The War Party: Zionism in NeoCon Foreign Policy

Excellent video series added by erkd1 to his YouTube channel (please visit, he has some great videos & excellent Playlists). He added this today and I quickly knew I had to share it for several reasons.

First, my friend lrose and I disagree over issues relating to Israel’s government and its influence/control over ours. My gripe has never been about the people of Israel, but the actions of the government and our government’s agreement, no matter how bogus. Logically, it doesn’t make sense. It costs us a fortune in money and stature in the world. I can think of only one clear reason it continues (religious). I just don’t get it.

This series lays out, in great detail, how Zionism has infiltrated our government, by the neocons adopting/converting/legitimizing it.

What I can’t get my mind around is how a Christian can endorse that philosophy, which is anathema to the Christ’s message. Yet, we have an entire movement of radical Rapture Believers who manipulate “The Message” and the minds of good meaning folk into some monstrous ideology of war and death.

Utterly incredible to me.

Watch the entire series, if you can, to understand the danger of allowing their control any longer.

The War Party — Zionism in NeoCon Foreign Policy (1/5)

From erkd1’s video description:

Connecting Israeli Zionist influence on America’s Foreign Policy the BBC investigative journalism show Panorama aired The War Party on May 18th, 2003 right after the start of the Iraq War.

Key members of the Bush administration and the powerful American Enterprise Institute were part of a Israeli think tank called The Institute for Advanced Strategic & Political Studies (IASPS):

http://www.israeleconomy.org/index.php

In a report done in 1996, before the formation of PNAC, which was called “A Clean Break: A New Strategy for Securing the Realm” they listed Israeli goals and concerns:

REMOVING SADDAM HUSSIEN:

“Israel can shape its strategic environment, in cooperation with Turkey and Jordan, by weakening, containing, and even rolling back Syria. This effort can focus on removing Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq — an important Israeli strategic objective in its own right”

MIDDLE EAST STABILITY:

“Iraq’s future could affect the strategic balance in the Middle East profoundly, it would be understandable that Israel has an interest in supporting the Hashemites in their efforts to redefine Iraq,”

CONTROL IRAQ, HELP ISRAEL:

“Were the Hashemites to control Iraq, they could use their influence over Najf to help Israel wean the south Lebanese Shia away from Hizballah, Iran, and Syria.”

MANAGE AND CONSTRAIN US REACTION:

“To anticipate U.S. reactions and plan ways to manage and constrain those reactions, Prime Minister Netanyahu can formulate the policies and stress themes he favors in language familiar to the Americans by tapping into themes of American administrations during the Cold War which apply well to Israel.”

Link to the full report:

http://www.iasps.org/strat1.htm

People interviewed or mentioned in this video that hold both USA and Israel citizenship and are Zionists:

Richard Perle

One of Bush’s foreign policy advisors, he is the chairman of the Pentagon’s Defense Policy Board. Perle was expelled from Senator Henry Jackson’s office in the 1970’s after the National Security Agency (NSA) caught him passing Highly-Classified (National Security) documents to the Israeli Embassy. He later worked for the Israeli weapons firm, Soltam. Perle came from one the above mentioned pro-Israel think tanks, the AEI. Perle is one of the leading pro-Israeli fanatics leading this Iraq war mongering within the administration and now in the media.

Paul Wolfowitz

Former Deputy Defense Secretary, and member of Perle’s Defense Policy Board, in the Pentagon. Wolfowitz is a close associate of Perle, and reportedly has close ties to the Israeli military. His sister lives in Israel. Wolfowitz came from the above mentioned Jewish think tank, JINSA. Wolfowitz was the number two leader within the administration behind this Iraq war mongering. He later was appointed head of the World Bank but resigned under pressure from World Bank members over a scandal involving his misuse of power.

David Frum

White House speechwriter behind the “Axis of Evil” label. He lumped together all the lies and accusations against Iraq for Bush to justify the war.

