georgia and the elections..

[greg]

i've been thinking about this a bit but haven't read or heard anything about the possible influence of the development in georgia on the outcome of the elections.

considering the fact that a candidate cannot take any actions and his reactions are bound to public words a diplomatic stance would not have any chance to be practiced and brought to success by a candidate.

taking into account the 2004 elections and taking into account the rise in mccain's popularity in mid august, do you consider it possible that we will see the american russian relationships coming to a crisis over georgia in the month until the elections?

[Rubicon]

i've been thinking about this a bit but haven't read or heard anything about the possible influence of the development in georgia on the outcome of the elections.

I don't think it will have much of an effect at all. The majority of the American people aren't paying attention to Georgia nor do they understand the significance of Russia's action there.




do you consider it possible that we will see the american russian relationships coming to a crisis over georgia in the month until the elections?

I think it's unlikely. The invasion of Georgia was a message sent to other countries in the region. Russia isn't ready yet to take on the US directly(but they are working on it), and there isn't much the US can do. If Bush gets a wild hair and sets up a naval blockade in the Black Sea or something like that, then all bets are off. But this is a problem for the next administration to handle and the US response will probably stay subdued until after the election.[/junior analyst]

[telebobski]

I certainly hope the US stays out of the whole Georgia dustup, other than as part of a multinational group to keep the violence at a minimum.

Georgia's Pres kicked Putin in the shins - After his big brother (the US) told him not to. Putin bitch-slapped and sodomized Saakashvili for that transgression. IMO, he got what he deserved.

[squatch]

Georgia: non-issue.

Putin is an old-schooler who seems to long for the bad old days. As much as he'd like, Russia is no longer a world power. The new "cold war" will be economic competition between the US and China.

[enlosandes]

I think it is more likely that the US and/or Israel have issues with Iran before the election.

[Rubicon]

I think it is more likely that the US and/or Israel have issues with Iran before the election.


Not anymore. Without the Russians we have no leverage against Iran. It's either military action or strike a deal with them. But in order to deal with the Russians(who pose a threat 100x larger than do the Iranians) in a manner they will respond to, we need relative calm in the middle east. In order to get that we need the help of the Iranians. Which means no military action.

[Cliff Huckable]

Generic comment about most voters not having a clue which state Atlanta is in, let alone knowing anything about some far-away place.
It's a non-issue. Like the economy, education, health care, etc.