6 posts tagged “congress”
I have impressed myself by stumbling upon a post of General Patraeus’ opening statement before Congress Today.
I am sure the grilling is in process by the Dems even as my fingers plunk my keyboard. Nevertheless, the Patraeus opening statement is powerful and for the Dems to criticize the accomplishments the General has overseen would be politically petty to pander to the anti-war movement and the poor Americans that believe the propaganda of the Mainstream Media.
Anyway, enough of my frustration of the delusional Left. READ General Patraeus’ opening statement:
JRH 4/8/08
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Patraeus Highlights
Posted by Michael Goldfarb
April 8, 2008 10:49 AM (ET)
The Weekly Standard
From Petraeus's opening statement:
· Security in Iraq is better than it was when Ambassador Crocker and I reported to you last September, and it is significantly better than it was 15 months ago when Iraq was on the brink of civil war and the decision was made to deploy additional US forces to Iraq. A number of factors have contributed to the progress that has been made.
· First, of course, has been the impact of increased numbers of Coalition and Iraqi Forces. You are well aware of the U.S. surge. Less recognized is that Iraq has also conducted a surge, adding well over 100,000 additional soldiers and police to the ranks of its security forces in 2007 and slowly increasing its capability to deploy and employ these forces.
· A second factor has been the employment of Coalition and Iraqi Forces in the conduct of counterinsurgency operations across the country, deployed together to safeguard the Iraqi people, to pursue Al Qaeda-Iraq, to combat criminals and militia extremists, to foster local reconciliation, and to enable political and economic progress.
· Another important factor has been the attitudinal shift among certain elements of the Iraqi population. Since the first Sunni “Awakening” in late 2006, Sunni communities in Iraq increasingly have rejected AQI’s indiscriminate violence and extremist ideology. These communities also recognized that they could not share in Iraq’s bounty if they didn’t participate in the political arena. Over time, Awakenings have prompted tens of thousands of Iraqis—some, former insurgents—to contribute to local security as so-called “Sons of Iraq.” With their assistance and with relentless pursuit of Al Qaeda-Iraq, the threat posed by AQI—while still lethal and substantial—has been reduced significantly.
· The recent flare-up in Basrah, southern Iraq, and Baghdad underscored the importance of the ceasefire declared by Moqtada al-Sadr last fall as another factor in the overall reduction in violence. Recently, of course, some militia elements became active again. Though a Sadr standdown order resolved the situation to a degree, the flare-up also highlighted the destructive role Iran has played in funding, training, arming, and directing the so-called Special Groups and generated renewed concern about Iran in the minds of many Iraqi leaders. Unchecked, the Special Groups pose the greatest long-term threat to the viability of a democratic Iraq.
· Al Qaeda’s senior leaders, who still view Iraq as the central front in their global strategy, send funding, direction, and foreign fighters to Iraq. Actions by neighboring states compound Iraq’s challenges. Syria has taken some steps to reduce the flow of foreign fighters through its territory, but not enough to shut down the key network that supports AQI. And Iran has fueled the violence in a particularly damaging way, through its lethal support to the Special Groups.
· As we combat AQI, we must remember that doing so not only reduces a major source of instability in Iraq; it also weakens an organization that Al Qaeda’s senior leaders view as a tool to spread its influence and foment regional instability. Usama bin Ladin and Ayman al-Zawahiri have consistently advocated exploiting the situation in Iraq, and we have also seen AQI involved in destabilizing activities in the wider Mid-east region.
· Together with the Iraqi Security Forces, we have also focused on the Special Groups. These elements are funded, trained, armed, and directed by Iran’s Qods Force, with help from Lebanese Hezbollah. It was these groups that launched Iranian rockets and mortar rounds at Iraq’s seat of government two weeks ago, causing loss of innocent life and fear in the capital, and requiring Iraqi and Coalition actions in response. Iraqi and Coalition leaders have repeatedly noted their desire that Iran live up to promises made by President Ahmedinajad and other senior Iranian leaders to stop their support for the Special Groups. However, nefarious activities by the Qods Force have continued, and Iraqi leaders now clearly recognize the threat they pose to Iraq. We should all watch Iranian actions closely in the weeks and months ahead, as they will show the kind of relationship Iran wishes to have with its neighbor and the character of future Iranian involvement in Iraq.
