[Don't] Give 'em The Boot

Madeleine Albright and Bill Perry take to the pages of The LA Times to explain why John McCain's plan to boot Russia from the G-8 is crazy:

The next U.S. president will have no choice but to seek Russia's cooperation on a range of vital issues even while managing the differences that are sure to arise. We will have a far better chance of succeeding if our disagreements on matters of substance -- the future of NATO, for example -- are not aggravated unnecessarily by questions of symbolism and protocol. We cannot expect help from a government we are attempting to blackball, nor would it be in our interest to push Russia further in the direction of an alliance of autocracies with such countries as China and Iran.

At the end of the day, this stuff -- McCain's penchant for bad, ill-conceived ideas that squander US power rather than advancing our goals in practical ways -- deserves much more attention than McCain's personal courage decades ago.

Comments

Oh McCain, you wily old roots radical.

Posted by UberMitch | July 9, 2008 1:47 PM

What's Italy doing in the G-8? Wouldn't it be more useful to have China or India there? OK, if you want democracies, make it India (even though Russia isn't much of a democracy).

Posted by too many steves | July 9, 2008 1:49 PM

There is no "McCain plan to boot Russia". More campaign hysterics from Matt.

too many steves--sure, but what's France doing on the Security Council? It's the only country allied with the Nazis to make the grade, based on...what?

Posted by robert powell | July 9, 2008 1:53 PM

Too Many Steves - it's probably because, in nominal terms, Italy is the 7th largest economy in the world. It's also 10th ranked by PPP.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(nominal)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_GDP_(PPP)

Posted by Harvey Lobster | July 9, 2008 1:57 PM

There is no "McCain plan to boot Russia". More campaign hysterics from Matt.

http://www.reuters.com/article/politicsNews/idUSN1536962020071015

"Results 1 - 10 of about 709,000 for mccain russia g8. (0.19 seconds)"

Posted by scythia | July 9, 2008 1:57 PM

Geeze, the comments on that article are a hoot. One wingnut turns up to regurgitate his "surrender" talking points, only to find he's on the wrong post. Then, he turns up again to prove he can't count.

Then again, the smart conservatives have already been laying low for two years.
.

Posted by Grand Moff Texan | July 9, 2008 2:04 PM

OMIGOD! Matt Yglesias just said that John McCain's personal service is worthless! YOU'RE GOING TO MAKE BOB SCHIEFFER CRY!!!

Posted by El Cid | July 9, 2008 2:05 PM

Hey, Matt. When request time comes around, maybe you'd like to post something to the "no terrorist attack on U.S. soil or interests (outside of Iraq and Afghanistan)" crowd concerning the latest terrorist attack on our consulate in Istanbul, Turkey.

And waddya' know. Al-Qaida is suspected. What a shock.

Posted by LFC | July 9, 2008 2:06 PM

"Results 1 - 10 of about 709,000 for mccain russia g8. (0.19 seconds)"

Posted by scythia

Give Bobby a break. He's posting from 1943.
.

Posted by Grand Moff Texan | July 9, 2008 2:07 PM

What's Italy doing in the G-8?

G8 = 'junket formally known as G7+1'. G7 = the first seven countries of this list. If you wanted to replace Italy with an independent California, that would work too, but it would require, um, an independent California. Russia's there primarily because the G7 spent much of the 1990s addressing the post-Soviet economy, when by 'addressing' I mean 'helping a few dozen people buy up Russia and spend the proceeds on Bentleys and young blonde women'.

Posted by pseudonymous in nc | July 9, 2008 2:12 PM

To revise and extend: the G8 is the relatively recent head-of-government summit that arose out of the G7+1 meetings to address the post-Soviet economy. The G7 was basically a finance ministers' summit until the mid-90s. China's GDP puts it up in the 'top seven' now, but the current structure reflects the state of affairs in the 1970s.