John Bolton

Former UN Representative and Under-Secretary of State for Arms Control and International Security. Bolton is also a Senior Advisor to President Bush. Prior to this position, Bolton was Senior Vice President of the above mentioned pro-Israel think tank, AEI. In October 2002 he accused Syria of having a nuclear program, so that they can attack Syria after Iraq.

Meyrav and David Wurmser

Special Assistant to John Bolton, the under-secretary for arms control and international security. Wurmser also worked at the AEI with Perle and Bolton. Along with Colonel Yigal Carmon, formerly of Israeli military intelligence, co-founded the Middle East Media Research Institute (Memri),a Washington-based Israeli outfit which distributes articles translated from Arabic newspapers portraying Arabs in a bad light.

Eliot Cohen

Member of the Pentagon’s Defense Policy Board under Perle and is another extremist pro-Israel advisor. He wrote an opinion article in the Wall Street Journal openly admitting his hatred of Islam claiming that Islam should be the enemy, not terrorism.

Prominent members of the Bush administration not mentioned in the broadcast but who also hold both USA and Israeli citizenship and are Zionists:

Michael Mukasey
Michael Chertoff
Lawrence (Larry) Franklin
Douglas Feith
Henry Kissinger
I. Lewis “Scooter” Libby
Elliott Abrams
Richard Haass
Robert Zoellick
Ari Fleischer

BBC review of the book “The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy” from 2007:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/7…

Transcript of the BBC broadcast:

http://news.bbc.co.uk/nol/shared/spl/…

Fight the good fight,

Erik aka erkd1

For the best up to date news go to:

http://dandelionsalad.wordpress.com

http://www.jwharrison.com/blog

B’Man: See the rest of the series in links:

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Part 5

Or a link to a Playlist at my BuelahMan YouTube Channel.

B’Man’s Patriot Watch: Ralph Nader Asks, “What’s Left ‘On The Table’?”

B’Man: Ralph calls for impeachment of Bush and accountability from McInsane and Obama. Notice the date. He has been calling for impeachment for a long time. Wonder where Obama’s leadership is on that subject? Must be the same place his leadership is on all the subjects… vague, illusionary, and vain imaginations.

Ralph Nader describes what’s “On the Table” For the Nader/Gonzalez Presidential Ticket versus everything that’s “OFF the Table” for Obama and McSame.

Santa Monica, CA, May 10, 2008

Video Shot and Edited by Dutch Merrick.

Edit Supervisor: James Legoy

For More information, Go to VoteNader.org

The one consistent Champion for the rights and protections of the American people is Ralph Nader. Together with Human Rights Attorney Matt Gonzalez, Mr. Nader will put the most pressing issues of our day back into the public discourse.
While the two Corporate-chosen candidates bicker over “Hope” vs. “Change”, Ralph Nader will discuss concisely the ramifications of continuing our present course in the Middle East and the results of our “For-Profit/ Not for People” Healthcare system.

Give him your support. Send in a few bucks!

The Planet you save might be your own!

Republicans for Impeachment? Well, Shut My Mouth…

My friend Falstaff, aka Ralph Lopez left me a notice over on the BuelaHuh? page which struck my attention in that he claims that there are actually Republicans wanting Congress to do their duty and impeach what are obviously crimes against humanity and our Constitution (not to forget our moral beliefs). He includes several action items that make sense (and I have actually done some of them already) and an invite to an upcoming hearing (I just hope they actually ‘hear’ something) on the subject.

What do you think? Are these truly Republicans, not reTHUGlicans? There is a difference, you know.

Hi Buelahman! here is our latest press release, big news breaking…

NATIONAL IMPEACHMENT NETWORK

Come to DC for this Historic Moment: “Hearing on the Imperial Presidency of George W. Bush”

Contact NIN DC action coordinator: cynthia_papermaster@yahoo.com if you’re coming from outside the DC area.

