Posts Tagged ‘Foreign Policy’

The Republican’s Open Limerick To Iran

Monday, March 9th, 2015

Forty-seven Republican Senators have done something both appalling and unprecedented: They communicated directly with Iran in order to undermine Obama’s nuclear arms negotiations.

Now it’s one thing to try to convince Obama that Iran can’t be trusted to comply with a nuclear arms deal, or to try to impede an arms deal legislatively. But it’s quite another to essentially tell Iran not to bother complying because Obama deals aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on.

And the latter is precisely what they did. Here’s their open written message to Iran’s leaders, translated into a limerick:

Dear Iranian leaders, Obama
Might make you a nuke deal with drama.
But don’t bother to heed it.
We plan to defeat it.
So it’s worthless — each, word, clause, and comma.

Mitt Romney’s Final Debate Message (Limerick)

Tuesday, October 23rd, 2012

Mitt Romney’s Final Debate Message (Limerick)
By Madeleine Begun Kane

Dear voters, I’m not into war.
I’m really a peacenik full-bore.
Scary things I once said
Are just in your head.
And teachers, I really adore!

*****

Update: Mitt Romney’s campaign reminds me of HBO’s True Blood: You have Romney, the Shape Shifter and Paul Ryan, the Vampire. And pushing Romney’s foreign policy buttons (except at the foreign policy debate) you even have Neo-Con Paul WereWolfowitz.

Limerick Ode To “Tough Guy” Romney

Monday, October 8th, 2012

So, is everyone impressed with Mitt Romney’s big deal foreign policy speech?

I didn’t think so.

Limerick Ode To “Tough Guy” Romney
By Madeleine Begun Kane

He’ll speak loudly and wave a big stick:
That would summarize Mitt Romney’s schtick
Foreign policy-wise.
Sounds a lot like those guys
Who made rather a mess — Dub and Dick.

Romney Unleashed (Limerick)

Friday, September 14th, 2012

Romney Unleashed (Limerick)
By Madeleine Begun Kane

Mitt the “robot” is suddenly hot,
Unpredictably stirring the pot.
Once disturbingly guarded,
Now caution’s discarded.
I’m starting to miss the old “bot.”

Limerick Ode To Smirking Romney

Thursday, September 13th, 2012

Mitt Romney’s weird facial expressions during yesterday’s press conference about the killings at the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, inspired me to write this limerick:

Limerick Ode To Smirking Romney
By Madeleine Begun Kane

Can a person be judged by his smile?
I’d say yes, when it hints at his bile.
If like Mitt’s, it’s a smirk,
Then a creep may well lurk
Underneath, one whose essence is vile.

Foolhardy Romney Strikes Again (Limerick)

Wednesday, September 12th, 2012

Mitt Romney really stepped in it this time:

Mitt Romney’s sharply-worded attack on President Obama over a pair of deadly riots in Muslim countries last night has backfired badly among foreign policy hands of both parties, who cast it as hasty and off-key, released before the facts were clear at what has become a moment of tragedy.

Foolhardy Romney Strikes Again (Limerick)
By Madeleine Begun Kane

In his quest for political gain,
Romney rushes to judgment, it’s plain:
Lashing out before learning
The facts, he risks burning
Our nation with statements insane.

Limerick Ode To Mitt “Foreign Fumbler” Romney

Wednesday, August 1st, 2012

Mitt Romney’s image-bolstering trip to Great Britain, Israel, and Poland was jam-packed with gaffes. Yet according to Mitt, none of this is his fault: The biased media’s to blame.

But as Maddowblog’s Steve Benen puts it:

…it wasn’t news organizations’ fault when he insulted the British; it wasn’t news organizations’ fault when he misquoted the Australian finance minister; it wasn’t news organizations’ fault when his campaign kinda sorta gave the green light on a unilateral strike on Iran; it wasn’t news organizations’ fault when he used borderline-racist language at his Israeli fundraiser; it wasn’t news organizations’ fault when he praised a socialized health care system he claims to abhor; and it wasn’t news organizations’ fault when his press secretary said, “Kiss my ass. This is a Holy site.”

Limerick Ode To Mitt “Foreign Fumbler” Romney
By Madeleine Begun Kane

Mitt Romney’s big trip. Oy Gevalt!
A tri-country gaffe-filled assault:
Poland, Israel, Great Britain—
Still reeling from Mitten.
But of course it’s the “media’s fault.”

UPDATE: Cool news! KPCC’s Patt Morrison announced the results of her political limerick contest on her show and here. The two winning limericks are the one I posted above and one by Mason Kroll.

Limerick Ode To Mitt (The Wonk) Romney

Wednesday, July 25th, 2012

Mitt Romney’s a real foreign policy wonk. Who knew?

Limerick Ode To Mitt (The Wonk) Romney
By Madeleine Begun Kane

Here’s the message that’s coming from Mitten:
Barack has been mean to Great Britain—
He has dissed Winston’s bust,
For which Romney has lust,
And Obama ain’t Anglo-Sax smitten.

Mitt Romney’s Grenell Gaffe (Limerick)

Thursday, May 3rd, 2012

It can’t be easy to simultaneously piss off liberals, conservatives, gays, and homophobes. But Mitt Romney managed to do it.

How? By hiring and (under pressure from anti-gay conservatives) speedily muzzling and forcing out his openly gay, misogynistic, wingnutty foreign policy spokesman Ric Grenell.

Mitt Romney’s Grenell Gaffe (Limerick)
By Madeleine Begun Kane

Mitt Romney would love to dispel
His panicked farewell to Grenell:
Bigots bitched, so he jumped —
His gay spokesman, he dumped,
Selling out at alarm bells, pell-mell.

Those Classy Republicans (Limerick)

Friday, October 21st, 2011

Those Classy Republicans (Limerick)
By Madeleine Begun Kane

Republican pols praise the killing
Of Gaddafi, but most seem unwilling
To credit Obama
For staging this drama.
I can’t wait for George Bush to get billing.

That Newt’s A Beaut (Limerick)

Friday, March 25th, 2011

I have very mixed feelings about Obama’s handling of Libya and U.S. involvement in military operations against Muammar Gaddafi’s Libya. But unlike Newt Gingrich, I don’t routinely contradict myself on the topic, while pretending to think about running for president.

That Newt’s A Beaut
By Madeleine Begun Kane

Newt Gingrich is caught in a bind
Cuz he can’t resist changing his mind.
Unable to choose
From his Libyan views,
He’s had lots of them — all ill-defined.

There’s a method behind Newt’s mad song:
It’s condemning Obama as wrong.
If Obama should do
What Newt counsels, on cue
Mister Newt to that view says “So long.”

Obama Hasn’t Fixed Everything Yet? What’s Taking Him So Long?

Friday, February 13th, 2009

I can’t decide whether Bret Stephens is nuts or just a really bad satirist.

I’m referring to his Wall Street Journal column entitled Obama’s Charm Isn’t Working Wonders Abroad, in which he recites a litany of foreign policy problems and wonders why Obama hasn’t solved them all yet. After all, it’s been twenty-one whole days!

Both Steve Benen and Steve M. assume Stephens suffers from unrealistic expectations.

But I’m wondering whether Stephens is trying to pass sarcasm off as satire.

And that brings me to my latest limerick:

Obama Hasn’t Fixed Everything Yet? What’s Taking Him So Long?
By Madeleine Begun Kane

Poor Bret is beginning to fret
Cuz our enemies still are a threat.
And Barack (he critiques)
Has been prez three whole weeks.
If this isn’t a spoof, get a net!