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Do the right thing
The Washington Times ^ | September 19, 2006 | Frank J. Gaffney Jr.

Posted on 09/19/2006 3:29:42 AM PDT by John Carey

For some politicians, it is tough under the best of circumstances to do the right thing when it comes to national security. Posturing about "peace dividends" chronically results in defense budgets and end-strengths insufficient to deter future acts of aggression -- and fight the ensuing wars. Intelligence programs are compromised by self-serving leaks and press-driven legislative responses. Pentagon leaders are savaged in public by legislators who thereby underscore their lack of understanding of the threats besetting our country, and the fact they have no better answers to the challenges thus posed. Unfortunately, a congressional byelection season in the second term of a presidency confronting widespread public misunderstanding of, and fatigue with, a global war is far from the best of circumstances. It is in such a season that President Bush confronts the determination of several members of his party in the Senate to do the politically popular -- rather than the necessary -- thing with respect to legislation that would govern the detention, interrogation and judicial review of captured al Qaeda terrorists and other unlawful enemy combatants. Worse yet, these senators -- John McCain, John Warner and Lindsey Graham -- are not only encouraging fellow Republicans to join them in breaking with President Bush. They are giving political cover to Democrats gleeful at the chance to conceal their readiness to do the wrong thing on national security by lining up behind McCain and Company, whose number includes former Secretary of State Colin Powell. The latter supports the McCain legislation that offers enemy detainees more rights and more sharply circumscribes their interrogation than the Bush administration believes is consistent with the national security since, says Mr. Powell, the world is less persuaded of the moral legitimacy of our actions.

(Excerpt) Read more at washtimes.com ...


TOPICS: Editorial; Foreign Affairs
KEYWORDS: frankjgaffneyjr; geneva; waronterror; wot

1 posted on 09/19/2006 3:29:43 AM PDT by John Carey
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To: John Carey

I'm not sure why this argument wouldn't persuade a number of Democrats to side with Bush-- Nelson, Salazar, Carper, Lieberman don't have a lot to gain by flattering the NYT editorialists do they?


2 posted on 09/19/2006 3:45:42 AM PDT by gusopol3
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To: John Carey; Lando Lincoln; quidnunc; .cnI redruM; Valin; King Prout; SJackson; dennisw; ...
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.:

...By the same token, those on the other side of these issues do not have an exclusive claim to morality's high-ground. If, thanks to the absence of interrogation techniques that make detainees uncomfortable but fall well short of already prohibited torture, Americans are condemned to death (perhaps, ironically, in the course of a successful terrorist attack on the U.S. Capitol), those responsible for denying our government such tools will bear a heavy moral burden.

...let us hold the senator from Arizona and his colleagues on both sides of the aisle accountable. For all of our sakes, they should err on the side of protecting the national security. Congress should swiftly enact legislation that actually protects America by establishing sensible, practicable guidelines for: use of aggressive, nontorture interrogation methods where absolutely necessary; legal protections for those charged with performing such interrogations; and the limitation, if essential to protect sources and methods of intelligence, of evidence shared with detainees in the course of their prosecution


Nailed It!
Moral Clarity BUMP !

This ping list is not author-specific for articles I'd like to share. Some for the perfect moral clarity, some for provocative thoughts; or simply interesting articles I'd hate to miss myself. (I don't have to agree with the author all 100% to feel the need to share an article.) I will try not to abuse the ping list and not to annoy you too much, but on some days there is more of the good stuff that is worthy of attention. You can see the list of articles I pinged to lately  on  my page.
You are welcome in or out, just freepmail me (and note which PING list you are talking about). Besides this one, I keep 2 separate PING lists for my favorite authors Victor Davis Hanson and Orson Scott Card.  

3 posted on 09/19/2006 11:11:23 AM PDT by Tolik
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To: Tolik

You're right, this NAILS it! Leave it to McCain, Graham, Warner and I guess now Hagel and the Maine babes to go to the mushy middle -- if there is ever another 9/11 sequel, these bums will have to answer for a very great deal.


4 posted on 09/19/2006 11:27:45 AM PDT by ReleaseTheHounds
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To: ReleaseTheHounds

Not only will those type of Pubs be blamed by right thinking voters, but so will the MSM, the NYTimes especially, the DNC and its flackers. It is amazing that so called independent voters cannot see this truth today just before the Nov. elections. It seems that when the MSM protects its faves like St. John, the fawning MTV type public goes along with its lies or agendas and yet those dunces get to vote too. Boy, freedom is grand, ain't it? What happened to the Founder's view that the electorate should be educated, literate and discerning voters?


5 posted on 09/19/2006 12:32:22 PM PDT by phillyfanatic
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To: Tolik
Mega dittos. Mr Gaffney sured nailed it here. What is being done by McCain et al has nothing at all to do with principals. It has to to with RINOS Senator stooges afraid to stand with the President on anything.

Interesting how none of the McCainiac ever want to discuss the fact that McCain is advocating a serious rewriting of Common Article 3. You don't have to be an expert in International Law to see how Common Article three is being twisted all out of shape to manufacture a PR cover for the 4 Senator Stooges to divert attention from their real agenda.

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1661789/posts


They shall furthermore be bound by the Convention in relation to the said Power, if the latter accepts and applies the provisions thereof. Although one of the Powers in conflict may not be a party to the present Convention, the Powers who are parties thereto shall remain bound by it in their mutual relations. They shall furthermore be bound by the Convention in relation to the said Power, if the latter accepts and applies the provisions thereof 6) Inhabitants of a non-occupied territory, who on the approach of the enemy spontaneously take up arms to resist the invading forces, without having had time to form themselves into regular armed units, provided they carry arms openly and respect the laws and customs of war.

3 examples of where the Geneva Convention is willingly ignored by the 4 Senator Stooges with their flatulent PR spin to lie about why they are so desperate to impose their emotional whimsy on the Administration.

That "a former JAG" like Graham is this grotesquely ignorant of what Common Article 3 ACTUALLY says indicates it is merely another LIE told by the RINO clown posse to come up with YET another excuse to backstab the Administration.

Fire these 4 clowns.
6 posted on 09/19/2006 12:36:49 PM PDT by MNJohnnie (Ann Coulter: "I love Freepers!" Told to Freeper eeevil Conservative)
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To: ReleaseTheHounds

"You're right, this NAILS it! Leave it to McCain, Graham, Warner and I guess now Hagel and the Maine babes to go to the mushy middle -- if there is ever another 9/11 sequel, these bums will have to answer for a very great deal."

Wrong...they will pretend they were misunderstood and the mdeia will carry their water.

The only silver lining I see is that they spend a good bit of their time in DC and that is ground zero for terror attacks. Maybe, for once, those who allowed the attack will be victims of it. Maybe.


7 posted on 09/19/2006 1:37:16 PM PDT by Jim Verdolini (We had it all, but the RINOs stalked the land and everything they touched was as dung and ashes!)
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