PBS NewsHour correspondent Margaret Warner wants to know why the U.S. can't just bomb oil fields and refineries in Syria. (Screebgrab)
PBS to Treasury Official: 'Why Can't You Just Bomb Them?'
PBS NewsHour correspondent Margaret Warner (11/18/14) had on the US Treasury official, David Cohen, who's in charge of trying to counter ISIS by cutting off its finances. But it seems like it's hard to talk to an elite media host for very long before they start fantasizing about blowing things up.
PBS NewsHour correspondent Margaret Warner (11/18/14) had on the US Treasury official, David Cohen, who's in charge of trying to counter ISIS by cutting off its finances. But it seems like it's hard to talk to an elite media host for very long before they start fantasizing about blowing things up.
WARNER: These are essentially fixed assets, the oil fields they have taken over, the refineries they have taken over, in Iraq and Syria. Why can't you just bomb them out completely?
COHEN: I'm not a military targeter, so I don't...
WARNER: You have enough on your plate.
COHEN: I have enough on my plate without selecting specific targets to hit. But it is absolutely the case that we're working very closely with the Department of Defense and-in thinking about going after some of their oil resources.
Now, it's very easy for a TV host to use a phrase like "bomb them out completely"; there's no requirement, in your studio, to think about what that would look like for oil fields that contain billions of barrels of oil to be completely bombed out. Nor do you have to think about what happens to the people on the receiving end of those bombs-as the New York Times' Kareem Fahim (11/13/14) did in an exceptional piece that looked at how US airstrikes were (predictably) making the population of the Syrian city of Raqqa more sympathetic to ISIS. "Ten civilians were killed in a coalition airstrike on Sunday that hit one of the oil facilities run by the Islamic State, where many people had found work," Fahim wrote. No word on whether the facility had been bombed out "completely" or only partially in the course of killing the ten workers.
Watch:
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, The U.S. is on a fast track to authoritarianism like nothing I've ever seen. Meanwhile, corporate news outlets are utterly capitulating to Trump, twisting their coverage to avoid drawing his ire while lining up to stuff cash in his pockets. That's why I believe that Common Dreams is doing the best and most consequential reporting that we've ever done. Our small but mighty team is a progressive reporting powerhouse, covering the news every day that the corporate media never will. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. And to ignite change for the common good. Now here's the key piece that I want all our readers to understand: None of this would be possible without your financial support. That's not just some fundraising cliche. It's the absolute and literal truth. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. The final deadline for our crucial Summer Campaign fundraising drive is just days away, and we’re falling short of our must-hit goal. Will you donate now to help power the nonprofit, independent reporting of Common Dreams? Thank you for being a vital member of our community. Together, we can keep independent journalism alive when it’s needed most. - Craig Brown, Co-founder |
PBS NewsHour correspondent Margaret Warner (11/18/14) had on the US Treasury official, David Cohen, who's in charge of trying to counter ISIS by cutting off its finances. But it seems like it's hard to talk to an elite media host for very long before they start fantasizing about blowing things up.
WARNER: These are essentially fixed assets, the oil fields they have taken over, the refineries they have taken over, in Iraq and Syria. Why can't you just bomb them out completely?
COHEN: I'm not a military targeter, so I don't...
WARNER: You have enough on your plate.
COHEN: I have enough on my plate without selecting specific targets to hit. But it is absolutely the case that we're working very closely with the Department of Defense and-in thinking about going after some of their oil resources.
Now, it's very easy for a TV host to use a phrase like "bomb them out completely"; there's no requirement, in your studio, to think about what that would look like for oil fields that contain billions of barrels of oil to be completely bombed out. Nor do you have to think about what happens to the people on the receiving end of those bombs-as the New York Times' Kareem Fahim (11/13/14) did in an exceptional piece that looked at how US airstrikes were (predictably) making the population of the Syrian city of Raqqa more sympathetic to ISIS. "Ten civilians were killed in a coalition airstrike on Sunday that hit one of the oil facilities run by the Islamic State, where many people had found work," Fahim wrote. No word on whether the facility had been bombed out "completely" or only partially in the course of killing the ten workers.
Watch:
PBS NewsHour correspondent Margaret Warner (11/18/14) had on the US Treasury official, David Cohen, who's in charge of trying to counter ISIS by cutting off its finances. But it seems like it's hard to talk to an elite media host for very long before they start fantasizing about blowing things up.
WARNER: These are essentially fixed assets, the oil fields they have taken over, the refineries they have taken over, in Iraq and Syria. Why can't you just bomb them out completely?
COHEN: I'm not a military targeter, so I don't...
WARNER: You have enough on your plate.
COHEN: I have enough on my plate without selecting specific targets to hit. But it is absolutely the case that we're working very closely with the Department of Defense and-in thinking about going after some of their oil resources.
Now, it's very easy for a TV host to use a phrase like "bomb them out completely"; there's no requirement, in your studio, to think about what that would look like for oil fields that contain billions of barrels of oil to be completely bombed out. Nor do you have to think about what happens to the people on the receiving end of those bombs-as the New York Times' Kareem Fahim (11/13/14) did in an exceptional piece that looked at how US airstrikes were (predictably) making the population of the Syrian city of Raqqa more sympathetic to ISIS. "Ten civilians were killed in a coalition airstrike on Sunday that hit one of the oil facilities run by the Islamic State, where many people had found work," Fahim wrote. No word on whether the facility had been bombed out "completely" or only partially in the course of killing the ten workers.
Watch: