Guest guest Posted September 9, 2004 Report Share Posted September 9, 2004 > Thu, 09 Sep 2004 08:40:32 -0700 > Progress Report: An Indefensible Homeland > Security Record > " American Progress Action Fund " > <progress > -------------------------------- #160;#160; DON'T MISS SERVICE: Ben Barnes on how Bush got into the Texas Air National Guard. ECONOMY: How big is this soft patch, Mr. Greenspan? IRAQ: Death rate increasing. EDITORIAL: Cheney's disgraceful speech. DAILY GRILL " I got an honorable discharge. " - President Bush, 2/9/04 VERSUS " The Air Force in Denver, acting retroactively, in effect overturned Bush's honorable discharge and placed him on 'Inactive Status' effective Sept. 15, 1973. When Bush left Texas, his personnel file was sent to Denver for review. " - Salon.com, 9/9/04 DAILY OUTRAGE NBC News uncovered footage of President Bush insulting thousands of Vietnam veterans who were killed or injured in combat. Bush said in 1988 that the government " probably should have called the National Guard up in those days #8211; maybe we'd have done better in Vietnam. " ARCHIVES Progress Report STUDENTS Get a free DVD of Outfoxed. Sign up here to host a screening on your campus. Combat the right-wing noise machine on your campus. Become a member of our network of campus publications and student journalists. by David Sirota, Christy Harvey, Judd Legum and Jonathan Baskin SEPTEMBER 9, 2004 REPORT CARD An Indefensible Homeland Security Record REPORT CARD Failing Nonproliferation Efforts MILITARY New Memos Expose Bush Record UNDER THE RADAR Go Beyond The Headlines Sign up | Send tip | Permalinks | Mobile | Print REPORT CARD An Indefensible Homeland Security Record The Bush administration receives a " D+ " on Homeland Security. Though it has spent billions to deal with an imaginary threat in Iraq, it has not sufficiently funded, nor has it put forth realistic strategies to deal with, threats to America's ports, railways, chemical plants and other infrastructure. It has also failed to secure America's borders or establish effective terrorist watch lists. The Department of Homeland Security remains " grossly underfunded " and the color-coded alert system is dysfunctional. Fundamentally, the administration seems to think it can defeat terrorism by " taking the fight to the enemy, " but as Homeland Security expert Stephen Flynn warns, " Targeting terrorism at its source is an appealing notion. Unfortunately, the enemy is not cooperating. " PORTS AND RAILWAYS: The administration has severely underfunded maritime security, imperiling the safety of hundreds of thousands of people who live near ports. The Coast Guard has projected the cost of implementing safety regulations laid out by Congress at $7.3 billion over the next ten years, but the administration has distributed just $441 million so far, and the president's 2005 budget proposes to spend only $46 million. Stephen Flynn, a retired U.S. Coast Guard Commander, points out, " For the cost of two F-22 fighter jets and three days of combat in Iraq#8230;the nation's ports could be secured against terror. " Meanwhile, millions of train passengers also remain unprotected and the administration has not forced the rail industry to safeguard shipments of hazardous materials. Bush's 2005 budget allocation for train security is $100 million, equal to what the U.S. spends on eight typical hours in Iraq. BORDERS: The 9/11 Commission concluded that the Bush administration had failed to adequately secure America's borders and track new visitors. Commission Vice Chairman Lee Hamilton said, " We need secure borders with heightened and uniform standards of identification for those entering and exiting the country, and an immigration system able to be efficient, allowing good people in while keeping the terrorists out. " The Department of Homeland Security currently has no strategy for tracking down and deporting people who remain beyond the conditions of their stay. LAW ENFORCEMENT: Remarkably, Bush administration homeland security cutbacks have meant fewer cops and first responders on the streets today than there were on 9/11. And despite a supposedly high level of domestic alert, the Bush administration's 2005 budget calls for a 31.9 percent decrease in law enforcement funding from levels approved by Congress in FY2004. Foreign Affairs reports that on average, " U.S. fire departments have only enough radios to equip half their firefighters on a shift, and breathing apparatus for only a third. Police departments in cities across the country do not have the protective gear to safely secure a site following a WMD attack. And most emergency medical technicians lack the tools to determine which chemical or biological agent may have been used. " ASSIGNMENT FOR ACTION: The Center recommends that President Bush give new funding and priority to port and railway security and require the chemical industry to adopt tighter security guidelines. The president should also eliminate the color-coded threat alert system and order Homeland Security to come up with a more focused and complete mechanism for communicating threats to Americans. Finally, he should order the Office of Management