Free Republic

On September 11, 2001, al-Qaeda operatives slaughtered nearly 3,000 Americans in an operation that marked the second major attack by violent jihadists against the World Trade Center. There wasn’t much mystery about who had carried out these atrocities — unless you were Salam al-Marayati, executive director of the Muslim Public Affairs Council. Marayati warned Americans not to conclude that the suicide hijacking attacks were the work of Muslim terrorists. “If we are going to look at suspects,” he told a Los Angeles radio station, “we should look at groups that benefit the most from these kinds of incidents, and I...

The Rockefellers and Iran: Jay Rockefeller’s Reversal and the Iranian-American LobbyBy Fedora In 1979, Rockefeller representatives launched an unsuccessful operation to lobby the Carter administration in support of the Shah of Iran, who was seeking safe haven in the wake of a coup by Islamic revolutionaries. Codenamed Project Alpha, the operation was spearheaded by Chase Manhattan Bank Chairman David Rockefeller and former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, with support from oil lobby lawyer John McCloy. Although Project Alpha won the support of National Security Advisor Zbigniew Brzezinski, it met opposition from Secretary of State Cyrus Vance and failed to win...

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Canadian buyout firm Onex Corp on Tuesday said a key labor union rejected its contract offer in a setback to its C$1.5 billion purchase of several Boeing Co commercial airplane manufacturing facilities. "We are obviously disappointed at the outcome of today's vote," Onex managing director Nigel Wright said in a statement. "We are reviewing our options and want to give them careful consideration before making a determination about our next steps." Members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers at Boeing's plant in Wichita, Kansas rejected the proposal. Officials at Boeing and the union...

WASHINGTON - John Kerry's been described as a waffler who blathers, a son of privilege who won't stand up to millionaires, a Washington insider who's a handmaiden to special interests and an inconsistent candidate whose word is no good. All of that comes from fellow Democrats who ran against Kerry in the presidential primary race but now are pledged to help elect him president. The also-rans in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination have supplied plenty of rhetorical ammunition that Republicans could refire in the fall campaign, although the strategy is not without risks. It happens every primary election...

Even a bad primary weeds out the losers It took the voters of Iowa to make me realize what a heroic figure Richard Gephardt truly is. Until last night I had considered the beetle-browed congressman from the Show Me State a distillation of the many vices career politicians are heir to. It was only after his crushing, humiliating defeat in what supporters and commentators with expansive definitions of the Midwestern mindset had described as his home country that Gephardt began to receive the praise he apparently deserves. Erstwhile rivals and televised talking heads joined in singing his fundamental decency, his...

Sharpton Blasts Dean on Race in Debate) DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - Under fire in a campaign debate, Howard Dean conceded grudgingly Sunday night that he never named a black or Latino to his cabinet during nearly 12 years as governor of Vermont. "If you want to lecture people on race, you ought to have the background and track record to do that," Al Sharpton snapped at the Democratic presidential front-runner in an emotionally charged exchange in the final debate before next week's kickoff Iowa caucuses. "I will take a backseat to no one in a commitment to civil rights...

I. A few weeks ago, I asked Howard Dean how, given his vehement opposition to the war in Iraq, he felt he could overcome the Democrats' reputation as the antiwar party. ''I think you're still in the old paradigm, which says that they're the party of strength and we're the party of weakness,'' Dean admonished me as I sat across from him on his campaign plane. The chaos in Iraq, he said, had upended the old stereotypes. In John F. Kennedy's day, Dean pointed out, the Democrats enjoyed the reputation as the party of resolution. ''I think this may be...

Sometimes you feel like a nut (Democrat primary), sometimes you don't (general election). So which Democrat candidate will be nutty enough to win the primary, gaining that hearts of the Democrat base of drooling idiots? And will he make himself too nutty to be viable in the general election? To find these answers, I talked to the candidates themselves. All interviews are now up. They are of John Kerry, Richard Gephardt, Joe Liberman, John Edwards, Howard Dean, Al Sharpton, Bob Graham, Dennis Kucinich, Carol Moseley Braun, Jojo the Monkey, and Hillary Rodham Clinton. * * * * John Kerry Frank:...

