Morning Vid: O'Reilly on the Timetable

John Hudson Dec 3, 2009
In the wake of President Obama's Afghanistan speech, his timetable for withdrawal has become the centerpiece of debate. Though Republicans quickly latched onto the issue, Fox News Anchor Bill O'Reilly points out that it's not just conservatives raising hell. In his Talking Points segment from last night, he showcases two notable dissenters.



First, MSNBC's Chris Matthews questioned the effect a timeline would have on the enemy: "If I were the Taliban right now i'd put a little post it up on that month in 2011 and say this is when we do our surge." Second is the ordinarily milquetoast Bob Schieffer at CBS News:
I don't understand, Katie, how can you set a deadline on what you're going to do. You know, this is not a football game, where there's a clock, where the time runs out. To win this war, you have to defeat the enemy.
Despite the "cross-the-aisle" dissent, O'Reilly says the issue of a timetable "isn't a big deal"--something few Republicans are saying right now. The biggest problem is Obama's lack of passion, argues O'Reilly. In an usual method of getting his message across, O'Reilly juxtaposes footage from Obama's speech and the 1970 biographical war film "Patton" starring George C. Scott. Now, that's the kind of passion O'Reilly wants to see.

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