Robert Gates And Hillary To GOP Leaders: You’re Putting Our Security At Risk
Wow. Robert Gates and Hillary Clinton are now thrusting themselves into the raging fight over the White House’s request for Congressional cash for the International Monetary Fund, demanding in a letter that GOP leaders back the funding or put our security at risk.
I’ve obtained a copy of the letter, which was sent to GOP leaders John Boehner and Mitch McConnell and Dem leaders Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid, though the obvious targets are the Republicans, who have opposed the IMF funding. Gates and Clinton significantly up the stakes, saying that the IMF funding would reduce the threat of terrorism.
The battle over the IMF funding is at the center of the big battle on Capitol Hill over the war spending bill. House Republicans are strongly opposed to including in the bill the IMF funding, which the White House wants to fulfill a pledge to foreign leaders to fund the IMF to help foreign economies weather the downturn.
In the letter, Gates, Clinton and a third signatory, National Security Adviser James Jones, say the IMF plays a key role in reducing the “security risks” the crisis “poses to our nation and the world.” The crisis, it says, risks destabilizing foreign economies, producing “unforeseeable reactions.” It adds:
Financial hardships and poverty breed desperation, which helps terrorist networks to attract new recruits with messages of hate, violence and intolerance. IMF financing reduces this threat by reducing economic instability in vulnerable states.
Ironically, Boehner and Eric Cantor have justified their opposition to the IMF funding on national security grounds, claiming it could help state sponsors of terror. But that case could be tougher to make, now that Gates, Clinton and Jones say funding the IMF is necessary to reduce the terror threat and enhance our security.
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This shows, among other things, the genius of keeping Gates in that job. He’s a Republican, so when he says stuff like this (which, by the way, also has the virtue of being the truth), it makes the wingnuts look even worse than they would otherwise.
Very Interesting Greg…how do Republican’s justify these positions when there own people (Gates and Jones) are part of what they are criticizing…I am telling you, the GOP is so desperate for talking points that they are not even thinking these things through, and then they look ridiculous…Cantor now saying President Obama is like Putin!?! WhaWhaWhaWhat?? Good luck with that Cantor-on a President with a 60% approval rating…these guys are just all over the place nonsensical.
So they want money to filter through the IMF and pay off tin-pan dictators to temporarily quiet terrorists. Yeah, that’ll work. :rollseyes:
Money down a blackhole by idiots liberals (pardon the redundancy) who can’t even tie their own shoes without a 50,000 page gov’t manual telling them how, much less comprehend the complexity of the world.
Robert Gates and James Jones=idiot liberals? Interesting…
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Hey FX, yeah, totally, except media now dismisses stuff like this by saying Gates is just pushing admin line…
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And Jenn, I have no clue how folks can keep pushing that line in the face of this –best explanation I can come up with is point above…
It seems a bit diffuclt to reconcile everything that is going on here with our nation’s ’security’. Voting against IMF funding will endanger us, but we should blame that on the Republicans only – don’t look at all the Dems who also wanted to vote this increase down. (Of course, they’ve now been bought off.) At the same time, if Gates and Hillary says that releasing detainee photos will endanger us I guess it’s okay to ignore them because, after all, it’s Democrats who are pushing for this release?
elad~ Gates and Jones idiot liberals? What in the world…you have landed yourself on the wrong blog…you need to head back to “alternate universe” where up is down, north is south and neo-nazi’s are left-wing extremists, that’s obviously where you are more comfortable.
Greg~great post before about the Christian Right still raising money off of the DHS report…it got a little intense over there…Good Stuff
@sbj ACLU filed FOIA for release of the photos.
Love the full court press.
@par4: And the applicable law explicitly permits the photos to be shielded either by an act of congress or by executive order.
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Your point?
Greg~ This post is linked on the top of the *Politics* page at HuffPo…congrats
My Greggy, you’ve got quite the infestation. Freshman year must be over for everyone now.
To the people complaining about money down a dark hole; How about Bush paying all those countries for supporting his war with Iraq. How much did that cost us? Think Samoa!
elad: That how you felt when we bought off the Sunni Awakening council to try to prove the surgescalation was working and Iraq was a success?
