whoops

McCain lamented having to "withdraw in humiliation" from Somalia in 1993, but failed to mention his own role:

McCain: We went in to Somalia as a peacemaking organization, we ended up trying to be – excuse me, as a peacekeeping organization, we ended up trying to be peacemakers and we ended up having to withdraw in humiliation.

What McCain isn't saying is that he led an attempt to force the Clinton administration to withdraw more quickly. After the First Battle of Mogadishu (immortalized in the book and film "Black Hawk Down"), Clinton proposed a six-month plan for withdrawing combat troops. Then-Sen. Phil Gramm complained that the plan was an attempt to "save face," and McCain introduced an amendment to cut off funding for combat in Somalia and force an immediate withdrawal. The amendment was tabled and the Senate backed Clinton's plan. In his 2002 memoir, "Worth the Fighting For," McCain called his amendment "hasty" and wrote that he "regretted" what he came to see as "a retreat in the face of aggression from an inferior foe."