| "The message is going to have to ultimately be that we will hunt down and kill anyone who is responsible for these actions," Cortesman said.
|
Posted on 09/11/2001 8:04:30 PM PDT by Nick Danger
Diplomats, Politicians Urge Bush to Retaliateby Michael CarneyWASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Bush faced growing calls on Tuesday for revenge after a series of apparent terrorist attacks downed New York's once-mighty World Trade Center twin towers and destroyed part of the Pentagon in suburban Washington. With thousands feared dead after hijacked planes crashed into the landmark symbols of financial and military power, lawmakers and diplomats demanded forceful action against those responsible for the worst attack on the U.S. mainland in modern history. Republicans and Democrats rallied around the flag in the hours after the attacks, tempering criticism of the U.S. intelligence community for failing to prevent the attacks with calls for military action. ``This is comparable to Pearl Harbor and we must have the same response and the people who did it must have the same end as the people who attacked Pearl Harbor,'' former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger told CNN. Bush condemned the ``apparent terrorist attack'', vowing to bring those responsible for the attacks to justice. ``Make no mistake, the United States will hunt down and punish those responsible for these cowardly acts,'' he told reporters before heading to a secure location in Nebraska. Speculation on Tuesday about the source of the attack centered on Osama bin Laden, the militant Islamist accused of masterminding the coordinated bombings in 1998 of two U.S. embassies in East Africa that killed more than 200 people. The United States retaliated in 1998 with cruise missiles against what it termed bin Laden training camps in Afghanistan, killing some militants but failing to hit the Saudi billionaire. He was later blamed for the deaths of 17 sailors in an attack last October on the USS Cole in Yemen. ``If Osama bin Laden is responsible for this, as I think everyone is going to suspect, then the Taliban must be held equally responsible,'' said Richard Holbrooke, a veteran diplomat who served as U.N. ambassador under former President Bill Clinton. ``Therefore and when we consider military action, then it is fully justified and the Taliban must face the consequences,'' Holbrooke told CNN. WAR CRIES The Taliban, a purist Islamic movement which controls much of Afghanistan, has given bin Laden sanctuary in recent years. ``I think that this act obviously is one which would constitute an act of war,'' Republican Sen. John McCainof Arizona told ABC News. ``I am confident that our military and our president will find out the perpetrators of this outrage and we will not only punish those responsible but ensure that something like this never happens again.'' Asked if the United States should ``go to war'' with a country that is the ``patron'' of those responsible, McCain said: ''Absolutely, because they have committed an atrocity on a scale that is unprecedented.'' Sandy Berger, national security adviser to Clinton, concurred, telling CNN: ``Whoever has perpetrated this has declared war on the United States and we shall have to respond accordingly.'' Tony Cortesman, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said Bush must take decisive action against those deemed responsible for the attacks, while ensuring the U.S. targets the right people. ``If we can ... identify the attacker, retaliation has to be decisive and at such a high level that no one will risk it again,'' Cortesman told Reuters. ``If any state is involved, it must be treated virtually as an act of war.'' ``The message is going to have to ultimately be that we will hunt down and kill anyone who is responsible for these actions,'' Cortesman said. |
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| "The message is going to have to ultimately be that we will hunt down and kill anyone who is responsible for these actions," Cortesman said.
|
At least this - and perhaps more besides. There must be deterrence, and that probably goes far beyond merely taking out the enemy and their facilitators.
This is an act of war.
I could not agree more. We need to target the leaders behind this and let them know that they will pay the price for the actions of their followers. Any Country that supports these creeps should pay a heavy price also.
I heard Tom Daschle AND Joe Biden say that exact thing.
I did. Rather than sniping and griping, write him.
They don't have to like us. But we should make sure that they fear us.
I concur the analogy stands as to the element of surprise, but little else in it has any substance.
I pray that the urging for retaliation is not just merely so much political hay. I pray also that we discover the truth this time and are not swayed mindlessly by our emotions. Mostly I pray.
Punish, yeah, I like that!!
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I agree. Let's not have any more talk about "bringing the perpetrators to justice." The message we need to send, and the message the terrorists need to receive, is "We will spend whatever it takes in treasure and time to hunt you down and kill you. We will not rest until you are dead."