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Tag Archives: navy

Presidental Debate: comparing apples to naval oranges

23 Tuesday Oct 2012

Posted by Michael Bersin in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Barack Obama, debate, foreign policy, Mitt Romney, navy, president

“…Well, Governor, we also have fewer horses and bayonets because the nature of our military has changed…”

The republican meme reared its stupid head again.

Rep. Vicky Hartzler (r): comparing apples to navel oranges (February 16, 2012)

Rep. Vicky Hartzler (r): still obsessed with those navel oranges (July 24, 2012)

Vice Presidential Debate: refighting WW I with Dreadnaughts (October 11, 2012)

[from a rush transcript]

Mitt Romney (r): Our Navy is smaller now than anytime since 1917. The Navy said they need 313 ships to carry out their mission. We are now down to 285. We are headed to the low 200’s if we go through a Sequestration that is unacceptable to me. I want to make sure we have the ships required by our Navy. Our Air Force is older and smaller than anytime since it was founded in 1947. We have changed for the first time since FDR. Since FDR we have always had the strategy of saying we can fight in two conflicts at once. Now we’re changing to one conflict. Look, this in my view is the highest responsibility of the President of the United States which is to maintain the safety of the American people, and I will not cut our military budget by a trillion dollars, which is the combination of the budget cuts the President has as well as the sequestration cuts. That in my view is making our future less certain and less secure.

American defense procurement policy by talking point for idiots.

President Obama’s response:

President Obama (D): ….It [sequestration] will not happen. The budget that we’re talking about is not reducing our military spending it’s maintaining it, but, eh, I think Governor Romney maybe, uh, hasn’t spent enough time looking at how our military works. You, you mention the Navy, for example, and that we have fewer ships than we did in nineteen sixteen.  Well, Governor, we also have fewer horses and bayonets [audience noise] because the nature of our military has changed. We have these things called aircraft carriers where planes land on them [audience noise], we have these ships that go under water, nuclear submarines, and so the question is not, uh, a game of battleship where we’re counting ships, it’s, it’s what are our capabilities. And so when I sit down with the Secretary of the Navy and the Joint Chiefs of Staff we determine how are we going to be best able to meet all of our defense needs in a way that also keeps faith with our troops, that also makes sure that our veterans have, uh, the kind of support that they need when they come home, and that is not reflected in the kind of budget that you’re putting forward because it just doesn’t work. [Moderator: “All right.”] And, you know, we visited the web site quite a bit, and it still doesn’t work.

Bob Schieffer: A lot to cover. I’d like [audience noise], I’d like to move to the, uh, next segment. Red lines. Israel and Iran. Would either of you, and you’ll have two minutes….

We’ve been saying the same thing for months.

Vice Presidential Debate: refighting WW I with Dreadnaughts

12 Friday Oct 2012

Posted by Michael Bersin in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

debate, Joe Biden, navy, Paul Ryan, Vice President, WW I

Paul Ryan (r): ….If these cuts go through, our Navy will be the smallest, the smallest it has been since before World War I….

Michael Bersin ‏@MBersin

Oh, God. The Navy of WW 1. More coastal defense monitors and dreadnaughts, please. #FactsMatter 8:59 PM – 11 Oct 12

What is it with right wingnut republicans and dreadnaughts? Just asking.

Previously:

Rep. Vicky Hartzler (r): comparing apples to navel oranges (February 16, 2012)

U.S.Navy Active Ship Force Levels, 1917-1923

11/11/18

Battleship 39

Monitors, Coastal 7

Cruisers 31

Destroyers 110

Frigates 17


Submarines 80

Mine Warfare 53

Patrol 350

Auxiliary 87

Surface Warships 204

Total Active 774

The last Coast Defense Monitor went out of commission in 1921.

[emphasis added]

U.S.Navy Active Ship Force Levels, 2007 to 2011

9/30/11

Carriers 11  

Cruisers 22

Destroyers 61

Frigates 26
 

LCS * 2

Submarines 53

SSBN 14

SSGN 4
 

Mine Warfare 14  

Amphibious 31  

Auxiliary 47  

Surface Warships 122    

Total Active 285  

* Littoral Combat Ship

[emphasis added]

Because modern defense systems have fewer capabilities than those of almost a century ago.

Rep. Vicky Hartzler (r): still obsessed with those navel oranges (July 24, 2012)

And there be pirates in Harrisonville! Aarrgh!

24 Tuesday Aug 2010

Posted by Michael Bersin in Uncategorized

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

4th Congressional District, Ike Skelton, KSHB, missouri, navy, pirates, Vicky Hartzler

Via our good friends at Fired Up:

[….]

…Vicky Hartzler (r): Ike Skelton, under his leadership, has seen a decrease in the defense budget, have, has, had missile defense, uh, cut.

[….]

We have the, the smallest navy here that we have had since nineteen, uh, the early nineteen sixties.

Congressman Ike Skelton (D): I don’t understand what she’s saying, huh, Missouri’s naval presence?

[….]

I don’t think Vicky Hartzler does either, Ike.

Oh, and her campaign spokesperson had a thing or two to say:

“….The impression you get from watching the Channel 41 report is Vicky Hartzler is suggesting that Missouri somewhere has a naval base, and that is, of course, ridiculous….”

He, of course, went on to say that Ike Skelton looked bad, too. Great campaign strategery there, bub.

And missile defense? You mean Saint Ronnie Raygun’s boondogle? Yeah, Edward Teach is gonna start lobbing projectiles at us from the Caribbean.

There be pirates in Harrisonville! Aarrgh!

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