleman, a success !
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@Ratburi The statements Pompeo made were untrue and directly critical of Obama.The article simply points out fact,with no gushing or embellishment. To those who will never accept Obama, any statement of fact that supports him is seen as being "enamored".
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@Ratburi
I think you misunderstand the meaning of fact. It should not have political bias. Here's a definition for your benefit:
"A fact is a thing that is known to be consistent with objective reality and can be proven to be true with evidence."
By the way, the farthest thing from fact is what is being spewed by most Republicans these days.
Stop parsing words. The entire tenor of Pompeo’s “major speech” was a lie. It ignored what’s actually happened in the region, the U.S.’s response (or lack thereof), the true reasons for that response in favor of continuing Trump’s almost maniacal preoccupation with Obama and the destruction of his predecessor’s legacy everywhere including here. Far from reinforcing America’s claim as to being “a force for good in the world”, it underlined that under Trump/Pompeo the U.S. can’t be trusted to keep its word in international agreements (Iran) or to this who allied with us (the Kurds). It continued this country’s genuflection to despots in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey (not to mention Putin) and its confused and confusing pronouncements emanating from the White House, its supposed National Security Advisor and its ever bloviating Secretary of State.
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The immaturity level of SoS Pompeo Speech of under cutting previous administration is an admission of their insecurity. This is more like pre-schoolers justifying who was potty trained first.
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Pompeo conveniently neglected to disparage the George W. Bush administration for initiating the lie-based war in Iraq from which ISIS emerged.
No Iraq War, no ISIS.
But that would have inconveniently put one of the Project for the New American Century (PNAC) chicken hawk architects of the Iraq War on the spot. His name happens to be John Bolton, Trump's National Security Advisor.
Amoral liars and deceivers. Every single one of them.
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Blame the media or anyone else but this administration for the worst showing of the face of the US in decades. Shunning our allies, and sucking up to despots for building loans and condo purchases is a new way to make foreign policy. I can't remember another administration who constantly ragged on other administrations like the current one does, especially Obama's. The US is responsible for much of the mess in the Middle East,and going into Iraq left a huge void. Why we seem to walk away in the middle of a mess of our making is wrong. When the Kurds came to help us we welcomed them, now we could care less. Trump knows more about drones, generals, business, war, everything, and all with his "gut" That this president thinks he's the best and most knowledgeable is laughable.
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There is no chance of any truth slipping into the marketing talking points emanating from Trumpland. This is a sales/marketing organization, not a governing force.
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George W. Bush started the unnecessary second War in Iraq when his administration falsified the evidence of WMDs and he ordered the invasion based on this false evidence. The war killed hundreds of thousands of innocent women and children in addition to thousands of Iraqi soldiers and 4,000+ American soldiers. The facts belie that America is a 'force for good in the Middle East.'
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And millions displaced in Iraq then Syria with death and destruction all around them.
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It appears that the media’s mission from 2015 till now was ratings. Hopefully, like this article, the media’s new mission will be from the 1951 TV series Dragnet where the star of the show, detective Joe Friday says “Just the Facts Ma’ma.”
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@Eric Cosh. It seems the media is complicit in helping to spotlight or to shadow events as the government desires. The CIA, using taxpayer money, shipped drugs and arms to inner city black neighborhoods all over America for sale to obtain funds needed to support the Contra forces in the Nicaragua war. At the time the report of this devastating program was to be released, the media seized on the Bill Clinton-Monica Lewinsky affair diverting all attention away from this heinous act.
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@Eric Cosh
Sorry. As someone of age at that time, the expression Friday used was "Just the facts Ma'am".
I really do not expect politicians to speak plainly and fully truthfully, as they need to present their policies in such a way as to be understood. That said, however, this current administration seems to cross the line into outright lies on a daily, if not hourly (or even more frequent), basis. Their actions throw discredit on the idea that our government should deserve the full faith and credit of the people of this country.
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Often politicians need to fudge a bit, to leave openings and to not paint themselves into a box. At times they change their minds -- as unanticipated conditions change or they realize they are wrong.
But Trump and Pompao go way beyond this. The say one thing today another tomorrow, denying they changed anything. Then the texts and videos of their contradictory statements appear showing that they were lying.
Good reporting, politifact, etc. reveal all of this. But who reads such things? -- only those looking for a solid understanding of our government's actions.
It is important to keep this up. But also a better way has to be found to expose this.
Pressure on our representatives in Congress is one way. Make them acknowledge the contradictions. Don't let the Lindsey Grahams muddy the water further. Call them out, please! Play the tapes for them, show them the videos, make them comment directly. Enough with diversions!
