[randita]

At the very worst, it was a severe security lapse. One would at least hope that al-Arian was thoroughly searched before going into the WH.

At the least, it was an effort by Bush to demonstrate that his indictment of Muslim terrorists was not an indictment of all Muslims. Little did he know.

Al-Arian was involved in a few very innocent sounding Islam groups that on their face sounded as if they were humanitarian causes.

[mattdono]

Well, a few thoughts...

1. This seems like this guy was part of a contingency of people in the Islamic community that attended a White House Briefing. No real story here.

2. He got a picture with the President. Well, actually, he got a picture with a candidate for President. Just about anyone can get a picture with a candidate with a contribution to the campaign.

3. We need to have some perspective:

• Current number of people with remote ties to the Bush administration under indictment or in jail: 1

• Currrent number of people with remote and direct ties to the Clinton administration who have been indicted, jailed, or mysteriously disappered: 423,564 and counting...ok, maybe it is more like 150 and counting, but you get the point.

[William McKinley]

And are they continuing to do so with respect to other individuals and organizations that could, at the very least, embarrass Mr. Bush and, at worst, seriously undermine his efforts in the war on terror?

If Al-Arian is any indication, what they are continuing to do is investigate them and if there is sufficient evidence to indict, do so.

Sounds like a sound strategy to me. Use their influence against them. If Al Capone had made campaign contributions to get Elliot Ness his job, that does not impugn Elliot Ness. It meant Al invested poorly.

[MizSterious]

Some points to consider, before calling for the heads of the messengers:

1. This doesn't necessarily make Dubya look bad, but it makes his staff look careless. The problem is the vetting.

2. Al-Arian's terrorist connections have been suspected for years, both within his community and among law enforcement. O'Reilly didn't "discover" this--he received a lot of tips. So why on earth didn't the White House nix this guy's access?

3. Nevertheless, the visits (some say only one, some say just "a few") most likely did not influence policy. However, it looks really bad, just as those pictures of the Clintons with drug kingpins made them look bad. Which brings me to the final point--

4. Everyone should choose their company carefully. People in high places (I mean, he's the President fer cryin' out loud) should use even more care--and those charged with gate-keeping should make it difficult for these embarassing moments to occur. Whoever made this meeting possible should be fired.

[yoe]

"Whoever is responsible..."

No one could have known at the time how deadly this man Sami was, we're only just learning the truth about those that use our Nation and our Constitution to sabotage our freedom and our country. Many are just these tenured warriors of socialism and Marxism rooted in the nations universities where they are free to weaken the foundations of America with their frankly vile and hateful messages to our young people.

[WorkingClassFilth]

"The people making decisions are Presbyterians and Catholics, not Muslims." The issue is not their faith; it's their judgment...whoever is responsible, their behavior has seriously disserved President Bush, and risks becoming more than a mere political liability if it is allowed to persist."

Boy, is that an understatement. The Krinton administration routinely allowed all manner of scum access to his oval orifice and conservatives all across the land saw it for what it was - 'prostitute for hire.'

Seems that Mr. Bush's people ought to be looking a little closer at his 'friends' for no other reason than demonstrating a little integrity in leadership. That is, if he's really serious about wanting all of us to be on the lookout for dangerous terrorists all the time.

Note to the Bush White House: TRY PROFILING.

[Ron in Acreage]

It states clearly that Al-Arians son worked for Democrat david Bonior. Al-Arian never met the President while at the White House. He was let in yes, bet never met GW while there.Clinton regularly met with a KNOWN terrorist named Yasser Arafat.

[livius]

I think Bush was a little naive in dealing with the Muslims at first, and even after 9/11, because everybody was urging him to be nice to Muslims. I doubt that it would happen again, though, and I hope Grover Norquist's influence has gone down the drain as a result of this.

[Bryan24]

Big difference between Clinton and Bush.

Clinton would have covered up the relationship or warned the guy of the investigation.

When Bush got evidence, he had the guy arrested.

[P.O.E.]

A Muslim sneaks around under the guise of a regular, minding-his-own-business average guy, but is secretly working on diabolical plot. That's not news.

[joyful1]

The sour fruits of political correctness...

[cyncooper]

Here we go again. And I am fast losing any respect I had for Gaffney when he pulls rhetorical stunts like this:

was allowed into the Bush White House on at least one occasion. According to Saturday's Washington Post, in one of these meetings,

Notice the sly "at least once" and "in one of those meetings".

[TLBSHOW]

PING

[TLBSHOW]

PING

[John Lenin]

The plot thickens ? What plot is the guy talking about ? The plot to send Sami to the slammer for 50 years ? I think the article is a little overboard with the insinuation of some kind of White House plot.

The real question is why do we give Arafat US tax dollars to be a terrorist supporter ?

[Generalissimo]

President George W. Bush once again endorses terrorists. He also invited another Arab terrorist to the White House. That terrorist is Abu Mazen (a.k.a. Mahmoud Abbas). Abu Mazen was Arafat's bookkeeper and primary financier. Also, Bush even said that he was not concerned about Osama bin Laden. On March 13, 2002, Bush said: "I truly am not that concerned about him [Osama]."