I want to support the president. Believe me I do.
The instinct of every American – including most members of Congress – is to give President Bush every bloody thing he wants to wage this war on terrorism.
But military aid to Syria and Iran? No sir. That’s where I draw the line.
I think it’s time to remind Americans that earlier this year, U.S. taxpayers shelled out $140 million in aid to Afghanistan’s Taliban regime. This month, we’re preparing to go to war with it. Go figure.
Now, President Bush is asking Congress to lift restrictions on the provision of military aid and weapons to at least two states it has long recognized as sponsors of terrorism to help fight a war against terrorism. What am I missing here?
Does anyone really believe Tehran and Damascus have suddenly had their eyes opened? Have they had epiphanies with regard to their evil ways? Are they really good guys now?
Sure, Iran and Syria don’t like Osama bin Laden. I believe that. But is this war on terrorism limited to fighting Osama bin Laden? Or are we serious about fighting other terrorist threats? If not, we can expect the next World Trade Center disaster to be perpetrated by another faction – and what have we accomplished?
Syria has its own problems with Islamic radicals. And it has dealt with them rather brutally.
In 1982, the late Hafez al-Assad of Syria faced an uprising from his own Islamic radicals. He saw the focal point of this movement emanating from Syria’s fourth-largest city – Hama. How did he handle it?
He pounded his own city with an artillery barrage for days. When that was over, he bulldozed what remained of any structures. Amnesty International estimates between 10,000 and 25,000 Syrians, mostly civilians, were killed.
Somehow, I don’t think this is going to be Colin Powell’s approach to the war on terrorism. So we had better choose our allies carefully.
It was the Iranian regime under the late Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini that first coined the term “the Great Satan” as a description of the United States. Subsequent regimes have been no more tolerant of our western ways. Iran has been the No. 1 state sponsor of terrorism ever since. And it is now our new ally in the war on terrorism?
I love unity as much as the next guy, but unity for the sake of unity is pointless.
The Sept. 11 attacks should serve as a wakeup call to the very real threat of terrorism – not in some far-off land, but right here in America. The answer is not making phony distinctions between terrorists – labeling some good terrorists and others bad. The answer is to recognize that terrorism in all its forms is a scourge that must be eradicated, fought diligently where it is found, uprooted, exposed and destroyed.
Let’s not partner with terrorists to fight terrorists or we risk losing our moral high ground.
I know everyone in Congress is eager to support the president. But the United States of America is not a one-man show – not even in wartime. That’s why the Constitution gives war-making authority to one branch of government – the Congress.
It’s time for Congress – in a bipartisan show of unity and common sense – to advise President Bush that there’s a better way to achieve our common goal of eradicating terrorism from the world.
We should ally only with those nations who genuinely support us – and will support us through thick and thin. We don’t need the whole world behind us – and we certainly don’t need to arm the potent military regimes of Syria and Iran.
Since there is no plan for Syria and Iran to engage Osama bin Laden’s forces, their weaponry will only be used against us at some time in the future – just as the very recent U.S. aid to the Taliban will shortly be used to kill Americans.
Further, Israel, one of our best allies in the war on terrorism, faces real terrorist acts – not just threats – on a daily basis. Many of these are sponsored by Syria and Iran. It’s unthinkable to arm these rogue terror states simply because they have their own beef with bin Laden.
Don’t miss Joseph Farah’s exclusive report “Jihad in America” in the November issue of Whistleblower magazine, WorldNetDaily’s monthly offline publication. Order your subscription now.
