"Wag the Dog" Fantasy

Can this guy really be serious? Writing on HuffingtonPost.com, Blake Fleetwood describes the Russian invasion of Georgia as a "convenient little war for the Republicans." He says the invasion was orchestrated by President Bush, Vice President Cheney and Senator McCain, and timed to coincide with Senator Obama's Hawaiian vacation, in order to use the Russian boogyman to "scare the bejeus out of the American voters" and get McCain elected. Here's his speculation on how and why Russia invaded:

Randy (Scheunemann, a McCain foreign policy aid who has ties with Georgia) lets it be known to the Georgian President that this would be a good time for Georgian troops to invade South Ossetia, which had been an autonomous territory for more than a decade. The Georgians didn't take much persuading, as they had been wanting to crack down with their troops for a long time.....and now they felt they had some backup.

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Meanwhile Bush is conveniently meeting with Putin at the Olympics in Beijing and lets it be known that if Georgia attacks Ossetia, the US will not "mind" -- Wink Wink -- an aggressive response from Russia.

Wow, I didn't know that the GOP was that all-powerful! According to Mr Fleetwood, the GOP can not only manipulate two sovereign countries, one of whom doesn't really like the US, into war; but can do so when and where it chooses. This guy can't seriously think that the GOP has that much power. Amazing! I have to admit that I have long thought that politics, particularly at a national level, is a blood sport; but to even consider that politicians would deliberately manipulate other countries into starting a war for their own political gain is absurd.

What the various reactions to Russia's invasion tell us about the two candidates is much more revealing that Mr. Fleetwood's Machiavellian fantasies. Senator McCain reacted with decisiveness. Senator Obama just wanted us all to get along. Senator McCain is a leader. Senator Obama isn't. And that's no fantasy!

UPDATE It seems that at least one reporter from a "mainstream" news network has bought into this fantasy. According to NewsBusters.org, on Monday August 11th, Keith Obermann from MSNBC blamed the Bush administration for the fighting in Georgia, saying that "the US knowingly provoked Georgia for years by building up Georgia's military" and encouraged the Georgian president into the fight with Russia. He also charged that Senator McCain was trying to capitolize on the fighting by "trying to turn death near the Black Sea into political points at home." He also claims that President Bush mishandled Russia in discussions with Russian Prime Minister Putin during talks in Beijing. Again, I'm amazed that any person with an ounce of brains would buy into this conspiracy-theory fantasy!