Posted on 11/01/2005 4:59:00 PM PST by wagglebee
Accusing Republicans of ignoring questions about pre-war intelligence, Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid forced the Republican-controlled Senate into an unusual closed session today, igniting anger from GOP leaders.
Before calling for the rare motion, which was seconded by his assistant minority leader, Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., Reid said his colleagues across the aisle "have repeatedly chosen to protect the Republican administration rather than get to the bottom of what happened and why."
Speaking to reporters in the hall outside the Senate chamber, Majority Leader Bill Frist shot back, charging the Senate "has been hijacked by the Democratic leadership."
"They have no convictions, they have no principles, they have no ideas," he said.
Frist said the Democratic Party leadership did not warn him in advance of the move, which Republicans called a "political stunt."
"It means from now on, for the next year and half, I can't trust Senator Reid," the Tennessee lawmaker said.
Durbin told reporters the Democratic Senate staff notified Republican staff as the session began.
Frist explained that the closed session meant all electronic devices had to be removed and staff and media were barred from the room.
Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss., a former majority leader, said Reid's move violated the Senate's tradition of courtesy and consent.
But the rules, he said, provided no way for Republicans to stop Reid.
In his speech before issuing the motion, Reid said that in the wake of the indictment Friday of Vice President Dick Cheney's former chief of staff I. Lewis "Scooter" Libby, the American people and U.S. troops deserved to know details of how the U.S. got into the Iraq war.
Reid said Libby was the highest level official to be indicted in some 130 years, then asked: "Is it any wonder, Mr. President, I am worried about my grandchildren?"
Reid previously spoke of concern about his family's future welfare as he ticked off a list of familiar Democratic complaints about the performance of the Bush administration on issues ranging from the war to the economy.
The minority leader said the Libby indictment "provides a window into what this is really all about, how this administration manufactured and manipulated intelligence in order to sell the war in Iraq and attempted to destroy those who dared to challenge its actions."
Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., told reporters the reason for the closed door session was to ask the chair of the Senate Intelligence Committee, Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kan., why, "despite repeated promises," the panel has not complied with Democrats requests to conduct an investigation into problems with pre-war intelligence.
About two hours after the closing, the Senate returned to an open session in which Roberts defiantly insisted his panel is addressing the issue, on schedule, and called the Democrats' move a "political stunt," noting he had a stronger term for it, but "would leave it at that."
Prior to the open session, the senators agreed to appoint a six-member task force with three members from each party, to review the Intelligence Committee's progress on "Phase 2" of its work and report back to their respective caucuses by Nov. 14.
The first phase resulted in a 511-page report submitted last summer that addressed flaws of an Iraq intelligence estimate assembled by the country's top analysts in October 2002.
Roberts said the panel had started the second phase of the review but not completed it. He had intended all along, he said, to continue the work next week.
IS there ANY time that a Democratic leader tells the truth? I mean, what he says can be PROVEN as a lie..yet no one in the press says, "Reid! Why are you forgetting all the others that came before" Even TIm Russert said this..why? Same with Wilson...his statemenst can be PROVEN FALSE...
I swear, sometimes I feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone!
Has that idiot Frist any clue as to has the majority in the Senate and who their leader is???? Idiot
It would be crazy for Allen to get in the middle of it. Also, he will be away from DC a lot during the campaign, and the last thing he needs is for the 'Rats and the media to talk about how he is "ignoring his obligations." I think the leader should either be Sam Brownback or Rick Santorum.
Frist won't be in the Senate then.
Frist seems a little slow on the uptake, no?
'course, with all the Senate's nonsensical "esteemed colleague" BS, calling Reid by name in this manner is pretty impressive.
Santorum will be the Majority Whip...if he gets re-elected. McConnell will be the next Majority Leader.
One more move like this by the 'Rats, and Lott and Frist are going to threaten to remove the "Kick Me" signs from their backs.
That's why I'm puzzled at FReepers defending this scumbag. The guy was Marc Rich's lawyer, for crying out loud. He deserves to be sent up the river. Even a caller to Rush today said Bush should pardon him. Give me a break.
1. Remind the left that every single Democrat of note said in 1998 that Iraq's WMD posed a danger to the United States.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/972389/posts
2. Remind the left that Clinton's Justice Department obtained a federal indictment of Osama bin Laden which stated that AQ had a deal with Iraq. They agreed not to attack Iraq in exchange for weapons development.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/985906/posts
3. 9/11 Commission reaffirms Bush administration view of Iraq/AQ ties.
June 21, 2004. RNC.
http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1157478/posts
4. Long List of Clinton Administration Officials who Believed There was an AQ/Iraq connection.
July 12, 2004. NewsMax.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1169397/posts
5. List of CIA and various Reports regarding Iraq's support for terrorists, terrorism and AQ.
September 16, 2004. The Weekly Standard.
http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/004/631slkle.asp
6. Osama bin Laden was considered an Iraqi Intelligence asset.
October 14, 2004. National Review.
http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1246505/posts
Funny how in the 90's the world was concerned about the growing relationship between OBL and Saddam and now the left is revising history.
Saddam reaching out to OBL
January 1, 1999. Newsweek
http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1158277/posts
ABC news reports on the Osama/Saddam connections
January 14, 1999. ABC News
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1229608/posts?page=1
Osama and Saddam Work Together
January 27, 1999. Laurie Mylroie interview. She is a former Clinton terrorism czar.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1158482/posts
A Much Shunned Terrorist Takes Refuge In Iraq (Abu Nidal)
New York Times. January 1999.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1433610/posts
Western Nightmare: Saddam and OBL versus the World. Iraq recruited OBL.
February 6, 1999. The Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/alqaida/story/0,12469,798270,00.html
Saddam's Link to OBL
February 6, 1999. The Guardian
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/866105/posts
Saddam offered asylum to bin Laden
February 13, 1999. AP
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1158274/posts
Son of Saddam coordinates with OBL.
Iraqi Special Ops coordinates with Bin Laden's terrorist activities.
August 6, 1999. Yossef Bodansky, National Press Club
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/951911/posts
That and more here:
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1327993/posts?q=1&&page=151
THANK YOU CAPTAIN OBVIOUS!!!!!!
How about Pat Roberts?
He would be okay too.
That is exactly my point.
Just when you think the democRATS can't get any dumber, they do.
Sit back and enjoy the show........
I think we should all broadcast this message to all the dimocrat Senators. Not just Reid, but can we really TRUST any of the dimocrat senators?
EMAIL your dim senator!!!
Not trust this guy?
And not leave someone there to see what they were doing?????
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