JoeKlein: "Our socialist, pacifist, crypto-Muslim POTUS has bagged 3 terrorists and saved a captain"

[jefferson_dem]

Obama and the Pirates
Posted by Joe Klein

It's better to be lucky than good. It's even better to be lucky and good. One can easily imagine all the different ways the rescue of Captain Phillips might have been screwed up--and the political firestorm that would have resulted. But President Obama appears to have been crisp and decisive throughout...and what can one say about the SEAL sharpshooters--firing from a bobbing ship at a bobbing dinghy and recording three headshots?

But it could easily have gone wrong, through no fault of the President and the SEALs--a gust of wind, whatever...and then the Administration would have had to waste all sorts of energy on damage control, fending off the second-guessers--Republicans and, all too often, people like me--and perhaps overreacting to the pirate "threat" as a result. Presidencies are, sadly, built or crippled on such quirks of fate.

As it stands, our socialist, pacifist, crypto-Muslim President has bagged three terrorist in the most dramatic fashion and saved a Captain. Congratulations to all concerned--and let's hope that the good luck continues to roll.

http://swampland.blogs.time.com/2009/04/13/obama-and-the-pirates/

[NightWatcher]

1. I cant read "bagged" anymore without thinking about "tea"

Obama answered his 3AM call....

[KansDem]

2. A definite contrast to this...

Mr. President, America is under attack...

[jefferson_dem]

4. And this -

HEADLINE: U.S. SENT IRAN ARMS FOR HOSTAGE RELEASES; WEAPONS WERE SUPPLIED FOR AID IN FREEING 3 IN LEBANON, GOVERNMENT SOURCES SAY

BYLINE: By MICHAEL WINES and DOYLE McMANUS, Times Staff Writers

DATELINE: WASHINGTON

BODY:

The Reagan Administration, using an Israeli-operated supply line set up through highly secret negotiations with the regime of the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, last year began supplying U.S.-made missiles and weapons parts to Iran in exchange for Iran's aid in freeing Americans held hostage in Lebanon, government sources said Wednesday.

The arrangement, in which the Tehran government received planeloads of military equipment critical to Iran in its lengthy war against Iraq, led to freedom for three hostages held by pro-Iranian extremists and, until this week, appeared to promise further releases, sources said.

The arms shipments, begun last year with the personal approval of President Reagan after secret meetings between two top-level White House officials and Iranian representatives, led to the release last Sunday in Beirut of American University Hospital director David P. Jacobsen, who had been held by Islamic Jihad (Islamic Holy War), a group of Shia Muslim fundamentalists allied with Iran.

At least one earlier weapons shipment spurred the terrorists to release the Rev. Benjamin Weir, a Presbyterian minister, in September, 1985, and Father Lawrence M. Jenco, Beirut chief of Catholic Relief Services, last July.

http://www.mia.org.il/archive/861106lat.html

[seafan]

5. And the 2 top level WH officials were GHWB and Bill Casey, assisted by James Baker.

In 1992-93, a House Task Force conducted a half-hearted investigation of the (October Surprise) controversy and judged the allegations of a Republican-Iranian deal to be false. But it was later discovered that the Task Force had concealed evidence that pointed in the opposite direction, including a classified report from the Russian government stating that Bush, Casey and CIA officers had met with Iranians in Europe in 1980 to strike a deal.

http://www.consortiumnews.com/2004/110204.html

When Reagan ultimately won the nomination, an old Bush family friend — William Casey — convinced him to name Bush as his VP. Casey was not only Reagan's campaign manager, he was himself a former OSS 13 officer and soon-to-be head of the CIA. With Bush on the ticket, the spies climbed aboard.

What followed was a slew of partisan covert operations that are now largely forgotten. But the most important one is still remembered today as "The October Surprise." 14 It was a covert operation by the Reagan-Bush campaign that secretly forged a deal with the Iranian radicals who, after overthrowing the US-backed Shah, were holding 52 Americans (including several CIA agents) as hostages. In exchange for holding the hostages until after the election, the Reagan-Bush team offered the Iranians millions of dollars in arms, material, and other considerations. Sure enough, the hostages were held until minutes after Reagan's inauguration, then "suddenly" released.

