Letters to the Editor
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Can't spell "taliesan" without "lies"
"Clinton didn't go to war in October of 2000 because, you might not have noticed this, but Clinton actually largely obeyed the rules and would have had to have gone to a Republican Congress and Senate that had for the last 2 years before 2000, been accusing him of wagging the dog."
First, Clinton never once went to Congress to get authority to use military force, and that includes Operation Desert Fox and the war in Kosovo. In addition, Clinton did not seek congressional approval when he retaliated (albeit, ineffectively) against al Qaeda in August 1998. Why would he need congressional approval in October 2000?
Second, it is a lie to say the GOP accused Clinton of wagging the dog.
According to an August 21, 1998 Washington Post article, “President Clinton won warm support for ordering anti-terrorist bombing attacks in Afghanistan and Sudan yesterday from many of the same lawmakers who have criticized him harshly as a leader critically weakened by poor judgment and reckless behavior in the Monica S. Lewinsky scandal.”
According to the article House Speaker Newt Gingrich said, “I think the president did exactly the right thing. By doing this we're sending the signal there are no sanctuaries for terrorists."
Senate Majority Leader Trent Lott called the attacks "appropriate and just," and House Majority Leader
Richard K. Armey said "the American people stand united in the face of terrorism."
And, contrary to the Clinton’s claim that Republicans thought he was doing to much to counter al Qaeda, Sen. Orrin Hatch said, “In the past I was worried that this administration didn't take this threat seriously enough, and didn't take Osama bin Laden seriously enough; I'm going to support him, wish him well and back him up.”
Porter J. Goss, who was then chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, echoed Hatch. “If anything, this was somewhat overdue, and I'm not talking days, but months and years. This needs to be the first punch we land. We need to land more."
Unfortunately, this first punch against al Qaeda would also be the last punch that Clinton threw at al Qaeda. Instead of throwing additional punches at al Qaeda, Clinton opted to throw a few punches at Saddam Hussein in December 1998 during the preemptive attack known as Operation Desert Fox. After throwing those punches, he then decided, without congressional or UN approval, to throw punches at Slobodan Milosevic in Kosovo during the spring of 1999.
"It would have been pointless, and unless you didn't notice, Clinton didn't have all of those special powers Bush would get thanks to the Patriot act."
You don't know what you're talking about, moonbat. The Patriot Act was passed on October 26, 2001. We went after al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan beginning on October 7, 2001. Obviously, Clinton did not need a Patriot Act to go after al Qaeda.
"That's the truth of terrorism during Clinton's reign, Clinton tried to do something about it, but he was accused of wagging the dog."
I have shown that that is a lie,