and Budget to draw up a national security budget that includes appropriations for defense, intelligence, homeland security, diplomacy and foreign assistance. The Belfer Center at Harvard has developed solutions to " key gaps " in the administration's current policy, including better funding for first responders in areas most likely to be affected by terrorism and more widespread vaccinations. REPORT CARD Failing Nonproliferation Efforts The greatest danger facing the United States today is the threat of terrorists armed with nuclear weapons. A new report by the Center for American Progress titled " Failing Grades: America's Security Three Years After 9/11 " gives the Bush administration an " F " for efforts to stop the spread of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons and materials. In fact, the report shows the Bush White House has actually gone backward in attempts to control access to weapons-grade nuclear materials worldwide. Instead of aggressively curbing the spread of nuclear weapons, the administration's policies have " encouraged other countries to take up the challenge of a new nuclear arms race " while increasing the likelihood that terrorists and rogue nations will access nuclear materials. As Harvard's Graham Allison says: " If we just keep doing what we are doing, a nuclear terrorist attack is inevitable. " (American Progress has an in-depth look at how the lack of leadership from the White House is impeding global nonproliferation efforts.) THE RECORD: According to a recent Harvard University report titled " Securing the Bomb: An Agenda for Action, " " less fissile materials were secured in the two years after Sept 11 than in the two years before. " In addition, the Carnegie Endowment for Peace warns, " since the invasion of Iraq, we have spent $200 billion on the war, but only $2 billion on securing the nuclear bomb materials we know al Qaeda has sought and may still seek. " SHORTCHANGING GLOBAL EFFORTS: Two years ago, the United States joined other G-8 countries in creating an international effort to fight the threat of WMD. The White House pledged $10 billion, to be matched by the other seven nations. Since then, only a fraction of the pledged funds have been allocated. As chair of the group in 2003, President Bush failed to advance this program. President Bush actually proposed cutting funds for the so-called Nunn-Lugar program #8211; a proven success that to date has deactivated " 6,312 nuclear warheads; 537 ICBMs; 459 ICBM silos; 11 ICBM mobile missile launchers; 128 bombers; 708 nuclear air-to-surface missiles; 408 submarine missile launchers; 496 submarine launched missiles; 27 nuclear submarines; and 194 nuclear test tunnels. " Also, Ukraine, Belarus, and Kazakhstan are nuclear weapons-free as a result of cooperative efforts under the Nunn-Lugar program. IGNORED AXIS: President Bush pushed the nation into war in Iraq by claiming Saddam Hussein had weapons of mass destruction that posed a serious and immediate threat to the United States. Although the White House has since spent over $600 million to look for weapons, no evidence of usable weapons has been found. Meanwhile, the expensive war in Iraq distracted attention from the other spokes in the " Axis of Evil, " allowing increasingly aggressive North Korea and Iran to continue to develop their own nuclear programs. The president's cabinet is divided over what to do about North Korea and Iran, which has resulted in policy gridlock#8212;enabling North Korea to quadruple its suspected nuclear arsenal from two to as many as eight weapons and allowing Iran to proceed in building infrastructure that could be used to build a nuclear weapon on short notice. SACRIFICING CREDIBILITY: The Bush administration has been trying to develop new, deadlier nuclear weapons, a move the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, Mohammed El Baradei, likened to having a cigarette dangling from your lips while admonishing other nations not to smoke. The White House has sought funding for " bunker busters, " nuclear weapons that could penetrate deep into the earth, and " mini-nukes, " for smaller nuclear attacks. Both of these are considered " usable, " first-use weapons, increasing the likelihood of preemptive nuclear strikes, which in turn goads other nations into accelerating their nuclear programs. MILITARY New Memos Expose Bush Record Four previously unseen memos obtained by 60 Minutes from the personnel file of President Bush's squadron commander, Col. Jerry Killian, " suggest that Bush received favored treatment during a time in the early 1970s when many young men were being drafted and sent to fight in Vietnam. " The memos, which include reports of Bush's dereliction of duty during his time in the Texas Air National Guard and allege pressure from superiors to " sugar coat " evaluations, " appear to be the most damaging revelations in long-running accusations by his critics that he had received special treatment. " BUSH FAILS TO MEET STANDARDS: The memos trace a pattern of Bush failing requirements at the Guard, then escaping the consequences. In one memo, dated May 1972, Killian writes that Lt. Bush called him