Posted by pseudonymous in nc | July 9, 2008 2:20 PM

To revise and extend: the G8 is the relatively recent head-of-government summit that arose out of the G7+1 meetings to address the post-Soviet economy. The G7 was basically a finance ministers' summit until the mid-90s. China's GDP puts it up in the 'top seven' now, but the current structure reflects the state of affairs in the 1970s.

Posted by pseudonymous in nc | July 9, 2008 2:20 PM

that would work too, but it would require, um, an independent California.

Ready whenever you are. I want my weed legal, my gays married, and my tax dollars to stay in-state.

Ya hear that, Mississippi? We pay for you to talk shit on us. 'Dem checks won't be comin' forever.

Posted by scythia | July 9, 2008 2:24 PM

Request: your opinion on the FISA debate, which seems to be the outrage du jour.

Posted by el duderino | July 9, 2008 2:46 PM

Italy is the 7th largest economy in the world.

While I knew that, I'm always amazed at how they manage to keep this position, considering what a basket case the country basically is - a very beautiful and interesting basket case, though.

Posted by novakant | July 9, 2008 2:58 PM

deserves much more attention than McCain's personal courage decades ago.

I'm shocked...shocked...that Matt would question John McCain's military service! I mean, Barack Obama has never been shot down over enemy lines...therefore John McCain should be president.

Posted by Adrock | July 9, 2008 3:09 PM

Ready whenever you are. I want my weed legal, my gays married, and my tax dollars to stay in-state.

Actually, I think that would have been a less contentious way to discuss July 4th: not 'would the US have been better off as part of a huge, fuck-off British North America?' but 'what circumstances exist today that might push a state or group of states out of the union?'

Frankly, I think the Czechoslovakian velvet divorce model might apply, in which the backward bits push for separation while the wealthier bits wave them goodbye, laughing all the way.

Posted by pseudonymous in nc | July 9, 2008 3:14 PM

As long as oil is north of $100 / barrel, Russia matters.

Russia's oil, like the Albertan oilsands, isn't the easiest to get to, but when the price is right, the numbers work, and *bam* economic powerhouse.

Posted by bartkid | July 9, 2008 4:05 PM

I see Powell regurgitates the "French fries" argument.

That's so 2003. You'd think a right wing propagandist would be up on the latest talking point, which is that neocon Sarkozy is our "friend".

Posted by Richard Steven Hack | July 9, 2008 5:20 PM

The Economist proposes making a G12 with China, India, Brazil, and Spain added. I think that makes sense; excluding countries from world governing bodies is a good way to weaken those bodies. This again demonstrates that McCain's idiocy is at its highest when entertaining the isolationist crowd.

Posted by Joel | July 9, 2008 5:57 PM

Since when is a random wise-crack in the press the same thing as "a plan"? Check your dictionary, lemmings.

There are plenty of legitimate things to criticize McCain about. You only make yourself look stupid by reaching like this.

Does anyone have a REAL explanation for why chronically collaborationist France is on the Security Council? Didn't thing so.

Posted by robert powell | July 10, 2008 2:08 AM

Eat your French fries, Robert, and STFU.

Posted by Richard Steven Hack | July 10, 2008 3:12 AM

Does anyone have a REAL explanation for why chronically collaborationist France is on the Security Council?

You're probably not aware of it, because you're ignorant, but the Vichy regime weren't the only ones collaborating with the Nazis.

Additionally, major US companies and banks such as Chase, Morgan, IBM, Ford, GM and IBM had little compunction about doing business with the Third Reich and the CIA had no problem whitewashing and employing former high-ranking Nazis when it suited their interests.

Posted by novakant | July 10, 2008 5:28 AM

Wow, novakant, you're really well informed!

None of those reprehensible collaborationist corporations actually had the police go out and arrest Jews and send them to Auschwitz like the French government, though. Or sent troops in the SS to fight on the Eastern Front. Or to fight against Americans landing in North Africa.

Perhaps more relevant to today, I wonder how much a terrifically non-ignorant guy like you knows about which companies and governments really supported the genocidal fascist dictatorship of Iraq. Let me guess.

Posted by robert powell | July 10, 2008 8:17 PM