Posted on 12/04/2004 11:39:17 AM PST by ApesForEvolution
WASHINGTON - President Bush (news - web sites) expressed no alarm Saturday about a warning from his outgoing top health official that the U.S. food supply is vulnerable to terror attacks but would not deny the assessment and assert that the nation's food is safe.
Reuters Photo
Thompson Resigns From Cabinet Post (AP Video)
Bush was questioned, after an Oval Office meeting with Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf, about comments by Health and Human Services (news - web sites) Secretary Tommy Thompson about the vulnerability of the U.S. food supply. Thompson spoke Friday as he announced his coming departure from the Bush administration.
"We're a large country with all kinds of avenues where somebody can inflict harm," Bush said. "We're doing everything we can to protect the American people. There's a lot of work to be done."
Thompson had said he worries "every single night" about a possible terror attack on the food supply, and despite dramatic increases in inspections of food imports, only "a very minute amount" of food is tested at ports and airports.
"For the life of me, I cannot understand why the terrorists have not attacked our food supply because it is so easy to do," Thompson said. "We are importing a lot of food from the Middle East, and it would be easy to tamper with that."
Thompson was the latest of eight members to quit Bush's 15-member Cabinet as the president moves into a second term.
Bush himself decided that Defense Secretary Donald H. Rumsfeld would not go, ignoring criticism about Rumsfeld's handling of Iraq (news - web sites) and giving the secretary a strong vote of confidence to remain at the Pentagon (news - web sites). That decision, sealed Monday in an Oval Office meeting with Bush but not announced until Friday, settles one of the last major questions about who in the Cabinet goes and who stays.
Besides the eight members whose departure has been announced, Treasury Secretary John Snow has not received a public endorsement of continued service, even though White House officials have described him as a valuable member of the president's economic team.
Snow, who has been in the job less than two years, declined in an appearance Friday on CNBC to reveal whether he has submitted or offered to submit his resignation.
Rumsfeld's tenure has been marked by unanticipated postwar violence in Iraq and more than 1,250 U.S. deaths, as well as enormous increases in spending on the military after the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks. Despite controversies, the hawkish, sometimes acid-tongued Rumsfeld has kept Bush's confidence.
Rumsfeld also has a long history of influential support from Vice President Dick Cheney (news - web sites) from their days together in the Ford administration in the mid-1970s.
Rumsfeld has a full plate: continuing military operations in Iraq, focused now on securing the country ahead of January elections; the ongoing effort in Afghanistan (news - web sites) and a plan to modernize the military.
Bush believes Rumsfeld is "the right person at this moment in our history in fighting the war on terror to lead our armed forces," a senior administration official said in describing the president's decision.
The secretary's future had been the subject of much speculation, after revelations about abuses at Abu Ghraib and other U.S.-run prisons in Iraq. Though Bush steadfastly backed his defense chief — one of the more hawkish members of his administration — Rumsfeld had many detractors in Congress and the military.
It had been widely believed at the Pentagon that Rumsfeld wanted to stay on, at least for a time, in order to oversee the continuing transition in Iraq and shepherd his plan for a fundamental transformation and modernization of the U.S. military.
Rumsfeld, 72, is the oldest person to serve as secretary of defense. He also was the youngest when he ran the Pentagon for President Ford.
Rumsfeld took intense criticism from members of Congress last spring when the Abu Ghraib prisoner abuse scandal became public. He told the Senate Armed Services Committee (news - web sites) that he would quit if he thought that would help, but not simply to satisfy the administration's political enemies.
Rumsfeld said he would take the blame for the scandal. After the completion and publication of several in-depth investigations, the pressure for him to resign abated during the summer.
In recent interviews, Rumsfeld had refused to talk about his future, except to say he remained committed to transforming the military to make it more capable of fighting wars of the 21st century.
Many have criticized him for failing to foresee the insurgency that has taken thousands of Iraqi lives and killed hundreds of American troops since Saddam Hussein (news - web sites)'s regime was toppled in April 2003.
Rumsfeld has acknowledged that the strength and resilience of the insurgency was underestimated.
It was not clear how long Rumsfeld's top deputy, Paul Wolfowitz, and chief policy adviser, Douglas Feith, would remain. Pentagon spokesman Lawrence Di Rita said Friday that Feith told his staff he intended to stay for a while.
Or we could draft them all into the military...If we have to support them anyway, they might as well earn their way...
I remember at the beginning of the WOT, there was an article that mentioned the terrorists had threatened to poison imported canned tomatoes, I believe. I imagine alot of euro muslims work in canneries, just doing the work the euros don't want to do.
The terrorists already know this stuff...The only ones that don't are the American citizens...Now, we know too...
Thompson probably wanted to tell us this all along but was prevented...But you have to admit, GW's FTAA, Nafta, WTO, globalism movement appears to be far more important to him than the security of the U.S...
Good point. I was disturbed, as well that TT said this, but you are probably right.
My sentiments exactly -- why not give the terrorist ideas? That was one of the dumbest comments I have heard.
I agree...
On the morning of 9-11 (about four hours into it), when I was frantically channel surfing for news like everyone else, I stumbled across some panel discussion with Thompson and one or two others. I watched long enough to hear him - to my amazement - make the statement, "This is a time for healing." Honest to God, my jaw about dropped. A time for HEALING?? We hadn't even known who had attacked us yet! He may have wanted to heal, but I wanted to kick someone's butt!Thanks for sharing that memory. I didn't know he said that.
Sometimes it's hard to decide where to come down on an issue you don't know much about. I haven't followed TT closely and don't really know what to think about his recent comment.
What you observed on 9/11 helps me come to a conclusion I was already leaning towards:
This guy cannot be trusted.
Self-righteous woman, that Mrs. Johnson.
Wish I had all Cal's stuff. I may be the only person under 40 on this board listening to Cal right now.
At last!! Someone I agree with. That said, I will also say that Tommy boy's statement was unprofessional to say the least.
"That said, I will also say that Tommy boy's statement was unprofessional to say the least"
Pure dumbness. One always wonders when "leaders" make stupid remarks - had he been drinking? did he forget his medications? does he have a mental flaw?.....
In my own "unprofessional" moments, I have said really dumb things - but then I was never responsible for the Health and Human Services for the most powerful country on earth. I expect more from him regardless of his internal feelings. His statement leaves a bad taste in my mouth for a job that was probably well done. Certainly the enemy know our soft spots - they proved that on 9/11.
I'm thinking disinformation possibly an "op" or "sting" already in place to catch this sort of thing.Or could be Thompson just trying to force an issue that he felt wasn't getting enough attention.
Well now we know why he is the outgoing chief don't we? What a stupid statement! Is he nuts?
A Hell Yea to that!!! President Bush is a man of integrity, honor, character and a leader we can count on for sound leadership in these times. I often laugh about the silent outcry, when terrorist attacks occurred under klintoon's blind watch. Yes, we have been blessed!! Our President will continue to lead America from the front first, foremost and always. It's a great day to be alive and American.
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