The Great State of Georgia
Posted on 08/27/2002 5:52:03 AM PDT by Billie
The Great State of Georgia
Click on the pic
dansangel's profile of Freedom Poster is very cool, thank yous to both.
Happy and proud to be your neighbor.
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FReedomPoster, Thanks for all you did to help rid Congress of McKinney. That's two dirt-bags gone, but the Congressional house-keeping list is sooooo long.
dansangel, thanks for the great write-up.
I'll be in and out again today. My charge will arrive shortly, and he's crawling all over the place now, which means I'm crawling too. :^) See y'all later.
Cheney makes case for Iraq war
Bush to meet today with Saudi ambassador to smooth relations
08/27/2002
CRAWFORD, Texas - Vice President Dick Cheney pressed the case for war against Iraq on Monday as President Bush prepared to mend some fences at his ranch with the ambassador from Saudi Arabia.
The Saudis oppose any U.S. military intervention to topple Iraqi President Saddam Hussein, an issue that White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said could well be vented during the president's discussions with Prince Bandar bin Sultan.
"They're going to talk about the war on terror," Mr. Fleischer said, focusing particularly on new steps toward peace in the Middle East.
The vice president, however, appeared to leave little doubt that the administration was moving toward war, though he said Mr. Bush has not decided and would "consult widely" at home and abroad before proceeding.
"The risk of inaction [is] far greater than the risk of action," Mr. Cheney told the national convention of the Veterans of Foreign Wars in Nashville, Tenn. "The entire world must know that we will take whatever action is necessary to defend our freedom and our security."
Mr. Fleischer noted that the president had already outlined his administration's policy of "pre-emptive strike" to root out terrorists around the world during last spring's commencement speech at West Point. But Mr. Cheney's presentation Monday, during working vacations for both men, was one of the administration's most detailed cases for another war against Iraq.
"There is no doubt that Saddam Hussein now has weapons of mass destruction," Mr. Cheney said, and that he would use them "against our friends, against our allies and against us."
"What he wants is time and more time to husband his resources to invest in his ongoing chemical and biological weapons program, and to gain possession of nuclear weapons," the vice president said, adding that time is running out for U.S. action.
"Armed with an arsenal of these weapons of terror and a seat atop 10 percent of the world's oil reserves, Saddam Hussein could then be expected to seek domination of the entire Middle East, take control of a great portion of the world's energy supplies, directly threaten friends throughout the region and subject the United States or any other nation to nuclear blackmail."
A return of United Nations arms inspectors to Iraq would not assure that Mr. Hussein would not continue developing weapons of mass destruction, Mr. Cheney said.
"On the contrary, there is a great danger that it would provide false comfort that Saddam was somehow back in his box," Mr. Cheney said.
| U.S.-Saudi agenda | |
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The Saudi Embassy in Washington had no comment on the discussions with Mr. Bush at his 1,600-acre Prairie Chapel Ranch.
An Americanized prince
Prince Bandar accompanied Crown Prince Abdullah, the de facto ruler of Saudi Arabia, to Crawford in April for a half-day conference with Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney and their top national security advisers.
Now dean of the Washington diplomatic corps, the 53-year-old ambassador is, by no means, a stranger to Texas.
He learned to fly fighter jets in Texas when he was a pilot in the Saudi air force 30 years ago, and he has been a die-hard Dallas Cowboys fan ever since.
A friend of Cowboys owner Jerry Jones, Prince Bandar is a frequent guest in the skyboxes and along the sidelines of Texas Stadium.
And he's often in Texas on other personal and diplomatic business as well. Five years ago, for instance, he was among the dignitaries front and center at the opening ceremonies for the George Bush Presidential Library at Texas A&M University in College Station.
He has also been at the White House several times during the current Bush administration.
"The president enjoys his time with Prince Bandar. He's a very affable fellow, very good humor, speaks English better than most Americans," Mr. Fleischer said.
Tuesday's agenda is a long one, though Mr. Fleischer insisted there was no crisis between the two countries.
"Just the opposite," he said. "The president meets with the ambassador from Saudi Arabia because relations are strong."
At the top of the agenda, undoubtedly, is the U.S.-led war against terrorism, which the White House says includes Iraq, and the turmoil between the Israelis and Palestinians.
Other probable issues for discussion include oil and a lawsuit against Saudi officials by 700 Sept. 11 victims.
Saudi Arabia opposes any new U.S. military action against Iraq and has made it clear to the Bush administration that it would deny use of its air bases and airspace for an attack. On the other hand, it has pledged to maintain a stable flow of oil from the region.
"Saudi Arabia has made it clear that the days of using oil as a weapon are over," Mr. Fleischer said. "They have said that repeatedly. They have said it publicly. And Saudi actions are evidence that that's more than rhetoric. They have carried that out."
Congress' OK needed?
Mr. Fleischer also confirmed that White House lawyers have concluded, as have other administrations, that the president has the constitutional power to wage war without the approval of Congress, but that Mr. Bush will not consider "legal factors alone."
"There are a host of other issues that the president will consider," Mr. Fleischer said, "including policy matters, historical matters, relationship-with-Congress matters, public-support matters."
War with Iraq is not imminent, Mr. Fleischer said, because "the president has not made any decisions." He said Mr. Cheney's speech, part of an increasingly coordinated administration message, was meant not to build a "case for pre-emptive attack," but for "the pre-emptive doctrine."
"The president is focused on the bottom line, and that is: Does Iraq, yes or no, possess weapons of mass destruction?" Mr. Fleischer said.
In his speech, though, Mr. Cheney took it a step further.
"What we must not do in the face of a mortal threat is to give in to wishful thinking or willful blindness," he said. "We will not simply look away, hope for the best and leave this matter for some future administration to resolve."
E-mail bhillman@dallasnews.com
And thank you, Dansangel, for giving him his due....
The pies were deeeeelish! : )
But I must say, we are going to be seeing more of dansangel's features - brought you out, didn't it, .45Man - the man whose #1 Angel she is!!
And you'll use any means to get those hugs coming in, won't you?! :)
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