Yesterday the two KIRO talk show hosts cooperated to shed more light on Congressman McDermott's relationship with the Islamic charity that was just raided by the FBI. When I caught part of Monson's show yesterday, I learned that McDermott, though not willing to come on Monson's show, had appeared on Ross's show that morning. Even better, Monson said that Ross had worked with him to develop questions for McDermott. I don't often find reason to give Ross credit, but I certainly will for this.
And there's more. Monson brought Debbie Schlussel back and played portions of the McDermott interview. She found much of what McDermott said absurd — rightly, in my view.
This Schlussel column will give you an idea about what this charity may have been up to. I found this part especially striking.
In June 2004, U.S. troops raided LRD's offices in Iraq. That was a month after an LRD fund-raiser in Southern California, at which speakers said LRD sponsored operations in Fallujah and orphans in Afghanistan. My federal law-enforcement sources believe that LRD may have been funding terrorist insurgents in both places. (The event's keynoter was Wagdi Mohammed Ghoneim, an Islamic cleric who has since been deported because of his meetings with two of the 9/11 hijackers.)
(LRD = LIFE for Relief and Development.)
Her informants may be wrong, but if they are right, then this "charity" has been sending money to support terrorists in Iraq and Afghanistan, terrorists who have murdered thousands of civilians and hundreds of American soldiers. If her informants are right, this is not a group that our elected officials should associate with in any way. But some have. Democratic Senator Carl Levin even helped the group get a federal grant, which was supposed to go for relief efforts in Iraq. Levin and McDermott owe us explanations. (And there are other politicians, including some Republicans, who need to come clean about their relationships with this group.)
And, again assuming her informants are right in their suspicions, some federal bureaucrats in both the FBI and the Homeland Security department have been way too close to LRD.
(Another tip for "mainstream" journalists: Congressman McDermott, or at least his office, will talk to some of you, at least occasionally. Why not ask him why he refuses to debate opponents, why he refuses even to speak to talk show hosts who are not of his party? And, if you are enterprising, you might ask him why President Bush, who is not a great debater, is willing to confront those who disagree with him. Why isn't McDermott willing to do the same?)
Posted by Jim Miller at September 21, 2006 07:26 AM | Email Thisfor McDermatitis, it's just "community relations" and "building bridges" with that organization, ethnic & religious voting block--our national security be damned;
"patriotic" is not in McD's vocabulary; he learned the word as "pastry-otic" and endeavors to find the best ones in Seattle cake shops--again--calories and national security be damned;
Posted by: jimmie-howya-doin on September 21, 2006 07:39 AMDoesn't this post represent the type of slimeball partisan innuendo that McGavick says is wrong and that he's running against?
Posted by: thor on September 21, 2006 08:28 AMThere are Muslim charitable organizations that are on the up and up, and there are those that are terrorist fronts. If, in this day and age, we have politicans who are naive enough to support Muslim organizations without doing due diligence, they need to be called to account. That's not innuendo, that's stewardship - of our money and our lives.
Posted by: sr on September 21, 2006 08:45 AMBut when Slimeball Democrats do it, it's called "fact-finding," right? Like the "fact finding" question that that tramp reportress asked George Allen, right? Like the "fact-finding" investigation performed by Patrick Fitzgerald, right? Like the "fact-finding" 60 Minutes investigation of President Bush's ANG service, right?
You on the left have deluded yourself into thinking that you have everyone conned. You are, of course, wrong. Everyone knows that you guys have no moral compass or personal scruples other than whatever will justify your ends in your own minds. Your hopeless incorrigibility proves why it's so important to eradicate leftism from government- starting with this treasonous piece of shit named Jim McDermott.
Posted by: ERNurse on September 21, 2006 10:03 AMThe statue of liberty replica there gets vandalized on a regular basis, and though some of it is undoubtably done by visitors to the park, a lot of it happens late on weeknights and in the winter.
My brother flies an American flag, which gets burned or defaced at least every other month. (No small feat since the flag is on a flagpole that is more than 15 feet tall.)
His bumper stickers, which are always in some way supportive of the troops since he is a veteran, are either defaced or removed at least monthly. His neighbor - who has a license plate saying he was a POW, gets no better treatment.
