Introducing Michael Cohen Posted by Ilan Goldenberg

We have a new guest blogger today.

Michael A. Cohen works as a corporate communication professional in New York where he provides communications, public affairs and crisis management support to a variety of clients. He is also a senior fellow at the New America Foundation where he helms the Privatization of Foreign Policy Initiative and an adjunct lecturer at Columbia University’s School of International and Public Affairs. Michael is currently writing a book on the history of campaign speechwriting, titled Live from the Campaign Trail: The Political Speeches that Changed America, which will be published by Bloomsbury in May 2008. Previously, Michael was the chief speechwriter for U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Bill Richardson and Senator Chris Dodd.

Comments

[Denis Robert]

It's sad that someone with this kind of pedigree would be so mis-informed. In his dust-up with Atrios, Michael Cohen made the claim that "Saddam kicked out the UN inspectors in 1997".

That is completely false, and amounts to historical revisionism. The real story is that the UN inspectors pulled out just before Bill Clinton bombed Iraq, a seemingly forgotten part of the recent past. AFTER the UN inspectors left on the US' recommendation, Saddam refused to let them back in.

There a HUGE difference between that, and stating that Saddam "kicked out" the inspectors.

It's sad, as well as offensive, that the so-called "serious" brains which the US government relies upon are capable to such self-delusion. Just another case of "common wisdom" not being wisdom at all.

[Jb]

Mike Cohen is stupid. Why does anybody listen to him?

[daniel brezenoff]

What really happened - as the NY TIMES reported in Jan 99 - was that Hussein accused American inspectors of being CIA plants and refused to allow them in. He allowed inspectors from other nations to come in, but no Americans. And he was within his rights to do this; it is illegal to put intelligence agents onto a UN inspection team.

At the time Clinton outright lied; he denies the agents were CIA. BUt later, he admitted they were.

This incident was a big part of justifying war. What in fact is revealed is that the US was out of compliance with the law, was spying on Hussein while pretending to be neutrally inspecting sites, and was looking for any justification to attack.

[Harold]

Privatizing foreign policy??? Foreign policy for the personal profit of entrepeneurs??? No conflict of interest there!

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