July 22-24 “Impeachment Lobbying Days”, House of Representatives

July 25

9 a.m. “Choose the Constitution” Press Conference & Rally

Rayburn Building, Independence Avenue

10 a.m. Hearing on the Imperial Presidency of George W. Bush

House Judiciary Committee, Rayburn Bldg, Rm. 2141

“Rumor has it there are two panels being planned for the hearing, one consisting of Kucinich and four other members of Congress (Jane Harman, Walter Jones, Brad Miller, and Maurice Hinchey), and the other consisting of five non-Congress Members (Elizabeth Holtzman, Bruce Fein, Frederick Schwartz, John Dean, and Bob Barr).” ADS

For information about the rally and hearing, as well as possible camping or housing arrangements (subject to occupancy) in D.C., check here: http://www.afterdowningstreet.org/hearingday

The Office of the Judiciary is expected to post a video of the hearing on their website: http://judiciary.house.gov/hearings/calendar.html

Actions to Take from Home

PLEASE take as many of these five actions as possible to:

· ensure that Judiciary Committee members attend the July 25 hearing

· urge the members to vote to hold impeachment hearings based on the evidence presented July 25

· insist on media coverage of the hearing

Huge thanks to Pat Thomas, Melbourne, Florida, for the following action list

If you feel that patriotism and concern for the world-at-large requires your vigilance and active participation as an American, join me in working every single day for the near future on the impeachment debate. This IS a small, small window open right now… Remember that power yields nothing without our demanding it!

1. Contact every member of the Judiciary and insist that they attend the hearing! The hearing is on a Friday and they usually don’t work on Fridays. http://judiciary.house.gov/about/members.html

Faxing is absolutely worth a try. If you wish to email them in one fell swoop, do so here: http://judiciary.house.gov/about/contact.html

If you wish to leave a comment on voicemail, the Democrats’ House Judiciary Office is Phone: 202-225-3951 and the Republicans’ is 202-225-6504. Don’t omit the Republicans, even if you contact them last. NINE House Republicans (contrary to the minority leadership’s strategy) voted to send Kucinich’s latest impeachment proposal, H.Res.1345–which stated that Bush had lied to Congress to get authorization for his invasion of Iraq–to the Judiciary Committee: Brady (TX), Gilchrest (MD), Walter Jones (NC), Manzullo (IL), Tim Murphy (PA), Ron Paul (TX), Reichert (WA), Christopher Shays (CT), and Mike Turner (OH)!

2. Call your Representative (congressional switchboard: 1-800-828-049 to urge him/her to call for FORMAL hearings in the Judiciary to follow the “preliminary” hearing of July 25 (preferably to *begin* prior to the commencement of the August recess 2 weeks after July 25). Ask him/her to sign Kucinich’s resolutions to impeach Bush (H.Res.1258 and H.Res.1345). (Thus far, Wexler [FL-19], Woolsey [CA-6], Barbara Lee [CA-9], Hinchey [NY-22], Baldwin [WI-02], Farr [CA-17], and Towns [NY-10] have co-sponsored H.Res.1258 and Wexler [FL-19] and Barbara Lee [CA-9] have co-sponsored H.Res.1345.)

3. Send an “official” email to your Representative via Rep. Dennis Kucinich’s impeachment petition

http://impeachment.kucinich.us/petition/

4. Contact the mainstream media and demand that they start NOW to report on the impeachment issue and that they cover the July 25th hearing! Write a letter to your local newspaper. Email / call national media outlets. Here’s one list for contact info: http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=111%20http://www.rense.com/mediacontact.htm

5. SPREAD THE WORD as much as you’re willing and humanly able to do… Make sure that at least your fellow Americans have heard about the July 25th hearing to discuss the actions of President George W. Bush; perhaps they’ll be interested in contacting their Congress person, etc. Talk with friends and neighbors. Email people you know. Share your opinion on internet blogs and websites that allow comments.