I agree that keeping Gates was brilliant.
Let me get this straight: That if a foreign country that is having financial hardship and poverty that will then cause them to find the funds for training, education, armament, planning, support to pull off a terrorist act more than if we just buy their allegiance? I am highly skeptical of this line of reasoning.
The Repubs have always thought that any terrorist attack on US grounds will favor their politics in 2010. They will fight to keep the US vulnerable to attacks by spending money to fight on foreign soil, not by spending money for people who live on foreign soil.
It is tue. They are putting politics above national security. What a bunch of sore losers.
Onaeb, how about if we help a foreign country that is having financial hardship and poverty improve its standard of living through education, infrastructure, supporting small businesses, and such, we will be removing much of the incentive for people to become terrorists?
BULLCR_P
Looks like the GOP is up the proverbial creek, sans paddle, when it comes to mounting a defense against this IMF funding…
How typical of the Obama/Clinton/Gates administration to immediately adopt the rhetoric of George W. Bush. Let’s be clear about one thing, the IMF already has hundreds of billions of dollars, they just don’t want to tap into their reserves, so the US tax payer is being asked to foot the bill.
This whole debate is dishonest. If the IMF funding is so important, let it stand alone instead of tacking it onto a war funding bill.
So, for those keeping score at home…
Releasing terrorist detainee photos? NOT a risk to our national security.
Refusing to go along with dumping more $$ down the IMF black hole? A risk to our national security.
Welcome to the Obamanation.
The GOP would gladly sacrifice the entire country, if it gained them more power. They are the antithesis of patriotic.
Uh, Thomas – under what rock were you living from 2001-2009?
Glass houses, stones, and all that.
obama is brilliant and every move he has made so far has been brilliant. That’s what’s driving you white racists so cray isn’t it? Not only did this country overwhelmingly elect a black man, but a brilliant one at that
It should be obvious to anyone who has been paying attention to what has been going on over the last nine (9) years, and in particular since the Democrats took over the Congress, Senate and Presidency that the only thing the Republican so-called “leadership” has been interested in doing is regaining power, no matter what the cost to others. That is seen, not only on Capitol Hill but in such tactics as we are seeing in Minnesota with Norm Coleman. The latter surprises me greatly as when I lived there (for 26 years) Minnesotans, while tolerant, had a great deal of just plain old common sense and wouldn’t put up with any foolishness. Although there were signs things were changing when I left, right now they appear to have “lost” or “abandoned” both.
This brings to mind the big question; what are the Repubs up to. All their no’s get big publicity but Jim Baker’s approval of Obama’s Foreign Policy gets no coverage? Does it not deserve to be covered? Who or what is squelching that????
@maria
Precisely. They couldn’t stand he was elected, now they can’t stand he’s SUCCEEDING.
Whoa!!! The Republican Party is weak on National Security!
he hasn’t changed at all. but no one asked him to.
The Republicans should call for two separate up/down votes: First, war funding for Iraq and Afghanistan should be brought to the floor for a straight vote without amendments. Secondly, the additional funding (some $100 billion or twice the cost of the GM bailout) for the IMF should be debated and voted on without unrelated amendments. The economic and strategic ramifications of additional IMF funding is debatable and is not directly related to funding the ongoing war efforts by the Defense Department.
“Who or what is squelching that????”
Theresia forgey – good question; I can come up with some plausible suspects, but I don’t have any real evidence. I’ll say this – Cheney certainly still has the media tucked right into his pocket. I wish I knew why.
“# Ron | June 11th, 2009 at 06:43 pm
@maria
Precisely. They couldn’t stand he was elected, now they can’t stand he’s SUCCEEDING.
”
I co-sign both of you.
A couple of quick comments…
-First, instead of being critical of those who come on here and disagree with the writtings, you should be tolerant of them and welcome them to the discussion. Unless of course you consider learning to be something that occurs when ideas and reporting go unchallenged. Of course that sounds similar to what some claim about those who listen to conservative talk-failure to question the integrity of the writter/speaker/reporter.
