Obama denies that U. S. has given Isreal green light to attack Iran

Just as I surmised, Biden was out of line, again when he was interviewed on Sunday.

The AP reports On ABC's This Week, Vice President Biden signaled that the Obama administration would not stand in the way if Israel chose to attack Iran's nuclear facilities, even as the top U.S. military officer said any attack on Iran would be destabilizing.

Now Obama is doing damage control with reports out today from the AFP:

US President Barack Obama on Tuesday strongly denied that the United States had given Israel a green light to strike Iran's nuclear facilities, in an interview on CNN television.

Asked by the cable television broadcaster whether Washington had given Israel the go-ahead to attack Iran's nuclear facilities, Obama answered: "Absolutely not."

In the interview, which was broadcast from Russia, where he is on an official visit, he added: "We can't dictate to other countries what their security interests are.

"What is also true is, it is the policy of the United States to try to resolve the issue of Iran's nuclear capabilities," Obama said.

This would be achieved "through diplomatic channels," he added.

And from Boston.com:

Obama was asked on CNN this morning, "Are you giving Israel a green light?"

"Absolutely not," the president replied. "And I think it’s very important that I’m as clear as I can be, and our administration is as consistent as we can be on this issue."

"I think Vice President Biden stated a categorical fact which is we can't dictate to other countries what their security interests are," Obama added. "What is also true is that it is the policy of the United States to try to resolve the issue of Iran’s nuclear capabilities in a peaceful way through diplomatic channels. That is our policy, I have been talking about this for the last two years, we are going to continue to pursue this, and you know we have said directly to the Israelis that it is important to try and solve this in an international setting in a way that does not create major conflict in the Middle East.

I don't dislike Biden but he does have a trigger mouth and seems always to say things before he really thinks about what he is saying.

Between Biden and Emanuel, Obama has his hands full. And I think he is regretting his choice for economic advice as well, if not yet, very soon! I am thinking Obama has many regrets on who he chose for many cabinet members and aides. He's learning fast that who stands behind you is very important.

More on the Haliburton Move

Raw Story is reporting that "Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) is calling on the U.S. Treasury to ensure that a controversial Houston-based multinational corporation, Halliburton, is not benefiting financially from the move of its headquarters to the United Arab Emirates".

Here's my comment from my post from March 11, 2006:

So is it that Haliburton is abandoning the Bush admin for greener pastures or is there a grander scheme? It's closer to Iraq and Iran. And I believe that Haliburton is already in Iran. I need time to dissect this move but it doesn't feel right.

Iran!

The Raw Story article goes on to say:

In response to the announcement that Halliburton's CEO is moving the company's headquarters to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, U.S. Senator Frank R. Lautenberg (D-NJ) called on the Treasury Department to make sure Halliburton's move is not part of a larger effort to increase Halliburton's business with Iran by evading current U.S. sanctions laws prohibiting any U.S. company from doing business with terrorist states.

Also the no bid contracts that Haliburton received from our government is an issue in this as well as Congress's investigation of over charges to our government.

Read the rest of the Raw Story article that also shows the letter that Sen. Laughtenburg wrote to the US Treasury Dept.

More to come, I am sure!

Iran Threat Affects our Economy

The Stock Market was down today in spite of some good news about another buyout of an energy company. One of the main reasons...the political situation with Iran.

Here's a report from the AFP:

Dollar sags ahead of US economic data
Mon Feb 26, 5:19 PM ET

The dollar traded mainly lower Monday as the market braced for fresh data expected to show a slowdown in the US economy, and monitored tensions over Iran's nuclear ambitions, dealers said.

The euro rose to 1.3185 dollars at 2200 GMT from 1.3170 dollars late in New York on Friday, after earlier reaching a high of 1.3199 dollars, its highest level since January 3.

The dollar fell to 120.59 yen, from 120.98 yen on Friday.

Jordan Eburne at PNC Bank said the dollar was under pressure "ahead of this week's slew of consumer data that is expected to show a slowdown in the US economy."

The market awaited data on consumer confidence and durable goods orders Tuesday, and several reports this week on the housing market.

On Wednesday, US growth for the fourth quarter is expected to be downgraded to 2.3 percent from the 3.5 percent first estimate, analysts predicted.

The market was also affected by concerns about geopolitics, specifically Iran.

"The dollar is facing moderate pressure as players are cautious about holding long positions on the dollar as the Iran situation has become shaky again," said Ryohei Muramatsu with Commerz Bank.

The dollar was hit by renewed concern about Iran as six key world powers grappling to contain the country's nuclear ambitions held talks Monday in London on how to increase pressure on Tehran.

Do you still think Bush won't bomb Iran?

A Contingency Plan?

It's time to contact your Congress members, both House and Senate. Bush and Cheney are hell bent to get us into a war with Iran. It's not enough that we are in Afghanistan and Iraq. They are playing a bad game of Strategy.

From the AP

U.S. developing contingency plan to bomb Iran: report Sat Feb 24, 7:52 PM ET
Despite the Bush administration's insistence it has no plans to go to war with Iran, a Pentagon panel has been created to plan a bombing attack that could be implemented within 24 hours of getting the go-ahead from President George W. Bush, The New Yorker magazine reported in its latest issue.

The special planning group was established within the office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in recent months, according to an unidentified former U.S. intelligence official cited in the article by investigative reporter Seymour Hersh in the March 4 issue.

The panel initially focused on destroying Iran's nuclear facilities and on regime change but has more recently been directed to identify targets in Iran that may be involved in supplying or aiding militants in Iraq, according to an Air Force adviser and a Pentagon consultant, who were not identified.