10:00 a.m. Room 2141, Rayburn Building, Washington DC

http://judiciary.house.gov/news/071708.html
———–
articles:

Executive Privilege, Why Aren’t They Hollering “Cover-up?”
http://www.opednews.com/articles/2/Executive-Privilege–Why-A-by-Ralph-Lopez-080718-195.html

Nine Republicans Break Party Ranks: Send Impeachment Article to Judiciary for Hearings
http://www.opednews.com/articles/24-Republicans-Vote-for-Im-by-Ralph-Lopez-080716-139.html

————

Conyers Announces Hearing on Imperial Presidency

Congressman John Conyers
For Immediate Release
July 17, 2008
Contact: Jonathan Godfrey (Conyers)
http://judiciary.house.gov/news/071708.html

(Washington)—Today House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, Jr. announced that, on July 25, the House Committee on the Judiciary will hold a hearing on the Imperial Presidency of George W. Bush and possible legal responses.

“Over the last seven plus years, there have been numerous credible allegations of serious misconduct by officials in the Bush Administration,” said Conyers. “At the same time, the administration has adopted what many would describe as a radical view of its own powers and authorities. As Chairman of the Judiciary Committee, I believe it is imperative that we pursue a comprehensive review commensurate to this constitutionally dangerous combination of circumstances. Next Friday’s hearings will be an important part of that ongoing effort.”

The Committee is expected to examine a range of legal and legislative responses to allegations of administration misconduct and their expansion of executive branch power.

Since the beginning of the 110th Congress, the Committee has conducted extensive oversight into allegations of misconduct by the administration, including: (1) improper politicization of the Justice Department and the U.S. Attorneys offices, including potential misuse of authority with regard to election and voting controversies; (2) misuse of executive branch authority and the adoption and implementation of the so-called unitary executive theory, including in the areas of presidential signing statements and regulatory authority; (3) misuse of investigatory and detention authority with regard to U.S. citizens and foreign nationals, including questions regarding the legality of the administration’s surveillance, detention, interrogation, and rendition programs; (4) manipulation of intelligence and misuse of war powers, including possible misrepresentations to Congress related thereto; (5) improper retaliation against administration critics, including disclosing information concerning CIA operative Valerie Plame, and obstruction of justice related thereto; and (6) misuse of authority in denying Congress and the American people the ability to oversee and scrutinize conduct within the administration, including through the use of various asserted privileges and immunities.

The July 25 hearing will be held at 10:00 a.m. in room 2141 of the Rayburn House Office Building. Additional information, including witness participation, will be announced next week.

##110-JUD-071708##

Can We Really Afford Another Idiot In The Whitehouse?

Jed provides us with a nice little montage of stupidity from the last president compared to another idiot who wants to be the next one:

McDumb As Bush

Can we afford another president who thinks it’s smart to be dumb?

Stop the Global Warming Cover Up!

Just last week, former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) deputy associate administrator Jason K. Burnett announced that Vice President Dick Cheney’s office censored out six pages of congressional testimony to cover up the health threats posed by global warming.

Julie Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, had congressional testimony last October that would have detailed the direct impact of global warming on human health, including mortality and the spread of disease.

But the Bush/Cheney administration, fearing her testimony would force it to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels, covered it up.

 Join Senator Barbara Boxer and the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee:

Stop the Global Warming Cover Up!

Target:

EPA administrator Stephen L. Johnson

Sponsored by:

Democratic Senatorial Campaign

Committee  [petition]

 

 

Former EPA deputy associate administrator Jason K. Burnett recently announced that Vice President Dick Cheney’s office censored out six pages of congressional testimony last October to cover up the health threats posed by global warming.

Julie Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, had testimony that would have detailed the direct impact of rising global temperatures on human health, including mortality and the spread of disease. But the administration feared her testimony would force it to regulate greenhouse gas emissions from burning fossil fuels. Senate and House committees have been trying for months to get e-mail exchanges and other documents to determine the extent of political influence on government scientists, but have been rebuffed.

It’s time for the EPA to come clean! Join Senator Barbara Boxer and the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee:
Demand that the EPA finally turn over all communications related to its findings about global warming’s consequences on public health and the environment.

 

Dear EPA administrator Stephen L. Johnson,

Julie Gerberding, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, had congressional testimony last October that would have detailed the direct impact of rising global temperatures on human health, including mortality and the spread of disease.