Thanks.
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@JustThinkin
Good idea. I've seen this done on the TV, cable media (except of course on Fox News) and what most of the Republicans or their toadies do is simply say "the other side does it too", without any evidence, and catching the questioner off guard, or else they completely change the subject. They are are very practiced liars.
Nice if you could "fact-check" any speeches Pelosi says as well when she opens her mouth.
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@skanda
When his boss says troop withdrawal will be rapid, then slow, the Bolton says years, then Pompeo says rapid and that there is no contradiction- what do you expect?
Trump lies likes Lovitz character on SnL.
Why don’t you factcheck Pelosi?
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@skanda - With all due respect, the single reason someone thinks Pelosi needs to be fact checked is because they are listening to the spew on Fox News. Did anyone see how hard Fox was trying to bolster other Dems to replace Pelosi as Speaker? That was a recognition of her strength in that role.
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@skanda
Even though off topic, you could at least give us your fact checking lies on Pelosi and add something to the conversation, not just "they do it too". Then we can fact check you back on your lies.
It seems that Pompeo is a first class pupil of the Trump: lies and lies etc.!
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Can we go back and see what Kerry said about the Iran nuclear deal, or TPP?
One transferred billions of dollars to the country that supports Assad and would have wiped out the US's only middle eastern ally and only democracy in the region, the other would have cost millions of working class jobs but given hedge funds access to Asia. And yet NYT is fixated on how many people show up at an inauguration.
And who authorized the troops in Syria?
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@Tom
Neither Iran or Saudi Arabia is our friend. The Obama administration wanted to encourage moderate interests in Iran, thus the Iran NA and the money returned. How the rest of the story plays out in the middle east with SA & Iran is unknown. What is known is that Trump adminstration favor SA and is probably benefitting financially from them meanwhile we have MBS murdering opponents and causing genocide in Yemen with our aid.
Regarding the TPP. China is truly an 800 pound gorilla. The goal of TPP was to have a soft alliance against the gorilla. Not a bad idea.
It is a complicated world. I take Obama vs Trump any time. At least he reads and you can talk to him.
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The transfer of millions of dollars was Iran's OWN MONEY that the US froze to cripple the 1979 regime. It was the carrot linked with the deal to stop development of nuclear weapons.
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It is interesting how the White House continues to blame everything bad that happened during the Bush administration on Obama, while claiming that all the successes of the Obama administration didn’t occur until January 1, 2017.
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The apples don't fall far from the tree. If you rub shoulders and constantly adore a liar you become one of the same.
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Pompeo like his President and National Security Adviser Bolton are mean spirited men on a mission of hatred and autocracy. All three have deep dark personalities, and where there's darkness there is danger.
I just pray we can hang on as a Democracy for another 24 months.
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We have an administration that is destroying the credibility of the United States.
To whose advantage?
A foreign policy that puts service personnel's lives on the line can't be decided by whim. But it is.
In this helter skelter draw down, should we need aid, who would answer our call?
How many of the government employees not being paid and or furloughed are needed to facilitate the surprise.
withdrawal of troops? How does this not endanger lives?
His actions and words cause one to seriously question if the president is mentally sound.
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Lies, deception, misleading statements...alas Mr. Trump has succeeded in molding Mr. Pompeo in his own image. How disgraceful and shameful to throw a previous US president under the bus the way he did in Cairo. We can therefore expect Mr. Pompeo to stay in this position longer than his predecessor, Rex Tillerson, who refused to abandon his own identity, values, and integrity for the sake of the job.
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This administration "governs" with bumper sticker talk and counts on the world to have short memories. Tweets are their deep thought pieces.
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@Full Name
Agree except Trump lacks the wit and brevity to speak on bumper stickers.
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@Full Name yes, that's because his daily briefings are provided on bumper stickers. You think he will read something on 8.5 x 11 paper?
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@Leo But honestly, when would he ever have occasion to read a bumper sticker? His obsession with 'First', 'Biggest' and 'Best' requires that he be out front. You can fact check this by getting in touch with the prime minister of Montenegro.
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I am increasingly troubled by the real-time spewing of false and misleading statements by nearly every member of this administration. Most irksome are the instances when they announce something positive, such as the current low troop level of 5,000 in Iraq versus 166,000 at its peak, as if they accomplished it and deserve credit when it was actually an Obama achievement.