Presidential candidate Rep. Richard Gephardt (D-Mo.) likes to tell audiences that his father drove a milk truck. “He was a Teamster,” Gephardt said in a speech last January to kick off his campaign in Iowa. Gephardt’s father, Louis, who died in 1984, had a variety of jobs, among them selling real estate and life insurance. Even so, his nine years on a milk route have given Gephardt the most mileage with organized labor. But according to Gephardt’s brother, Don, their father hated driving a milk truck. “My father was in the Teamsters, but that’s because he had to be to...

Rep. Richard Gephardt, who compared to other Democratic presidential aspirants has been practically invisible, has been putting the heavy push on colleague Rep. Nancy Pelosi for her endorsement of his campaign. Gephardt, who by stepping down as House Democratic leader late last year allowed Pelosi to move into that position, probably could have elicited a promise of her support back then when it seemed she would face a challenge to the leadership post. But he didn't even try for it. Now Gephardt, who has seen his competition, most prominently Sen. Joseph Lieberman, locking up endorsements from House members for the...

<p>DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Attacking President Bush's tax-cutting efforts, two Democratic contenders for the White House in 2004 called for repealing the $1.65 trillion plan Congress passed two years ago.</p> <p>A third advocated a freeze in the phased-in reductions.</p> <p>Courting party activists a year before the opening of the presidential nominating season, Richard Gephardt, Howard Dean and John Kerry said Democrats must present a clear alternative to Bush if they hope to retake the White House from the GOP.</p>

Republican PartyPresident George W. BushAge: 56 Born: New Haven, Connecticut Yale University, 1968 Harvard University (M.B.A.), 1975 Served in Texas Air National Guard, 1968-73 Governor of Texas, 1995-2001 43rd U.S. President, 2000-present Democratic Party Senator John F. Kerry (D-Mass.)Age: 59 Born: Denver, Colorado Yale University, 1966 Boston College Law School, 1976 Served in U.S. Navy: 1966-69 District Attorney of Middlesex Cty., MA, 1977-82 Lt. Gov. of Massachussetts, 1982-84 U.S. Senator (MA), 1985-present Senator Tom Daschle (D-SC)Age: 55 Born: Aberdeen, South Dakota South Dakota State Univ., 1969 Served in U.S. Air Force, 1969-72 U.S. Representative (SD), 1979-1987 U.S. Senator (SD), 1987-present...

He lays dormant for weeks or days at a time. Then out of nowhere, he trains his sights on a target, carefully fine tunes the focus on his scope, and pulls the trigger. The only difference in him and the guy that eluded police for weeks in the D.C. area is here in Chicago the sniper does it publicly and has gotten away with it for years. After all he's a radio talk show host and no matter what comes out of a radio talk show host's mouth its excusable right? Thusly this Chicago sniper shall be called Cool Kat....

<p>Before September 11, the Bush Administration seemed to be treating China as one of the biggest threats that the U.S. faced worldwide. There was the incident of the U.S. spy plane that went down on China's Hainan Island as well as President Bush's talk about doing whatever it takes to defend Taiwan from Chinese aggression. Republicans talked about treating China as a competitor rather than as the partner envisioned by former President Bill Clinton.</p>

Dick Gephardt joined President Bush on the White House lawn Wednesday to lend his support to a joint resolution of force on Iraq and to talk tough about Saddam Hussein. So much for Barbra Streisand's fax! Is she aware that her fax has fallen on deaf ears? I don't know what Dick told you, Ms. Streisand, out there at the Kodak Theater when you guys were making up Shakespeare quotes, but your appeasement orders have been totally ignored. This has to raise eyebrows. What a bad day to be B.S. Here's President Bush surrounded by beaming, awe-struck Democrats and Republicans,...

DICK ADMITS DEMOCRATS WANT YOU TO GET SCREWED, SO THEY CAN GET ELECTED Folks, you must, must, must read the Roll Call story about how House Minority Leader Richard Gephardt wants to worsen the market crisis, and talk down the economy. You must listen the audio link below to hear how Gephardt prays for more economic bad news so the Democratic Party can win in November. Roll Call reports that he thinks he could pick up as many as 40 House seats if these scandals "can be kept on the political radar screen until November." They're going to make millions...