But recently, former EPA deputy associate administrator Jason K. Burnett announced that Vice President Dick Cheney’s office censored out six pages of testimony to cover up the health threats posed by global warming.

In light of Burnett’s allegations, it’s time to come clean.

We urge you to turn over all communications, email exchanges and documents from government scientists, the White House and the Office of the Vice President that detail the consequences of global warming on public health and the environment to congressional investigators. For years, Vice President Dick Cheney has been driving the administration’s policy on global warming, and this recent allegation appears to confirm the worst. We believe it is critical that the agency’s finding that global warming poses a danger to the public — a determination the EPA reached late last year — be released.
We urge you to find the courage or the strength or determination to act immediately.

B’Man’s Scar Watch: Holding the Right-Wing Tool Accountable

Joe Scarborough had a program on MSNBC a while back that was aired in the evenings. It was a horrible show, simply because Joe is nothing more than a right-wing tool. He was one of the first on the right to berate W, but as I have said countless times, that is now easy. You only gain the scorn of the very worst rabid Bushies, at this point, and his feigned outrage attracts ‘centrists’ and those who fall for the MSM paradigm they brainwash you with (that America is centrist, or worse, conservative). Polls show this simply is not true and that they frame what these words mean by villainizing the key words like ‘liberal’, ‘progressive’, etc.

Crazy as it is to admit, due to this brainwashing, but I am far more ‘progressive’ than I am ‘conservative’, especially when relegated to their description of ‘conservatism’.

Its much like what I tell the staunchest Christian evangelists, if being Christian means being ‘like you’, I don’t want to be one. Same with conservatism. If they hijack the word’s true meaning, then I avoid it like a plague. Today’s conservative is not really conservative… they just use the name to continue an ultra-conservative, but financially wasteful ideology of world domination. They just stole the meaning of the word.

My wife will turn on “Morning Joe” as she has her morning joe. From my office, I’ll hear her yell at the TV and will ask her, “Why even watch that shit?” She’ll say something like, “It gets me fired up in the mornings,” etc

But I can’t stand it and the few times I hear the program (even though this clip doesn’t include Joe, assuming he is on vacation or something) I hear right-wing propaganda at every interview and discussion. Especially from the stacked right-wing guests and the faux liberals they have on. Mika Brzezinski is gorgeous, but measurably just as clueless (actually, I think she knows precisely the bullshit she is laying out).

But the fact is that they continue to propagate the right-wing horseshit and when a TV icon like Dan Rather makes a mistakecomment such as calling Obama, Osama bin Laden (yes, the entire name was transposed for Obama’s last name), no one on the set bothers to correct his little faux pas. I am left to believe that there is nothing innocent about this “mistake”.

I think Obama is bad for America, but this is bullshit.

AT&T Owns the Democrats

So the Democratic National Convention has sponsors and guess who is providing the nice bags for all the bullshit trinkets that are given out? You guessed it. The same one that owns the Dems and has reason for paying them all off for their cover up of crimes they perpetrated with the most hated Republican president of all time.

Yes, people, this company owns the very ones you vote for and the hypocrisy in this bag is overwhelming to me. I suppose they will simply stuff them with $100 bills and hand them out in gratitude for the congressional complicity in the raping of America’s freedoms.

On another note, the convention is being held at the Pepsi Center. So who is advertising on the other side of the bag?

That is almost funny, if it wasn’t so infuriating.

h/t Glenn Greenwald

How To Handle A Rabidly Uninformed Bushie Tool On Iran

Of course, when it comes to Bushies, they are also found across the pond. George Galloway wiped up the congressional floor a few years ago (hardly even heard on the TV) and now lays out precisely what will happen if Iran is attacked on this video presented by BrassCheckTV this morning.

FISA Law: No Public Value

B’Man: I pointed out earlier that these Dems were complicit and following the money was the best course of action. However, Glenn Greenwald also notes that their complicity stems from even deeper motives (actually knowing about the illegal activity and NOT saying anything to begin with).

