They should have had Obama in the negotiations. He told Republicans last year “don’t call my bluff” during debt ceiling negotiations, and put the fear of God into the GOP.
And recently, Obama said he doesn’t bluff, as talk of what to do about Iran had happened.
You want tough negotiating, Obama’s your man.
Well yeah, you're correct in one sense:
Ex post, we can say it wasn't a bluff. But -- and here's the critical component -- WMAL wouldn't have knownAs I have always understood the term, and as most dictionaries seem to define it, "calling a bluff" means to make somebody prove if he is serious about a threat -- WHETHER OR NOT the threat is real.
In other words, you "call the bluff" precisely to find out if the other side is bluffing or not.
Or, ex post doesn't equate to ex facto, as we used to say in my logic class. Or was it my Latin class? Can't really recall!