-If you disagree with something, please back it up with facts or at least be honest and call it opinion. No problem having an open and honest discourse with anybody, however, calling somebody a racist because he disagrees with or dislikes the President? Please apply critical thinking, or you are exactly what you proclaim the other side to be-ignorant and intolerant.
-If you really believe that either side “wants” the US to be attacked, then I question why anybody would vote for them-period. Again, please use some critical thinking and stick to the issues and facts. Hyperbole and name calling does not advance your cause.
-I think the President has done pretty well so far, with some minor slipups here and there. I believe that most of the issues he has encountered have been caused by his subordinates. To be honest, if you think the President makes all the decisions, you need (again) to apply critical thinking. He has proven to be loyal so far to those he has working for him, which is a good thing. Remember, however, loyalty to individuals at the price of the greater good is exactly what we critisized President Bush for with regard to Rumsfeld. So President Obama needs to keep this in mind going forward (think SEC TRES).
-IMF- first, I agree that we need to get away from attaching bills to Defense Supplementals. Pretty sure I heard the President say he wanted transparency and honesty in government when he was a candidate.
-I also think that the IMF funding is important, but we need to start with a comprehensive plan across the government. If you believe that the Dept of State (DOS) has a long term plan, you would be incorrect. The only department that lines out a long term plan is the DoD and that is by law. It starts with the QDR, the NDS, the NMS, etc, etc. Without a comprehensive plan, what is the desired endstate of the money and how does it factor into an overall strategy for long term success? No President or legislator has pushed a plan like this, President Obama needs to do this in order to ensure any money spent, including the proposed IMF funds, is spent appropriately.
-It is clear that some of the senior democratic leaders (Reid, Pelosi) are not interested in helping the President in his pledge to get rid of pork. They could force bills to go through on their own merits and without appropriations attached. Regardless of the validity or need, it is all about appearance. If you disagree, remember people like Richard Jewel. Perception is reality.
-It is dishonest for anybody to suggest the President has the authority to simply scratch through a part of any legislation. Republican or democrat-the President doesn’t have this legal authority. If a bill comes to the President, he either signs or vetoes. So if this comes to him, he has to ask, is it overall good for the Country? If yes, sign. So I have issues with conservatives who pin this on the President. However, he does need to engage the Sr Leaders on the Hill and get them moving in the right direction.
Just my thoughts, never posted before, kind of tired of reading “you suck” or “racist” etc. I would like to think there are more intelligent people who are capable of independant thought and reason.
Leave it to the neocons. They would rather spend the money on private contractors and turn the blind eye on the hundreds and millions of dollars that had gotten lost in Iraq.
The sheer stupidity of these neocons is overwhelming; their hypocrisy and ignorance unsurpassed.
The Dem’s are weenies, the whole lot of them, exceptions for Feingold, Sanders, Merkeley and Kucinich.
The Thugs would be squealing like piggies, waaaaaa.
Ever notice, the least **** thing on the planet are the men of the GOP! They never take responsibility for anything, they all seem effeminine to me. Maybe it’s just their mindset, it’s so wa, wa,wa, always pointing the finger, they’re exhausting. For the country as well
Geez, can’t say the word se*y
Why do the Republicans hate America?
Republicans don’t care. They want a terrorist attack to happen on Obama’s watch, and they’ll do anything they can to make it happen.
Bush said that Iraq’s oil revenue will pay for its own infrastructure. The neocons applauded it. Bush asked congress for money for Iraq’s infrastructure; the neocons applauded.. again.
The US taxpayers ended up paying for Iraq’s country while the private contractors pocketed the money. Meanwhile, hundreds and millions of dollars went unaccounted for due to corruption, and none of these neocons spoke out.
Bush asked to fund Iraq so they would have a new start, people would have jobs, and educate the children so they would not be brainwashed by the terrorists. Now that Gates is asking the same things that Bush asked, we are not funding the terrorists? Not surprising though. Neocons are known to be blowhard hypocrites.