Just the type of thing a bank robber or any criminal would like to achieve: change the law after the crime… to FIT the crime. Both THUGS and Dems are a part of this coverup.

I think they’re simply waiting to see if the public’s interest will wane and we’ll see that tomorrow, because this bill has, quite literally, no public value for citizens or civil liberties. It is reverse engineering, though the type of thing that the Bush administration is famous for, and now the Democrats are doing — that is to change the law to conform to past conduct.

It’s what any criminal would love to do. You rob a bank, go to the legislature, and change the law to say that robbing banks is lawful. . . .

This is a very frightening bill. What people have to understand is that FISA itself is controversial. This court issued tens of thousands of warrants granted applications for surveillance without turning down any. Only recently did they turn down two. . . . What you’re seeing in this bill is an evisceration of the Fourth Amendment of the Constitution. It is something that allows the president and the government to go in to law-abiding homes on their word alone, their suspicion alone, and to engage in warrantless surveillance. That’s what the framers that drafted the Fourth Amendment wanted to prevent. . . .

Well, there’s no question in my mind that there is an obvious level of collusion here. We now know that Democratic leadership knew about the illegal surveillance program almost from its inception. Even when they were campaigning about fighting for civil liberties, they were aware of an unlawful surveillance program as well as a torture program. And ever since that came out, the Democrats have been silently trying to kill any effort to hold anyone accountable because that list could very well include some of their own members.

And, I’m afraid this is Washington politics at the worst. And, so, I think that what you’re seeing with this bill is not just caving in to a very powerful lobby, but also caving in to sort of the worst motivations on Capitol Hill since 9/11. You know, the administration was very adept at bringing in Democrats at a time when they knew they couldn’t refuse, to make them buy in to this program, and now that investment is bearing fruit.So, of course key Congressional Democrats who were made aware of these illegal torture and surveillance programs are going to protect the Bush administration and other lawbreakers. If you were Jay Rockfeller or Nancy Pelosi, would you want there to be investigations and prosecutions for torture programs that, to one degree or another, you knew about? If you were Jane Harman, wouldn’t you be extremely eager to put a stop to judicial proceedings that were likely to result in a finding that surveillance programs that you knew about, approved of, and helped to conceal were illegal and unconstitutional?

When President Bush and Vice President Cheney celebrated the signing of the new FISA bill at the White House along with Jay Rockefeller, Steny Hoyer and Jane Harman (see the wonderful photos here), they weren’t just celebrating with the political officials who helped protect them from consequences for illegal acts. They were celebrating with those who were participants in those acts, and who were therefore just as eager for immunity and an end to judicial proceedings as Bush officials themselves.

Everybody trying to kill everybody!Just another day on earth.

I am confident that at any given time, in any given country– someone is attempting to assassinate someone. This whole thing brings to mine the Spy vs. Spy in the old Mad Magazines.

 

http://www.680news.com/news/local/article.jsp?content=20080718_064837_3876

Police thwart plot to assassinate

President Bush in Israel

 

Friday, July 18, 2008 - 06:48 AM
By: 680News staff

Jerusalem - Security officials have foiled an alleged plot to assassinate U.S. president George W. Bush.

Six young men were taken into custody and held as suspects by police for the time being.

Four Palestinians and two Arab Israelis have allegedly contacted Al-Qaeda through the Internet to discuss the best way to kill the U.S. president during one of his two visits to Israel earlier this year.

One of the men had taken cell phone pictures of the helipad where Bush was to land, but their plot never got off the ground.

 

 Les dessous de l’information

mondiale-Downside World News

 

 

Russian Agents Foiled plot by CIA/MI6 to

Assassinate Putin..The payback is in pipes!

March 16th, 2008

Breaking: Russian Agents Foiled plot by CIA/MI6 to Assassinate Putin..The payback is in pipes!