Honestly, it is ludicrous for Pompeo to insist that the U.S. is a force for good in the Middle East when we looked the other way on the butchering of a journalist and refuse to even mention human rights any more. It is also ludicrous for him to deny any inconsistencies in the messaging from the president, Bolton, himself and other administration spokespeople on the timing of our withdrawal from Syria when ample video exists proving he is lying.
Barring emergencies and breaking events, MSM should not cover Trump administration speeches live and become complicit in this propaganda. Tape them, get the fact checkers to run through them, then air them in a split screen version with the corrections running down one side of the screen. This administration is using free network airtime for false and misleading political propaganda. That is actually the more important story for our democracy than many of these speeches themselves with positions that will last a day or two until the president starts denying or changing everything.
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@Joanna Stasia NYC
While the MSM may be the only check on this degenerate administration, let's not forget that it was their fawning, ratings inspired, 24/7 coverage of a miscreant candidate that aided and abetted his election.
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@Joanna Stasia NYC
I nominate you for board membership on every media corporation in the US. Serious solutions/ideas like this are what a democracy of, for, and by the people requires unless we want Orwell's vision of the future to come true in America.
Each passing day this Fox White House of amoral opportunists and end-of-days zealots brings us closer to a reality made to fit alternate facts without regard for logic, science, truth, ethics, morals; pretty much the Devil's work incarnate. Using technology as JS suggests is absolutely an antidote. And, of course, why not apply the same rules to all elected & appointed political players on the national stage; I fully expect it would be heartening to see how Pelosi et al likely come out way ahead on the truth meter compared to Fox-addled Republicans.
Where is a philanthropic host for creating a 24/7 website as JS suggests?!
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I find it troubling that this administration finds it necessary to criticize the previous administration in speeches on foreign soil. Say what you want to do - sure; tell them about a new direction, but tearing down the previous POTUS is pure politics and completely unnecessary in that context (except they cannot resist trying to destroy Mr. Obama's legacy at every turn).
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@Anne-Marie Hislop
Without giving their lily-white, mostly male base a black man (or woman) or a white woman to sneer at, the GOP would have zero to offer.
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Are we in or out ? Appears the Presidency is run amok. Bolton, Pompeo, the Military and a distracted and delusional president all sending different messages and actions.
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What Pompeo and Trump do not understand that by vilifying Obama they are in effect demeaning the Presidency of the USA of which they are relying on to drive their policies.
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Two things. First Pompeo is arguing from a position of already knowing what didn’t work well enough and arguing against it as if he is prescient. That’s a fallacy of a priori wisdom. It’s standard practice in the Trump administration and very dangerous. Second, Trump and all the administrations before him act on the belief that democracy is the natural order of things and that after war and devastation it springs up like new grass. Our long experience with the theocracies of the Middle East are ample proof against this but we persevere, always expecting a different outcome. The UN has in its charter a little known provision for the organization to take a failed state into receivership to help establish a functioning government. It’s never been invoked and it’s doubtful it could be today. But it’s tempting to ask how it might improve over our current approach.
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@Denis
Priori wisdom, if actually employed, would be a virtue in this current administration. Even more so than in the Bush administration those with posteriori knowledge, if any, in the Trump administration must subjugate themselves to his ephemeral gut instinct or perhaps just the last Fox broadcast he viewed.
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If by "silent", Pompeo meant that the U.S. government didn't offer any meaningful assistance to the Green Revolution in Iran (and even pulled punches in its public statements), then his statement was accurate.
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Yes, because the Iranians in the street would have just been thrilled to have the US tipple another government. We did such a wonderful job the last time.
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@Joshua
Then why didn't he say that! Don't leave others to figure out what you mean.
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@Joshua Pompeo and Trump contradict themselves constantly. Obama is accused of not doing anything yet they ran on a platform of no stupid wars, no further involvement. They take credit for troop withdrawals in Iraq that happened under Obama, they attack him for not going into Syria yet are pulling out. Or not, depending on what Laura Ingrahm thinks.
The Green Revolution did not work and it is probable that it would not have with our help. There is a "base" in Iran that supports the Mullahs. Any interference from us would have endangered that movement even more. Trump lives in a a fantasy world where he is a super hero comic book figure who can just solve problems with no effort.
This is more distraction by attacking a sane and decent man Barack Obama. He was a good president and tried to clean up the mess that the previous GOP administration caused.
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How about Chaos with a capital C Mr. Pompeo, there I fixed that for you.
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@Chris
Chaos is the correct word indeed. The US a force for good in the middle east? The guy is a sick joke. Heck, we're still digesting the chaos unleashed from W's invasion of Iraq. So now he's going to further mess up Syria so that Europe has to deal with another million or so refugees. Oh great.
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