After reading blog after blog, my take is that a lot of people are misinformed. Libs, listen to what the other side is saying. Conservatives, listen to what the other side is saying. If you just listen to one or the other you are limiting yourself to one point of view. What is important is that you listen to both and then think of what is best for all Americans. Don’t get caught up in this liberal or conservative tunnel. The libs are not always right and the conservatives are not always right, and both have been wrong about a lot of things. There’s more than one way to skin a cat. Use your intelligence to sort through it ALL and THEN make your own judgement based on your values. Simple enough.
Republicans are about as simple-minded and shallow as a mud puddle. Why do they continue to fail to see the bigger picture, i.e. all the forces at work that go into creating a social/political situation? Under Bush they were saying stupid things like, if you don’t fund the war you don’t support the troops and you’re not American. Is war the only thing they’re willing to fund? (Useless, immoral ones, I mean.)
The GOP will only spend money on things that kill people.
# Kate in Sw Fla | June 11th, 2009 at 05:37 pm
They (Republicans)are putting politics above national security. What a bunch of sore losers.
They are dangerous losers. They want the administration to fail and thus our country.
Just goes to show you, the only ones left in the Republican Party are the wingnuts. Sane folks like Gates et al probably won’t vote for any of these jokers anyway.
The GOP are masters at adding gun issues, or other hot button items to important legislation. Now they want to vote on a straight war funding bill. When Gates, Jones and Clinton issue a missive, you have to believe it is well thought out, and has consequences. One such consequence is how the intended audiences received the message and their responses along a limited range of options already charted out by the WH. Why republicans try to respond daily to these calculated, power moves by the administration is beyond me. The GOP has no clues to answers to America’s problems and their forced replies indicates they have no public relations skills. This country do not have the money to influence the world we once had. The IMF funding will be approved on the administration’s skills at pushing the republicans around and not the merits of the request. Perhaps funding could be located from existing budgets.
We need a complete new cohort of GOP leaders, in both houses. I fear that will not come until after the third straight election debacle happens to validate that need. In the mean time we are missing an important part of our democracy, the opposition party. The national GOP party is in worst shape.
A lot of right wingers think the IMF is a front group for a) the Illminati b) Zionist Bankers c) New World order. Given how far to the right the Repulican party has drifted, you have to wonder what they are really thinking?
Is there a clever double-entendre that I am missing in the name of this blog, something about a “plum position”, say, or is plumb-line just misspelled?
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“tin-pan dictators” — are those the tin-pot dictators of Tin Pan Alley? The fat bald guys with the cigars that make or break songwriters?
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rutherfor b. hayes changed the destinies of millions of black, white, native
american, orientals, jews, and any other minority by removing troops from
the south prematurely. this man did this to gain the presidency. this man
made plessey v ferguson possible in 1896. this man aided the south and
some portions of the midwest in becoming hate group heaven. After the
extremes of slavery and the civil war; it would take an idiot or demon not to realize that the 13th, 14th, and 15th amendment would not have
the proper opportunity to become effective if troops were withdrawn from such a volatile and violently emotional period; this man allowed
aparteid (JIM CROW) to bloom in the USA>
politicians alter the destinies of millions for selfish and individualist reasons placing politics before country.
Gates is not a political hack and when he speaks he comes with a strong background in the CIA and now SECDEF. He has no political ambition and is one of those rare public servants who wants to make a difference.
He is driving the congress nuts because he is apolitical and has both parties in a bind. I hope he stays around for a long time, he is one of those rare commodities in Washington.
The politicians do not like to be told the truth by someone they cannot personally attack.
This is a typically misleading Greg Sargent headline. Gates and Clinton did NOT tell Boehner and McConnell that they were “putting out security at risk”. They asked for their support. Why is it so hard to report accurately? Why must you attempt to create news where none exists, Greg?
Linc2:
I am so glad that you did post! You are obviously intelligent and insightful; it would be so refreshing to see more posts like yours. Too often, regardless of the blog, there is way too much name calling, hypocrisy, and intolerance of opposing opinion; and nowhere near enough polite, thought provoking debate!
Karl posted that “Republicans are about as simple-minded and shallow as a mud puddle.” In my opinion, that is a perfect example of the intolerant, unintelligent, generalization that some people from both parties are guilty of.