 

 

Moscow AP
March 16, 2008

 

RUSSIA’S secret service foiled an assassination attempt on President Vladimir Putin in Red Square on March 2, the day of the presidential election, the Tvoi Den daily reported yesterday. The newspaper did not cite any sources, but gave a detailed account about the arrest of a Tajik national with a sniper rifle in a raid on a rented apartment near Red Square just hours before Mr Putin was due to give a speech there. The Federal Security Service could not immediately comment on the report. Tvoi Den, a popular daily, often prints exclusive reports on Russian politics, citing unnamed officials. An informant told FSB officials a few days before the election that Mr Putin’s assassination was being planned and that an apartment had been rented on the other side of the river from the Kremlin for the purpose, Tvoi Den said. Security officers raided the apartment at 8pm Moscow time on March 2 and detained a 24-year-old Tajik national with a “whole arsenal of firearms” including a sniper rifle and a Kalashnikov assault rifle, the paper continued. About three hours later, Mr Putin and his ally Dmitry Medvedev, who won the March 2 election by a landslide, walked out of the Kremlin onto Red Square and gave victory speeches at a concert there to thousands of screaming fans. FSB chief Nikolai Patrushev gave a briefing last week where he said that Russian security services had foiled “terrorist attacks” during the election campaign and on election day but did not provide further details. TNK-BP raid proved connection between CIA/MI6 and two brit-educated Russian traitors with American citizenship. The payback is in pipes!

http://www.theage.com.au/news/world/russian-agents-foiled-plot-to-assassinate-putin-report/2008/03/15/1205472170874.html

 http://www.newsweek.com/id/57577/page/2

Olmert escapes terror attack in Jericho

Gunmen attempted to hit prime

minister’s convoy as it made its way

from Jerusalem to West Bank city for

meeting with Palestinian President

Abbas in August, Shin Bet chief tells

cabinet ministers. PA arrests three

suspects following incident, but later

releases them. Olmert: Assassination

attempt shall not be ignored. Fayyad:

We’ll draw all the possible lessons

from the incident

 

Ronny Sofer Jerusalem News 7-16-2008

A group of gunmen affiliated with Fatah attempted to hit Prime Minister Ehud Olmert’s convoy as it made its way from Jerusalem to Jericho for a meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on August 6, Shin Bet chief Yuval Diskin told the cabinet ministers Sunday morning.  Israel learned of the plan from intelligence information received several days before the visit. The attack was eventually thwarted by the Shin Bet and the Palestinian Intelligence Service headed by Tawfik Tirawi. Following the incident, the Palestinians arrested three suspects, who were later released, according to Israeli officials. Two other cell members are being held in Israel.  On Sunday, Israel filed an official complaint with the Palestinian Authority following the suspects’ release.  Israeli security sources expressed their anger over the release, which took place “after these terrorists’ involvement in the foiled attack was made clear.”  Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad confirmed Sunday afternoon that the PA arrested a number of suspects after receiving intelligence information from Israel, but that they were released due to lack of evidence. “We are studying the incident and plan to do our best to restore the order in the region,” Fayyad said at the start of a meeting with Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik at Jerusalem’s King David Hotel. “We will draw all the possible lessons so that a similar incident does not repeat itself in the future.” The meeting between Fayyad and Itzik was originally scheduled to take place in Jericho. Itzik explained why she decided to go ahead with the meeting after consulting the Shin Bet.  There are elements who are trying to sabotage the diplomatic process. This is not something new. We believe that the Palestinian prime minister and Abu-Mazen (Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas) and the group of moderates in the PA wish to advance a process with the State of Israel. Therefore, despite the severe incident we were informed about this morning, we shall go ahead with our meeting.” The Knesset speaker added that “the prime minister himself decided to continue with the talks. We must not halt the talks due to the incident, although I view it as extremely severe, and I imagine that the State of Israel will demand an explanation.”  Olmert’s visit to Jericho on August 6 marked the first official visit in seven years by an Israeli prime minister to the Palestinian Authority. “I feel great discomfort over the Palestinian pattern of behavior in this case,” Prime Minister Olmert said Sunday before leaving on an official visit to Europe. “We shall not ignore this. The inappropriate way in which the suspects were handled is part of a pattern which must change.”  The prime minister made it clear, however, that he was determined to continue the negotiations with the Palestinians and had no intention of cancelling his participation in the Annapolis peace conference.  Shortly after the initial report on the foiled attack, Ynet learned that the plot to assassinate Olmert was originally planned for June 6, when the prime minister was first scheduled to meet with the Palestinian president in the PA territories.  The cell included five members who were involved in terror attacks and previous failed attacks in the West Bank. The information was disclosed to the PA, which arrested three of the cell members. The other two were detained by the IDF and the Shin Bet. Israeli officials claimed Sunday that the PA released the three suspects, whom Israel claims are members of the Palestinian security organizations, on September 26. The three, Ynet was told, admitted to the plot before they were released.

