[Havisham]

Go to it Freepers!

[old school]

"State believes that all foreigners should be treated with "fundamental fairness..."

Powell doesn't squat without the approval of the President. If the President seeks to grant amnesty to illegal aliens, he can hardly oppose the doctrinaire asses at State who belive in "fundamental fairness." Can he?

[2 Kool 2 Be 4-Gotten]

Going back to Alger Hiss, the State Department has had its share of traitors. I can see that 50 years later not much has changed. Seems to me someone needs to go through the State Department with a large and efficient broom. We knew that GWB had to clean out the Justice Department after the clintonistas had burrowed in. I don't know to what degree that purge has been carried out, but the problem with State is going to be that much harder, as the rats have had that much more time to make their nest.

[goldstategop]

Colon Bowell being a PR agent for Al Qaeda? Sometimes I think the State Department doesn't know who its supposed to be defending as its dumb insistence on issuing visas to foreigners regardless of their threat risk to the U.S shows. And after 911 one thought things finally changed for the better. Joel Mowbray is doing excellent work, which is no wonder why Foggy Bottom hates that man.

[Shermy]

Lose out on bribes too.

[RWG]

Let them have the visas but immediately deport them at whatever port of entry they use. Let them spend money, let state have its way, and then send them home without ever letting them step onto US ground.

[Cachelot]

Of course they're fighting. They're fighting for their masters.

In Saudi Arabia.

[valkyrieanne]

How about NO visas from Saudi Arabia, period? No travel visas, no student visas, no H1-Bs. Nada. Zip. And also, how about we fly the women and girl US citizens OUT of there, and tell the Saudis what they can do with their "exit visas?"

[browardchad]

Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage responded to the recommendation by writing to the Justice Department that "[believing that] an applicant may pose a threat to national security... is insufficient [grounds] for a consular officer to deny a visa."

Comment self-censored.

[LibWhacker]

bttt

Un - !$%$@$%#$^% - believable!

[Betty Jo]

FYI

[aristeides]

By using such arguments, the State Department is self-destructing: you don't defend your turf by using arguments that discredit themselves.

Plus, by detaining Joel Mowbray, and then not making it clear that such a boneheaded move will not be repeated, the State Department is ensuring that it will get unfavorable press. More self-destruction.

[CaptBlack]

I'm not trying to be alarmist or stupid, but these people make you want to take up arms and overthrow their traitorous little outpost at the State Dept.
This is so far beyond the pale that it causes me to seriously suspect a Saudi front within our own State Dept. The FBI/CIA need to turn their attention to Colin Bowelestine et al.