This afternoon, I shipped off the 283-page manuscript of my second nonfiction book, THE CLAPPER MEMO, for final editorial review.
During the next week or so, I’ll be working with my graphic artist to complete the cover art and with my marketing experts to finalize details of the book’s launch. If all goes well, THE CLAPPER MEMO should be on the market by the end of the month.
In THE CLAPPER MEMO, I’ll share details of a 40-year turf war that span the globe — from the Pentagon to universities across the country and places like Afghanistan, Iraq, Guantanamo Bay and Mexico. Plus, I connect the dots between three memos signed by top DoD officials, including Director of National Intelligence James R. Clapper Jr., and the “Green-on-Blue” attacks (a.k.a., “insider attacks”) by so-called “allies” in Afghanistan against their U.S. and coalition colleagues.
Only after claiming Congressional interference played a pivotal role in his decision, Attorney General Eric Holder announced today he will use military tribunals to try Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and several other alleged 9/11 terrorists.
AG Holder’s decision comes barely two years after President Barack Obama’s Jan. 22, 2009, announcement that he would close the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility within 12 months, prompting the “Free at Last” cartoon below which appeared in a post the following day. More importantly, it comes after the nation’s top law enforcement officer said that he still believes that the federal court system is an appropriate venue for the Justice Department to achieve swift, fair justice for 9/11 victims and family members.
The attorney general’s decision came almost four months after a Rasmussen Reports telephone survey showed 84 percent of likely U.S. voters were at least somewhat concerned that dangerous terrorists will be set free if the prison camp is closed and some prisoners are transferred to other countries. That included 57 percent who were “very concerned.”
Unfortunately, the decision today stands to bring to an end the seemingly-endless opportunities — including the “GITMO Detainee Reentry Academy” radio parody above — to criticize the Obama Administration and the for its handling of GITMO detainees.
I am, however, very willing to sacrifice such opportunities in exchange for 9/11 victims and their families finally obtaining justice.
If you enjoy this blog and want to keep reading stories like the one above, show your support by using the “Support Bob” tool at right. Thanks in advance for your support!
President Barack Obama cited national security interests, foreign policy interests and the interests of justice when he announced 23 months ago he would close the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility within 12 months. Despite more than 140 mentions of GITMO on the White House web site since then, the facility remains open. To celebrate that, I offer a review of some of this blog’s humor-filled coverage of GITMO during the past two years.
In a post Jan. 23, 2009, I surmised that President Obama would be tempted to describe himself as an emancipator in the mold of Abraham Lincoln if he was successful in shutting down GITMO within 12 months. Thankfully, Obama is no Lincoln.
Two days later, I shared a post highlighting Bruce Chapman’s hilarious radio parody about the fictitious “GITMO Detainee Reentry Academy.” In it, he imagines a nonprofit organization helping terror suspects at GITMO adjust from their life as prisoners and return to the terrorist lifestyle.
Finally, I shared news Feb. 3, 2009, about the Obama Administration’s then-new catch-and-release program and highlighted the photo above (courtesy of Doug Ross). It shows sailors gathered on the flight deck of a U.S. Navy aircraft carrier to witness the release from U.S. custody of an unnamed GITMO detainee after giving him $50 and the keys to a 1962 Ford Fairlane.
EDITOR’S NOTE: To read more-serious posts about GITMO, including several related to interrogation techniques, click here. If you enjoy this blog and want to help keep stories like the ones above coming, you can show your support by using the “Support Bob” tool at right. Thanks again for your support! Have a wonderful 2011!
Americans are more concerned than ever that the ongoing Obama administration effort to close the Guantanamo prison camp in Cuba will allow dangerous terrorists to go free, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.
Eighty-four percent of likely U.S. voters are now at least somewhat concerned that dangerous terrorists will be set free if the prison camp is closed and some prisoners are transferred to other countries. That includes 57 percent who are “very concerned.”
SEE ALSO:My exclusive report published one week ago about Department of Defense efforts to keep the best interrogation technology out of the hands of our nation’s warriors in places like Afghanistan, Iraq and Guantanamo Bay. Notably, it includes the text of documents written by high-ranking interrogation officials at GITMO.
Barely one week before election day, it’s time to review what I like to call the “year of foolishness” lived out loud by U.S. Rep. Phil Hare, a liberal Democrat running for reelection in Illinois’ 17th Congressional District.
On Dec. 16, 2009, Hare told Chris Matthews’ MSNBC audience he would welcome terrorists from Guantanamo Bay to Thomson, Ill., essentially placing “economic stimulus” for a small Illinois town above proven national security benefits of the secure facility in Cuba.
Just when observers of the 17th CD race thought things couldn’t get much worse for Hare, one of his close supporters filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission on Aug. 27, claiming a pro-Constitution veterans group had violated campaign finance laws in the process of raising a whopping $6,000.