The consultant and a former senior intelligence official both said that U.S. military and special-operations teams had crossed the border from Iraq into Iran in pursuit of Iranian operatives, according to the article.

In response to the report, Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said: "The United States is not planning to go to war with Iran. To suggest anything to the contrary is simply wrong, misleading and mischievous.

"The United States has been very clear with respect to its concerns regarding specific Iranian government activities. The president has repeatedly stated publicly that this country is going to work with allies in the region to address those concerns through diplomatic efforts," Whitman said.

Pentagon officials say they maintain contingency plans for literally dozens of potential conflicts around the world and that all plans are subject to regular and ongoing review.

If we don't speak up, NOW, this will happen. The worst administration ever!

Iran!

The rhetoric for the attack on Iran has been heating up. VP Cheney has been talking about the buildup of our fleet in the Arabian Gulf and a possible strike on Iran. Here's some excerpts from an article in the Australian:

Cheney hints at Iran strike
Greg Sheridan, Foreign editor
February 24, 2007

US Vice-President Dick Cheney has raised the possibility of military action to stop Iran acquiring nuclear weapons.
He has endorsed Republican senator John McCain's proposition that the only thing worse than a military confrontation with Iran would be a nuclear-armed Iran.

In an exclusive interview with The Weekend Australian, Mr Cheney said: "I would guess that John McCain and I are pretty close to agreement."

The visiting Vice-President said that he had no doubt Iran was striving to enrich uranium to the point where they could make nuclear weapons.

He accused Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of espousing an "apocalyptic philosophy" and making "threatening noises about Israel and the US and others".

He also said Iran was a sponsor of terrorism, especially through Hezbollah. However, the US did not believe Iran possessed any nuclear weapons as yet.

"You get various estimates of where the point of no return is," Mr Cheney said, identifying nuclear terrorism as the greatest threat to the world. "Is it when they possess weapons or does it come sooner, when they have mastered the technology but perhaps not yet produced fissile material for weapons?"

It seems our admin is getting closer to taking us into another war. The Generals don't seem to like this much. From the Times on Line:

US generals ‘will quit’ if Bush orders Iran attack
Michael Smith and Sarah Baxter, Washington
SOME of America’s most senior military commanders are prepared to resign if the White House orders a military strike against Iran, according to highly placed defence and intelligence sources.

Tension in the Gulf region has raised fears that an attack on Iran is becoming increasingly likely before President George Bush leaves office. The Sunday Times has learnt that up to five generals and admirals are willing to resign rather than approve what they consider would be a reckless attack.

“There are four or five generals and admirals we know of who would resign if Bush ordered an attack on Iran,” a source with close ties to British intelligence said. “There is simply no stomach for it in the Pentagon, and a lot of people question whether such an attack would be effective or even possible.”

A British defence source confirmed that there were deep misgivings inside the Pentagon about a military strike. “All the generals are perfectly clear that they don’t have the military capacity to take Iran on in any meaningful fashion. Nobody wants to do it and it would be a matter of conscience for them.

“There are enough people who feel this would be an error of judgment too far for there to be resignations.”

A generals’ revolt on such a scale would be unprecedented. “American generals usually stay and fight until they get fired,” said a Pentagon source. Robert Gates, the defence secretary, has repeatedly warned against striking Iran and is believed to represent the view of his senior commanders.

I was afraid of this. Bush and Cheney are itching to get us into another war. If this happens, the oils supply to our nation and others will be curtailed and the price of oil will skyrocket. These are madmen and they have to be stopped and they have to be impeached. They think they can do whatever they want and no one can stop them.

Quds. The New Enemy?

Newsweek has a Web Exclusive that explains the Quds. In a speech the other night, Bush "annointed" a new enemy. Of course this enemy is from Iran. Here's a few excerpts from this Newsweek article:

President Bush officially anointed a new enemy of the United States on Wednesday: the “Quds Force.” After a week in which his administration contradicted itself repeatedly over the threat from Iran, Bush settled on what he said were the known facts. The sophisticated weapons being used against U.S. troops in Iraq “were provided by the Quds Force,” a paramilitary arm of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the president said at a news conference in the East Room. “We know that. And we also know that the Quds Force is a part of the Iranian government. That’s a known. What we don’t know is whether or not head leaders of Iran ordered the Quds Force to do what they did.”

It's funny how noone really believes this admin since the truth came out about Iraq. But Bush and his cronies are still trying to use the same tactics they used in the buildup to the war with Iraq.

This Newsweek article goes on to explain just what the Quds are:

The Quds Force was created by the IRGC—the powerful institution created to defend Iran’s 1979 Islamist revolution—toward the end of the Iran-Iraq War in the 1980s. Its purpose: to conduct operations inside Iraqi territory, especially the Kurdish region that operated somewhat autonomously from Saddam Hussein’s government. “Quds” means “Jerusalem” in Arabic, and the goal of the Islamist revolutionaries who started the group was to take over Jerusalem after capturing Baghdad. Even after the Iran-Iraq War ended in 1988, the Quds Force, or Quds Brigade as it is also called, maintained three major foreign operations: supporting the Kurds in Iraq against Saddam, backing the Muslim Bosnians against the Serbs and working with Masoud and his Northern Alliance in Afghanistan. After Masoud was assassinated by Al Qaeda operatives on Sept. 9., 2001, Quds Force members helped the U.S.-assisted Northern Alliance cross the Kokcha River between Tajikistan and Afghanistan and advance toward Kabul to oust the Taliban, according to Iranian officials.

These Qud forces helped us with the Taliban in Afghanistan. Now they are our enemies according to Bush. More proof that Iran, at one time, was willing to help the US.

Here's the link to the rest of the story