Livni: Assassination attempt extremely severe

 ”We view the assassination attempt as extremely severe,” Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said during Sunday’s cabinet meeting. “We have made this clear both to (US Secretary of State) Condoleezza Rice and to the Palestinians.” Internal Security Minister Avi Dichter was not surprised by the incident.  “The plot to assassinate the prime minister is a classic example of the Palestinian Authority’s ’so-called’ policy of fighting terror. The Palestinians arrested Fatah members who were questioned and admitted that they had planned to target the Israeli prime minister, but released them anyway,” he said.  Shas officials praised the Shin Bet for thwarting the attack. “We have received more proof that the Annapolis conference should be turned into an economic meeting. With such a temporary feeling of security we cannot advance on the diplomatic channel,” they said. “A thousand workplaces are worth more than a thousand guns. Workplaces will create security, compared to guns which will stress the lack of security.” Right-wing politicians said that “the moderate leader” Abbas revealed his true colors. The Yesha Council responded, “The release of Fatah terrorist who attempted to assassinate the prime minister from the Palestinian prison, shortly after their arrest, proves that Abu-Mazen (Abbas) is implementing the ‘revolving door’ policy in the PA, which leads to arrest of murderers and terrorists for several days, followed by their release and return to terrorism. “It has once again been proven that Abu-Mazen is Abu-bluff. Letting him control the Judea and Samaria hills is like handing over the territory to Hamas. This will blow up in our faces.”

Palestinian official rejects claims

“We view with severity the fact that the Palestinian Authority released the cell members it had arrested,” a source in the Prime Minister’s Office said Sunday morning. A Palestinian security source told Ynet that as far as he knew, the plot did not develop into a real assassination attempt. “These were at the most talks by an activist or a group of activists,” he said. The same source noted that the territory was under full Israeli security control, and therefore the Israelis did not need the Palestinians in order to arrest the cell members. The Israelis detain people in Jericho almost every week, the source added. The incident did not disrupt the Olmert-Abbas summit in Jericho, as well as the meeting which followed.  Although the incident was kept a secret until now, it appears to have prevented additional visits to Jericho by Israeli officials. Israel’s claims that the PA released the terrorists involved in the assassination attempt may now harm the relationship between the two sides ahead of the US-sponsored Mideast peace conference. Members of Shas and right-wing parties called on Olmert to reconsider taking part in the Annapolis conference following the incident. Ali Waked, Amnon Meranda, Attila Somfalvi, Efrat Weiss and Neta Sela contributed to this report

Bush: Total Failure

I’m not Pelosi fan and I personally believe she is but a shade better than Bush. But I commend her for calling out the idiot-in-chief who is so full of hypocritical bullshit only a fool Bushie Tool would disagree with her.

h/t C&L

I still have a right to “write-in” my choice [opinion]

Having a two party system is literally insane and not democratic. It’s leaves me no choice but to exercise my ‘write-in’ right. So far– Dennis gets my piece of paper! These are a few reasons why>

 Regarding The HydroCarbon Act … Dennis speaking it like it is!!

Dennis Kucinich talks about his Universal Healthcare Plan at AFSCME FORUM and how the other Democratic Candidate’s Healthcare Plan’s All Include a roll for the Large “for Profit”…

Summing up the mess we are all in!