On Sept. 19, a Moline, Ill., Hare was encouraged to “Keep on Digging!” after he told a local television station, among other things, that he was “tired of the death threats” and the “attacks on my family.”
Finally, just days before the election, Hare’s never-ending-rift with veterans surfaced again in the form of an open letter of disappointment regarding the rotund congressman’s latest screw-up: opting to name a veterans center after his old boss, Lane Evans, rather than a true war hero. The text of that letter appears below:
As a Marine Reservist with the First Marine Division, I was activated to go to Korea in 1950. Among our group was Lt. Charles Hinman, who answered the call to duty during WWII and received a battle-field commission.
During the Battle of Okinawa, Lt. Hinman carried the battle to the enemy forces with such bravery that he was awarded the Silver Star for Valor, and the Purple Heart for wounds received during the ferocious fighting. On February 10, 1951, Lt. Hinman was acting as an artillery forward observer when our combat patrol was ambushed by North Koreans. Lt. Hinman and the platoon leader were both severely wounded. However, Lt. Hinman took charge of the Marines, called artillery fire on the enemy’ s position, rallied the troops, and beat back the ambush thereby saving the patrol. For this act of gallantry, Lt Hinman was awarded his second Silver Star and his second Purple Heart.
Marine veterans from WWII, Korean, and Vietnam, requested Hare name the new Navy/Marine Center at the Rock Island Arsenal, after Marine Major Charles Hinman. However, repeated phone calls from Marine combat veterans to Hare’ s office were completely ignored, and our letters unanswered.
Instead of naming the center after a true Marine hero, Hare had this Hall of Heroes named after his friend and mentor Lane Evans, who never saw one day of combat. This is an insult to Veterans and Reservist.
Phil Hare once again shows who he really stands for, and it’ s not veterans.
Fred Frankville
Milan, Illinois
Citizens of Illinois’ 17th CD, please vote responsibly.
If you saw the front page of the latest edition of QUAD CITIES LABOR NEWS, you probably noticed an article under the headline, WHAT’S WITH ALL THE BILLBOARDS? Unfortunately, the article beneath the headline fails to offer a truthful answer to the question and, in fact, stinks of desperation.
The article begins with the following inaccurate description of the nonprofit group behind the placement of election-focused billboards in the Quad Cities area:
Perhaps you’ve seen them. They disparage Phil Hare while saying little about who is paying for them. The group behind the billboards on 11th Ave. in Rock Island and River Drive in Moline is a front group for Bobby Schilling called Veterans4Schilling.
In the remaining paragraphs of the labor union rag, truth seems to be an afterthought.
In the second paragraph, for example, it’s claimed that “The Federal Election Commission has already filed a complain against Veterans4Schilling for unethical practices” and it’s alleged that the group changed its name to Veterans4Constitution after the complaint was filed.
First, everyone knows the Federal Election Commission did not file any complaints. It was an operative of Hare — one James L. Moody — who filed the Aug. 27 complaint with the FEC. Second, one needs only read the complaint to see that Moody directed his “beef” at Veterans 4 Constitution, not Veterans 4 Schilling.
As for the claim that appears in the third paragraph (i.e., that none of the Republican candidates endorsed by the veterans group were veterans), I’d love to find out why Robert Enriquez, the GOP candidate for Illinois Secretary of State, doesn’t qualify as a veteran in the eyes of the labor folks. After all, he served as a Marine Corps officer and completed two overseas tours.
Perhaps the largest omission in the article — and in all of Hare’s campaign literature/advertising for that matter — is the fact that Republican Bobby Schilling is no stranger to labor unions. Not only did he serve as a union steward for Local 191 of the United Paperworkers International Union from 1983-87, but he served as treasurer for the United Food and Commercial Workers Union from 1987-95. In short, he understands how unions work.
U.S. Rep. Phil Hare (D-Ill.)
Now, back to the matter of those billboards.
In short, the billboard messages paint Hare in the light of truth and are based on a number of incidents involving the the 17th Congressional District’s incumbent Democrat. Below are some examples:
5. During a Labor Day parade in East Moline, Ill., he told a local television reporter he had received death threats, but never filed a police report, leading many to believe he was seeking sympathy; and
6. Throughout the campaign season, Hare has upset veterans by calling himself a veteran despite the fact that “veteran” status is, according to the federal government, “reserved for a person who served in the active military, naval, or air service, and who was discharged or released therefrom under conditions other than dishonorable.”
UPDATE 10/04/10 at 11:05 a.m. Central: Cross-posted at BigGovernment.com.
A parody with ties to President Barack Obama’s pledge to close the Guantanamo Bay Detention Facility, my friend Bruce Chapman‘s mock commercial for the fictitious GITMO Detainee Reentry Academy deserves to be shared with a worldwide audience. Enjoy and pass it on!
This afternoon, I shipped off the 283-page manuscript of my second nonfiction book, THE CLAPPER MEMO, for final editorial review.
