[TexKat]

Sami Al Arian campaigned with Bush in 2000?

From the Jewish World Review:

The plot thickens

Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.

http://www.NewsAndOpinion.com |

What are we to make of the fact that a Muslim extremist (or "Islamist") named Dr. Sami Al-Arian was arrested and indicted last week on 50 counts, among them conspiracy to finance terrorist attacks that killed more than 100 people -- including two Americans? One thing is sure: It is not, as Al-Arian claimed when federal agents led him away in handcuffs, "all about politics."

After all, this alleged leader of Palestinian Islamic Jihad -- an organization Attorney General John Ashcroft has described as "one of the most violent terrorist organizations in the world" -- was allowed into the Bush White House on at least one occasion. According to Saturday's Washington Post, in one of these meetings, he was among the front-row attendees at a briefing conducted by the man who is, arguably, Mr. Bush's chief aide: Karl Rove. Generally, political foes do not receive such treatment.

Click on link to read article.

[oceanview]

supposedly this author claims that the picture of Al Arian with Bush is going to be the Dems "willie horton" ad of 2004.

[MamaDearest]

Sean mentioned the high risk for taking a cruise right now. I did a Google search and found only smoke detector type references when I typed in Cruise Ship Safety. There were no mentions of personnel trained to deal with terrorists. I have no idea whether the cruise lines (usually of foreign registry) employ any screening techniques of passengers or any background checks of their own foreign born employees.

[FairOpinion]

Doesn't appear to be much of a picture, just a picture at a campaign stop.

Candidate Bush with the Al-Arian clan

The Post article was accompanied by a photograph taken of Al-Arian with Candidate George W. Bush and his wife, Laura, during a campaign stop at the Tampa Strawberry Festival in March 2000. Perhaps this photo op was a way of thanking Al-Arian and his wife for the efforts they claim to have made on Mr. Bush's behalf "in Florida mosques and elsewhere because they thought him the candidate most likely to fight discrimination against Arab-Americans."

Interesting article, thanks for posting it. It does point out that Bush's staff should have done more investigation. But remember, Al-Arian was a professor at a well respected university, so it is not unusual, that he was accepted at face value.