Bush and Casey personally participated in the secret negotiations. James Baker, who would be Reagan's chief of staff and Bush's Sec. of State, was also involved. To this day, Bush et al. vehemently deny the plot, but their alibis don't hold up to scrutiny and just such secret arms shipments undeniably took place. Most damning is the fact that other participants, including senior Iranian government officials and intelligence operatives from several countries, have publicly confirmed they were involved in secret deal.

Further confirmation came in 1993, in the form of a six-page Russian intelligence report that corroborated much of the story. The sensitive report was released by Russia's prime minister as a gesture of post-Cold War cooperation, in response to a request for information from a US Congressional task force investigating the charges. 15 But the report was suppressed, task force chairman Rep. Lee Hamilton (backed by Henry Hyde) sandbagged the rest of the inquiry, and the final verdict was that there was "no credible evidence" of a secret deal. The "investigation" was such a sham that Hamilton publicly exonerated Bush (by then the president) before it even started. 16

By engaging in renegade "foreign policy," the Reagan-Bush team undercut President Carter's own secret efforts to free the hostages and thereby stole the White House. It was, in fact, a coup d'etat.

http://www.lumpen.com/coup2k/framer.html?pg=1

Just reading about this again makes me sick.



A curse has visited upon us.

[YOY]

3. "Terrorists"???

Well I suppose anyone who believed the "Our socialist, pacifist, crypto-Muslim POTUS" trip would believe common armed thieves to be terrorists to boot. Even if they did remember the plot to "Die Hard".

[Uzybone]

12. yeah, thats the only problem I have with that piece

maybe he added it in the spirit of the hyperbole ...along with crypto Muslin etc.

[asjr]

6. On a lighter note--Nancy is

utterly udderless.

[grasswire]

7. see?

It IS possible to be too thin and too rich. I'm sorry I saw that photo.

[gratefultobelib]

8. I think she had a double mastectomy. Not absolutely certain when.

[retread]

9. Shame on you.

http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1P2-1349231.html

[Phx_Dem]

10. Joe Klein digs President Obama.

But then so do I!

:hug:

[brentspeak]

11. Joe Klein likes Obama because Obama is keeping the Beltway/Wall St. gravy train chugging along

[Phx_Dem]

13. Or, maybe because he's doing a great job so far.

I don't know about the "gravy train," but when the market makes money, we all make money. At least those of us with investments and/or 401(k)s, which is a big majority of people.

I'm quite happy when the market does well.

[brentspeak]

14. "When the market makes money, we all make money"

The Dow or NASDAQ average going up = investors making money? 401(k)s going up? Which ones?

Are you also happy that your tax dollars are going into Goldman Sachs' and hedge fund managers' pockets, thanks to Obama?

[Phx_Dem]

15. I'm very happy that the bailout plan seems to be working

and large financial institutions are no longer closing their doors and puting people out of work, the credit market is doing much better, retail sales are up slightly and foreclosures are down.

I don't understand your Dow/NASDAQ point. I have money in the DOW, NASDAQ, and S&P 500, in addition to my 401(k) mutual funds, and YES, I am recouping much of the money I lost since October thankyouverymuch! In fact, I've recouped more than $7K in the last two weeks for my private investments (not including 401(k), and that was before Thursday's big jump.

[genna]

16. Maybe it is supposed to be ironic

but Joe Klein fell flat here.

headshots... is that a picture taken for entertainment people or is it a kill shot?

bagged... is that when a man on the hunt for sex has sex at the end of an evening or it that what happened with the Husseins of Iraq?


It turns my stomach to have macho men sitting behind a desk with a laptop talking tough. If death has to occur as part of a rescue than the least we can do is acknowledge that it was gory even as it had to happen. It is not barbarism for the sake of blood and gore. We can go back to Iraq and the prison abuse for that kind of vainglory.

[Cha]

17. We're lucky we have a President

who's "lucky and good"!

Joe Klein nails it with.."the second-guessers".

"But it could easily have gone wrong, through no fault of the President and the SEALs--a gust of wind, whatever...and then the Administration would have had to waste all sorts of energy on damage control, fending off the second-guessers--Republicans and, all too often, people like me--and perhaps overreacting to the pirate "threat" as a result. Presidencies are, sadly, built or crippled on such quirks of fate."