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Politics : Formerly About Advanced Micro Devices -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Alighieri who wrote (160570)	2/11/2003 10:42:19 AM
From: i-node	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1574890

It is amazing how you people have become so oriented toward using polls as a metric for foreign policy. Polls are not a proper tool for measuring the success or failure of foreign policy. This is why Democrats are not trusted by the American People in foreign policy matters.

To: Alighieri who wrote (160570)	2/11/2003 12:21:15 PM
From: tejek	Read Replies (4) \| Respond to of 1574890

Breaking News: Al, you're going to love this one. OBL has released a new tape in which he speaks to Iraq and pledges his solidarity with the people of Iraq. From that message, Powell is stating to Congress that that message provides proof of his claim of a link between Saddam and OBL. They must think we just fell off the hay cart. ted ___________________________________________________________ New 'Osama' Tape Surfaces (CBS) A new tape recording apparently featuring Osama bin Laden's voice has surfaced, Secretary of State Colin Powell said Tuesday. At a Senate budget hearing, Powell said he saw a transcript of the tape earlier in the morning. Powell alleged a connection between Iraq and the al Qaeda network in a presentation to the U.N. Security Council last week. He said Tuesday that the tape demonstrates those ties, report CBS News Senior White House Correspondent John Roberts. "Once again he speaks to the people of Iraq. This nexus between terrorists and states can no longer be looked away from and ignored," Powell said, quoting "bin Laden or who we believe to be bin Laden." The White House refused comment until after the tape airs. Bin Laden is suspected of masterminding the 1998 bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa, the 2000 attack on the destroyer USS Cole, and the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. In the wake of those attacks, President Bush vowed to get bin Laden "dead or alive." His current whereabouts are unknown. Other tapes apparently featuring bin Laden's voice have surfaced since the Sept. 11 attacks, but it has often been difficult to state with certainty when the recordings were made. As news of the tape emerged, the directors of the CIA and FBI were telling the Senate Intelligence Committee that al Qaeda still represented a serious threat to the United States. CIA director George Tenet warned that the terror network may have learned how to make a radiological "dirty" bomb, and could be planning an attack for sometime this week. Late last week, the Homeland Security Department ordered the nation's terror alert status upgraded from "elevated" to "high," based on what the government claims were intercepted communications pointing to a possible imminent attack. Britain is also on high alert, with tanks and troops protecting Heathrow Airport because of fears al Qaeda could strike. British authorities recently arrested several people who allegedly possessed the deadly poison ricin. In his testimony last week, Powell linked the ricin case to an alleged al Qaeda operative, Abu Masab Zaqawi, who Powell insisted had links to Saddam Hussein's regime. ©MMIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc.

To: Alighieri who wrote (160570)	2/11/2003 12:22:44 PM
From: tejek	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1574890

Powell Cites 'bin Laden' Statement WASHINGTON (Feb. 11) -- Secretary of State Colin Powell told a Senate panel Tuesday that what appears to be a new statement from Osama bin Laden shows why the world needs to be concerned about Iraqi ties to terrorism. Powell said he read a transcript of ''what bin Laden - or who we believe to be bin Laden'' will be saying on the Al-Jazeera Arab satellite station later Tuesday, ''where once again he speaks to the people of Iraq and talks about their struggle and how he is in partnership with Iraq.'' ''This nexus between terrorists and states that are developing weapons of mass destruction can no longer be looked away from and ignored,'' Powell told the Senate Budget Committee. But Al-Jazeera chief editor Ibrahim Hilal told The Associated Press his station has no such tape. It was Powell's second appearance before the Senate since his presentation to the U.N. Security Council last week. At that time, he detailed his indictment of Iraq as a deceptive stockpiler of weapons of mass destruction. Lawmakers have praised Powell's U.N. performance, but many Democrats remain skeptical about whether war is necessary, particularly if key U.S. allies remain opposed. The split between the United States and its allies widened when France, Germany and Belgium jointly vetoed on Monday a U.S.-backed measure to authorize NATO to make plans to protect Turkey if Iraq attacks it. Russia then joined France and Germany in demanding strengthened weapons inspections. Responding to concerns of Sen. Ernest Hollings, D-S.C., that the United States was putting its international alliances in jeopardy over Iraq, Powell said ''we're not breaking up the alliance.'' Powell noted that the U.N. resolution demanding that Iraq disarm was approved unanimously by the Security Council and said it is the United Nations' responsibility to enforce the resolution. ''Who's breaking up the alliance? Not the United States,'' Powell said. ''The alliance is breaking itself up because it will not meet its responsibilities.'' Powell noted that while ''much is being said about disagreement in NATO,'' that 16 members - including the United States and Turkey - back the U.S. position, while three - France, Germany and Russia - oppose it. ''I think this is time for the alliance to say to the fellow alliance member, 'We agree with you and if you are concerned, we are concerned.' That's what alliances are all about and I hope NATO will be doing the right thing with respect to Turkey within the next 24 hours,'' he said. Powell said the United States is prepared to work with the 14 other nations to give Turkey the helps it needs if it cannot win formal NATO support. Committee Chairman Don Nickles, R-Okla, said of France ''I'm amazed at their presumption that they are controlling the (NATO) alliance, but they are not a part of the military alliance.'' France's stand on Turkey could signal its steadfast opposition or even a threatened veto to a U.S.-backed resolution at the United Nations that would authorize force to disarm Iraq and remove President Saddam Hussein from power. White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said Tuesday there was still a reasonable expectation that President Bush could persuade the Security Council to adopt a new resolution. ''At the end of the day, the president would like to believe the United Nations will be relevant,'' he told reporters. In Brussels Tuesday, NATO strove to surmount the standoff - one of the worst crises in its 53-year history. A second emergency meeting of the alliance's decision making North Atlantic Council was postponed for five hours while diplomats held ''intensive informal negotiations'' to resolve the deadlock, said a NATO official speaking on condition of anonymity. In Iraq, U.N. weapons inspectors paid a surprise visit to a Baghdad missile plant Tuesday as international experts met behind closed doors in New York to assess whether Iraq's short-range missiles can fly farther than permitted under U.N. edicts. Bush continued his rhetorical assault against Saddam after meeting at the White House on Monday with a solid supporter, Prime Minister John Howard of Australia. Bush accused Saddam of ''trying to stall for time'' by offering last-minute concessions to U.N. weapons inspectors. ''We're not playing hide-and-seek,'' Bush said. ''That's what he wants to continue to play. Saddam has got to disarm. If he doesn't, we'll disarm him.'' Escalating his assault, Bush said the Iraqi people had been tortured and brutalized under Saddam. ''He's a brutal dictator,'' Bush said. At the U.N. Security Council, the United States began consultations with other countries on a new resolution designed to strengthen Bush's hand if he should decide to go to war. He also is reserving the option of going to war outside the United Nations, with a coalition of supporting nations. Bush said France was a longtime friend of the United States, but he said its position was shortsighted. ''I hope they'll reconsider,'' he said. ''Upset is not the proper word,'' Bush said when reporters asked for his views on France's diplomacy. He went on to register his disappointment with President Jacques Chirac, who wants to extend inspections and seek a peaceful resolution with Saddam. AP-NY-02-11-03 1153EST Copyright 2003 The Associated Press.