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The Weekly Standard About Page
Bradley A. Blakeman of Freedomswatch.org has sent out an email exposing the defeatism of the Left and the Democrats in particular. The left are garnering forces to attempt to discredit General Patraeus in his second report to Congress on the progress on the War in Iraq.
Remember Moveon.org’s treasonous and malicious full page ad ran in the New York Times? The infamous “General Betrayus” was utilized.
Here is the email Blakeman sent out:
JRH 4/8/08
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Stand With General Patraeus
Bradley A. Blakeman
Freedomswatch.org Email
April 7, 2008 9:59:37 PM
Dear John,
General Petraeus is delivering his second report on progress in Iraq to Congress this week, and once again those in Washington opposed to the war are pre-empting his report with defeatist nonsense.
Democratic Senators Chris Dodd, John Kerry, Jack Reed, and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi have decried the lack of political progress and called it a sign of "failure." Apparently they're unaware of the Iraqi government's passage of key legislation, including a vital de-baathification law, oil revenue sharing provisions, a national budget, and granting limited amnesty to thousands of detainees.
Now, a new group of liberals wants to get in on the act, setting up a new coalition called "The Responsible Plan to End the War in Iraq" - but their plan is anything but responsible.
It calls for an end to all military action in Iraq, and instead encourages the U.S. to end the conflict using "diplomatic, political, and economic power." There's a word for this strategy: surrender.
When General Petraeus was in town last year, Hillary Clinton said his claims of progress required a "willing suspension of disbelief." If anything requires a suspension of disbelief it is the notion that Islamic extremists, suicide bombers, and dead-end insurgents will lay down their arms if we just leave - a strategy so naïve only a liberal could believe it.
Call your member of Congress today. Tell them the only responsible plan to ending the War in Iraq is through victory. A good first step toward that goal is for Congress to listen to the advice of the military commanders on the ground - qualified and capable men like General David Petraeus.
Your friend,
Bradley A. Blakeman
President and CEO
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Paid for by Freedom's Watch
info@freedomswatch.org
Copyright (c) 2008
It is interesting to note that a recent Gallup Poll has the United States Military is at the top of the confidence list of American Institutional entities (69%).
Guess which American entity is at the VERY BOTTOM of the confidence list (14%)?
You thank MoveAmericaForward for the heads up the Democratic Party or Leftist media will deliver without a spin.
The Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act of 2007 (H.R. 1592) would be better labeled The Thought Crimes Act. If the Law is enacted Christians can be sued or tossed in jail for preaching the morality of the Holy Bible. The Thought Crimes Act would suppress free speech to the benefit of homosexual reprobates that practice a lifestyle of abomination in the site of God.
The Act quite possibly could be used to nullify State Legislation that has defined Marriage as between a male and a female. It would recognize homosexuals as a group of people on the same par of equality as gender, race, creed and religion. This is a bogus legislation that would transform America into a nation of further sexual depravity protected by the law.
This is for those of you that have a problem with WorldNetDaily as a rag legitimate source of information. This news is probably the second most liberal rag (considered Mainstream Media) in America.
Unlike WorldNetDaily (hint: WND Search Page), the Washington Post has not published the actual documents that have not seen the evidence chain. Of course NO ONE has the evidence on the mysterious Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Report that went missing or never existed as exposed by WorldNetDaily.
JRH
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Support Swells for Agents Who Shot Drug Smuggler:
Conservatives Lead Movement to Free Ex-Border Patrolmen
By Darryl Fears
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, February 17, 2007; Page A02
Early this week, the Bush administration urged angry conservatives to remain calm over the convictions of two former Border Patrol agents who shot an unarmed Mexican drug smuggler, but petitions for their release continued to flood the White House.
It did not help that one the lawmen, Ignacio Ramos, was attacked by Latino gang members in his cell at the Yazoo City Federal Correctional Complex in Mississippi and beaten bloody. Days after prison officials confirmed the beating on Feb. 8, Department of Homeland Security officials admitted that an inspector general's report erroneously quoted Border Patrol agents as saying Ramos and his partner, Jose Compean, intended to kill Mexicans.
Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.), founder of the House Immigration Reform Caucus and a presidential candidate, visited Ramos in prison and told him of the movement against his incarceration, including candlelight vigils, rallies, and a storm of criticism on conservative talk radio and television. Rep. Dana Rohrabacher (R-Calif.) threatened to call for impeachment proceedings against President Bush if the agents were harmed in prison, and Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) promised to look into the matter.
John Gage, president of the American Federation of Government Employees, said that the 700 people who will attend the organization's annual convention in Washington on Feb. 25 will "speak with one voice" against the prosecution and conviction of the agents. The union, which represents Border Patrol agents and other federal workers, implored Bush in a letter this month to pardon Ramos and Compean.
"We think this thing has been mishandled from the start," Gage said. "We're meeting . . . with the head of the Bureau of Prisons. I'm going to raise some hell there to find out why these guys are in that particular institution."
According to a report by the DHS inspector general's office, the incident that landed the agents in trouble started on Feb. 17, 2005, when Asvaldo Aldrete-Davila, an admitted Mexican drug smuggler, drove across the border into Texas with 740 pounds of marijuana. He saw Border Patrol agents trailing him, panicked, and drove into a ditch.
During the chase that followed, Aldrete-Davila scuffled with Compean after the agent tried to smack him with the butt of a shotgun. The agents said they saw something in the suspect's hand and feared for their lives, according to the report and court testimony.
A fusillade of bullets from Compean and Ramos missed. Finally, Ramos took careful aim as Aldrete-Davila neared the border and hit him in the buttocks.
After the shooting, the agents collected all shell casings at the scene, threw them away and did not mention the shooting to superiors, a violation of Border Patrol procedures that call for an oral report after a weapon is discharged, according to the report and court records.
Investigators granted immunity to Aldrete-Davila to lure him back across the border. The story he told was corroborated by other officers at the scene, the report said.
In March last year, Ramos and Compean were found guilty of multiple charges, including assault with a dangerous weapon, discharge of a firearm in commission of a crime, and tampering with a crime scene. Judge Kathleen Cardone issued an 11-year prison sentence to Ramos and a 12-year sentence to Compean in October. The agents appealed to a higher court, and their conservative supporters started to pressure Bush to release them.
Since the convictions, a group called Grassfire.org has collected 40,000 signatures on a "Pardon the Agents" petition. Angry congressional Republicans -- including Rep. Ted Poe (Tex.), Rep. Phil Gingrey (Ga.) and Rep. Walter B. Jones (N.C.) -- also wrote Bush to say they are flummoxed over why the government accepted the word of an illegal-immigrant drug dealer over that of government agents.
"There's clearly a lot of interest in this issue," White House spokeswoman Dana Perino said. She said the Bush administration has a policy against revealing the number of letters, petitions and requests it receives on any given matter.
"The president has urged everyone to look at the facts of the case, as they were convicted by a jury of their peers," Perino said. "There is a legal process that every defendant is entitled to, and we should let that play out."
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UPDATE: Ramos Lawyers call for a mistrial because Johnny Sutton withheld evidence.
UPDATE: Senate Judiciary Committee postpones Ramos/Compean Hearings originally scheduled for February 27 because of conflicts.
JRH
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© 2007 The Washington Post Company
A few days ago I received an email from the American Family Association warning that the Senate was preparing to take away Conservative Bloggers ability to exercise free Speech prior to National Elections. Now I have found confirmation that the Democratic Party controlled House is preparing to engage in similar legislation.
Democrat Kucinich is advocating legislation that requires equal media time for controversial issues. If this legislation passes it will nearly put Conservative TV and Radio hosts out of business because the cost of air time for a rebuttal would lead to the program cancellation.
This will lead the Democratic Party to control what the public hears and thus render it difficult for Conservatives to expose Left Wing hypocrisy and morally depraved positions. The Mainstream Media is already dominating the dissemination of information from a Left Slant. Just think of the iron fisted grip over information the Left would have over freedom speech. It is heinous situation.
Blogs For Bush exposes the Democrat plan.