To Karl, I will just say that here in the South we have some pretty deep mud-puddles!
All this administration is capable of is spending taxpayer’s money. This is getting old. The taxpayers are footing the bill for every excuse they come up with.
I am a citizen of the global village:all two have
reasons for and against.Just give aid for security, but after studying case by case because it is true that could help states sponsorisé terrorism. I do not think just giving money to manage the crisis:each state must be responsible in the way that he managed this crisis because has many aspects of collective psychosis, and once more is necessary to check and punish the responsible for the collapse of financial institutions and strategies that have lead to psychosis.
I am so glad the President kept Gates in his administration
I think this is an incredibly shrewd move on Clinton and Gates’ part. For one thing, they’re right, poverty does breed terrorism. For another, it really obliges the conservative opposition to either get on board or appear weak or hypocritical on terrorism. Well done.
Linc2 – it was so refreshing reading your comments. Thank you so much for exposing the obvious: “critical thinking” vs “willful ignorance”. It’s so painful sometimes to read through the comments because they always lack real dialogue.
Peace & Justice will prevail…
This is what parties out of power do. They have ZERO message, They look pathetic. And if they don’t get it together VERY soon this could be an unusual election in 2010 with very little to no seat pick ups for the Republicans. I ain’t complaining! KEEP IT UP GOP! FOOLS! HA!
The GOP cares only about itself and nothing for the country. No surprises here.
@Theo… I totally agree. The IMF has funds. We are in a trillion dollar deficit. Why are we still incurring debt? Every dollar we pay in taxes .40-.50 cents of it goes to interest payments. We are not helping anyone but the international bankers. If the IMF funding is so important then let it stand alone. This country needs to curtail the spending. You really think I should respect what Gates and Hillary have to say. Hillary has shown that she doesn’t care about anyone but the Clintons and their rise to power. Did anyone ever think that if we don’t put some money into this country, THE US OF A. That our crime won’t continue to escalate and we will have homegrown terrorism here. BRING BACK THE GREENBACK!!!! (Interest Free)
repugs would murder there own mother to score a political point,
Jerry, my mom is safe unless there is a political point to score and financial gain. How convenient that all of us “repugs” are a bunch of
gun-toting “wingnuts.” Just curious, to which particular instance are you referring? Or, are you just making generalized, inflamatory remarks with no factual basis?
Also, I do believe you meant their instead of there.
One small comment is all it takes. AMazing to see the original republican appointees tell the party theyre out of line. Glad he is
Dear Oneab: your skepticism is against “reasoning” no one has made. No one is claiming that the specific states who might receive IMF monies would otherwise find funds to sponsor terrorism…but that citizens of those countries would be easier to recruit by outside funded organizations (e.g. Al Qaeda) due to the desparation/anger fomented by poverty–especially in this case if there is the perception that part of their hardship is due to the Americans not fulfilling financial promises that our government has already made.
In case you don’t know, these actual bribes is what turned the tied in Iraq. And if this money means one less American Man or woman killed and/or one less Iraqi killed it’s worth it to me. This turned the Anti-American militia in Iraq to a pro-American, Anti- Al-Quaeda force. Which would you prefer be fighting in Iraq while our Men and women are there?
No one had **** to say about spending until Obama got in office. Ever heard the term you gotta spend money to make money? Even Krugman (Noble Laureate) , a vocal opponent of what the Obama admin. has been doing to curb the financial melt down, said that it will shorten the recession.
Yes it is proven that in counties where more republicans are registered they are buying Guns 50 – 100% more since Obama got elected. This country is in a scary place right now. This president has tried to do more in his first 6 months to help this country than I’ve seen either Bush do. And I feel that he went into office trying to fulfill campaign promises, like no other president i have ever seen. Not that he’s always right, lord knows i disagree on Health care. (IT needs to be single payer to make it work), I disagree on school voucher, I disagree with dropping bombs in Pakistan with drones, I disagree with his silence on Gay soldiers being dismissed from the military, we need Arabic translators, gay or straight!
I disagree with him not putting an immediate moratorium on DADT!
I voted and organized for the guy but i am certainly not an Obama-bot or Lemming!