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October 2, 2002
SEN. JAMES INHOFE (R), OKLAHOMA: Oh, yes, absolutely. I wouldn't be there in the first place. I don't think it's appropriate to go over there and aid and comfort the enemy when he says, well, we're not at war.

That's kind of a technicality. That's semantics. They were shooting down -- trying to shoot down our pilots at the time he was over there. And I think that's outrageous.

So the answer to the question is, no, I wouldn't have.

MCDERMOTT: You mean the planes that were bombing them, they were trying to shoot them down?

INHOFE: No -- bombing them in a no-fly zone? They had...

(CROSSTALK)

MCDERMOTT: I was in the (UNINTELLIGIBLE) airport and saw the damage done by the planes.

INHOFE: I can't believe this. I can't believe this.

MCDERMOTT: Well, I mean you've got to admit that we're bombing in Iraq, don't you?

INHOFE: I don't have to admit that we're bombing in Iraq. We're trying to take out surface to air missiles that are shooting at our pilots.

MCDERMOTT: And so we're doing it, what, with powder puffs and marshmallows? What are we using? We're using bombs, man.

INHOFE: Then I think everyone would agree this is a war after all.

BEGALA: Well let me ask you about...

INHOFE: It's not a declared war.

(CROSSTALK)

INHOFE: You liberals are always that way. You say, well, if it's not officially a declared war -- I can go over there and I can be nice to these people. Here's a guy that tried to murder our president, a guy that murdered 5,000 of his own citizens in one day. A guy that right now is shooting at our pilots that are flying legally in a no-fly zone patrolling it.

MCDERMOTT: There's no legal no-fly zone.

INHOFE: Oh yes there is.

MCDERMOTT: Under what? You tell me the law...

INHOFE: Under U.N. resolutions that he agreed to.

MCDERMOTT: No. There's no legal resolution -- no, there's no resolution for the no-fly zones.

BEGALA: Let's just take this just one at a time. I'm going to remind you, Senator Inhofe, about some words that you spoke the last time America was going into war. That war was Kosovo. And there is a startling, striking resemblance to exactly what Congressman McDermott said.

This is your words in the "Wall Street Journal" on March 5, 1999. Our president was leading us to war against an equally genocidal maniac. I agree with every word you said about Saddam Hussein. They also apply to Slobodan Milosevic.

This is what you said: "President Clinton's word means nothing." You called our president, sir, a liar as he was leading us into a war against a genocidal maniac. Would you like to retract that?

INHOFE: Oh yes, I certainly would. A totally different situation. At that time, Kosovo was no threat to the United States of America, right? It was -- we went in there for more humanitarian reasons. At that time, our president, Bill Clinton, had cut down our end (ph) strength and our modernization to the point where we were spread too thin and we were totally dependent on guard and reserve. We had to do something about it.

Stupid Prick. It would be funny if it weren't so scary. Oklahoman's can't get enough of the dumb sonofabitch. But at least he Did want to retract calling President Clinton a liar.