I have lived in many areas of the country and also internationally. I have experienced anti-Americanism in Europe, Asia, South America and the middle east, but I'd say West Seattle is right up there.
Why indeed. McDermott, Sims, Nickles, Gregoire. Divine right of moonbats.
The lack of accountability, along with having taken economics and history, is the reason I stopped voting dem a long time ago. It's one thing to be wrong about something. It happens to all of us. But to make something wrong into a priority agenda item pushed by lies, obfuscation, and no accountability is simply wrong.
Myopic moonbats try to make the same claim against Bush, but miss the point. Bush loaded up his campaign for a second term as a referendum on the prosecution of the war, and he won the election. That is accountability, not the "inability to address any other issues."
These elected (or unelected, as in the case of Gregoire) officials fail to see that public irritation towards them is from the "let them eat cake" mindset. Or "let them drink coffee."
Posted by: scott158 on September 21, 2006 12:43 PMI saw McDermott debating three of his challengers at a political forum last month in the Central District. All of his competitors were invivted and were given a chance to speak. So that is completely inaccurate.
Posted by: OLE on September 21, 2006 02:29 PMThis is also INACCURATE. I saw an interview with him in the Wall Street Journal, which is conservative and numerous times on news shows arguing with R congressmembers
Posted by: OLE on September 21, 2006 02:32 PMComprehension problems?
Posted by: jimg on September 21, 2006 05:26 PMWhat's the difference between having a debate with a conservative congressman on TV and having a debate with a conservative talk show host on the radio?
equivalency problems?
His pompous attitude shows up, but that doesn't take away from the fact that in Congress - he is as useless as teets on a boar. He is one of the strongest arguments there is for Term Limits.
Posted by: KS on September 21, 2006 09:09 PMWhat beleifs/legislative policies does he have that are socialist? Please NAME them.
All this "friend of dictator" crap is all based on the trip he made to Iraq before the war. I encourage you to listen to his whole statement. He is far from a friend of Saddam...he just tried to stop us from getting into this mess.
Moral relativism...hmmm. So would that have anything to do with Bush's secret prisons, GITMO, "interogation techniques" that he can't tell us because it will put us in danger...please.
Posted by: OLE on September 22, 2006 09:29 AMWhy exactly are D's policies wrong? What policies do R have that are good and why are they superior to Ds?
G Jiggy,
Have you ever been to DC? Have you worked on the hill?
Well, for one thing it is unlawful to consort with an enemy in time of war. This Muslim organization has ties to terrorist operants. They also have ties with McDermott. Law broken; Policy wrong.
Second, traveling on one's own initiative to a hostile country for the purpose of undermining a sitting Commander-in-Chief and making oneself look good is not only bad form; it's treason. Spin that.
Third, eavesdropping on a private telephone call, recording said conversation, and then distributing the recording of said conversiation is against the law. Or is that okay only if a Democrat does it? Hell, Bush wasn't even doing that and you guys got your thongs in a twist over it.
McDermott is only a breathing manifestation of a larger problem: the endemic hypocrisy and circumvention of the law that is endemic to the McDermott and the DNC. If a Democrat does it, it's okay- wink wink, nudge, nudge. But if a Republican does it, it's wrong, wrong, wrong!
This is what the rest of the world sees in the Democrat Party. You may like to think otherwise, but look at the map. See all that red? And those little pockets of blue? Those are called "enclaves," Ole. You might prefer to call them "communes."
So in summation, your willingness to defend a coward who consistently provides aid and comfort to an enemy in time of war does not speak well of your own character. No, I'm not casting aspersions on your patriotism. I'm flat-out calling you a traitor.
Posted by: ERNurse on September 22, 2006 01:21 PMAs for Jimmy being in Baghdad (your 19), I remember the situation clearly. Saddam had been hostile to the world community for years and had financed much chaos throughout the Middle East if not further. On the eve of the war MickeyD said in a televised interview *from Baghdad* that President Bush "would mislead the American people" then saying "I think you have to take the Iraqis at face value." That's right . . . "Face Value" from a regime that would lie if the truth would do them more good. Oh bythe way, not long after his visit to Baghdad he got 5K from one of Saddam's buddies whom he called "a friend" when later found out. The connection was originally found out by reading Ba'ath Party documents uncovered by troops after the fall of Baghdad. To top it all off, he made no secret of his opinion that the troops finding Saddam was really "stage managed" for timing, having actually found him some time much earlier and "saving" him for maximum effect. Even Norm Dicks got on his ass for that one. The guy is at least a horrible disgrace if not treasonous. It is instructive that MickeyD thinks that these things, as well as the phone taps, are OK to this day.
And don't start with that "Bush lied" garbage to justify MickeyD's treasonous ways. All of that has been debunked more than a number of times.
Your 21: Polices wrong. How about refusing to fix an obviously failing Social Security system? If SS was so damn nice how come we can't have the same kind that MickeyD (and all other political elites) has? That's what the Rs were proposing. Hell, even Clinton admitted that SS was in trouble but you won't hear that now. How about school vouchers to get poor kids into better schools of *their* choice? The Ds have been fighting that tooth and nail. How does that help the poor? How does torpedoing Wal-Mart help the poor? How does blocking the building of refineries help the poor buy gas to get to work? There is so much more, I just don't have the time.
Look ¡OLE!, I used to BE a Democrat voter until the day 15 years ago (+/-) that I sat down and started to really look at the facts objectively. I suggest you do the same. I will say that no political party is perfect, it is a collection of politicians after all . . . but the slow motion Socialism of the Democrats isn't for me . . .
ER Nurse:
1. There is no proof that McDermott had any knowledge of thei doings and they just were raided a few days ago so you have no idea about guilt. I have 6 words for you: Libby
DeLay
Cunningham
Ney
Abramoff (I was on the hill when this guy was going nuts. He was a super lobbyists for the R party and the K street project)
Gingirch
and these are people who have been convicted, will be and have an immense amount of evidience for wrong doing
2. Well the 'commander and chief" turned out to be wrong and McD turnout to be right.
3. Phone conversation: If you would follow the case or even read an article about it McD had nothing to do with the phone conversation being recorded...it was a florida couple who were trying to spy on their daughter's phone calls. He was the chair of the ethics committee at the time so they brought the tape to him and Gingridge was in Look at the Bernaki supreme court case. Exactly same situation, but this time it was two union guys conspiring. The supreme court decided against them, just like they will agianst Boehner (R).
4. "This is what the rest of the world sees in the Democrat Party" hahaha...you have got to be joking me (also i thought you guys didn't care what anybody else in the world thought). GWB is more hated in world opinion the f(*king bin laden
G Jiggy,
News flash. You control both chambers of congress and the white house! so don't blame Jim or any other D for crap like social security reform from happening. All the - policy elements you talk about below about D's-- why haven't they changed since you guys are running the ENTIRE government?
Posted by: ole on September 22, 2006 06:08 PMI am for the interrogation techniques that have been used - if they hadn't we would have undoubtedly been attacked again. Do you want to convert to Islam ? How does the Geneva convention apply to terrorists that are not wearing a country's uniform ? You are dead wrong if you think it does. So stop drinking your leftist kool aid and face reality !
Posted by: KS on September 23, 2006 08:49 AMI am for the interrogation techniques that have been used - if they hadn't we would have undoubtedly been attacked again. Do you want to convert to Islam ? How does the Geneva convention apply to terrorists that are not wearing a country's uniform ? You are dead wrong if you think it does. So stop drinking your leftist kool aid and face reality !
Posted by: KS on September 23, 2006 08:49 AMBeing pro-people and being pro-money are not mutually exclusive. Maybe you are all just mad and blaming because you aren't sucessful.
Another piece of advice. Stop listening to talk radio. It is a lazy man's news. If you want to get your news, get the full picture AND MAKE YOUR OWN DECSION ABOUT HOW YOU THINK (if possible). Not some windbag's idea of what you should believe. And everything they say doesn't have to be true - because THEY ARE NOT JOURNALISTS.
From reading these posts, you are clearly angry people. If you had it ALL YOUR WAY, you would still be miserable. Sex helps. Have a little why don't you? It really is sad!
Yours Truly,
Another sucessful independent Seattle small business owner (and capitalist) who will votes for McDermott.
Posted by: ap on September 23, 2006 10:28 AM