to talk about " how he can get out of coming to drill from now through November, " and expresses concern the congressman's son is " talking to someone upstairs. " On Aug. 1, 1972, the day Bush was suspended from flying for failing to take his physical, Killian wrote, " on this date, I ordered that 1st Lt. Bush be suspended not just for failing to take a physical#8230;.but for failing to perform to U.S. Air Force/Texas Air National Guard standards. The officer [then-Lt. Bush] has made no attempt to meet his training certification or flight physical. " But Killian alleges he was then pressured not to be too hard on Bush in his evaluations. THE HONORABLE DISCHARGE: The White House defends Bush's performance with the Guard by pointing to his " honorable discharge, " but Killian's memos suggest Bush's favorable reviews were tainted by preferential treatment. A memo dated Aug. 18, 1972, seventeen days after Killian said Bush had failed to meet Guard standards, complains that Col. Buck Staudt, the man in charge of the Texas Guard and a longtime supporter of the Bush family, was putting on pressure to " sugar coat " the evaluation of Lt. Bush. Killian admits to " having trouble running interference and doing my job. " Though Bush did receive an honorable discharge in October 1973, Salon reports that a month later, the Air Force in Denver, " acting retroactively, in effect overturned Bush's honorable discharge and placed him on 'Inactive Status' " upon review of his personnel file. It was " only last-minute intervention, likely from Bush's local Houston draft board, " which reversed Bush's inactive status and secured his honorable discharge. GETTING INTO THE GUARD: Also on 60 Minutes last night, former Texas House Speaker Ben Barnes explained how he helped Bush gain entry into the Guard in 1968, just a few months before Bush was to become eligible for the Vietnam draft. Barnes recalled a meeting with oilman Sid Adger, a friend to both Barnes and then-Congressman George Bush, during which he agreed to help Bush get into the Guard. " I would describe it as preferential treatment, " Barnes said. " There were hundreds of names on the list of people wanting to get into the Air National Guard or the Army National Guard. I think that would have been a preference to anybody that didn't want to go to Vietnam or didn't want to leave#8230;Those that could get in the Reserves, or those that could get in the National Guard - chances are they would not have to go to Vietnam. " Barnes now regrets helping Bush, saying he is " very, very sorry " for what he did. BUSH'S RESPONSE: Barnes's story conflicts with the president's recent statements about his Guard service #8211; Bush has insisted " any allegation that my dad asked for special favors is simply not true. " But in 1988, the president expressed his true feelings about preferential treatment: " If you want to go into the National Guard, I guess sometimes people make calls, " he said. " I don't see anything wrong with [that]. " Bush also insinuated he would have been ready to serve in Vietnam with the Guard, saying, " They probably should have called the National Guard up in those days. Maybe we would have done better in Vietnam. " On the O'Reilly Factor last night, American Progress' Larry Korb pointed out, " We now know that [bush]#8230;would have been in no position to have been called up [to Vietnam], because he got out of his flying status and he didn't show up for his flight physical. " A TACTIC FIRST EXPLOITED BY GEORGE BUSH: Former President George H. W. Bush has attacked those who have questioned President George W. Bush's service record during the Vietnam War. Yet it was George H. W. Bush who orchestrated a similar attack on his opponents in 1988. As reported in the 8/23/88 Los Angeles Times, Bush campaign co-chairman John Sununu " accused the [sen. Lloyd Bentsen] of helping his son get into the National Guard. " Bentsen son " served in the 147th Fighter Group of the Texas National Guard along with George W. Bush, the vice president's son. " #160; Bush's allies on Capitol Hill at the time also charged Dukakis with using student deferments to avoid service during the Korean War. Under the Radar ABORTION #8211; LAW FAILS TO PROTECT WOMEN'S HEALTH: Yesterday, a federal judge in Nebraska declared the Partial Birth Abortion Act of 2003 unconstitutional because it " failed to provide any exception if a woman's health is at stake. " The plaintiff in the case, Dr. LeRoy Carhart, said that he went to court because " as a doctor it is my duty to put my patient's health and safety first. The government has no business in a medical professional's office determining the safest or best treatment for patients with no knowledge of the medical circumstances. " Judge Richard Kopf, who decided the case, said that the medical conclusions drawn by Congress " arbitrarily relied upon the opinions of doctors who claimed to have no (or very little) recent and relevant experience with surgical abortions, and disregarded the views of doctors who had significant and relevant experience with those procedures. " Federal judges in New York and California have recently made similar rulings. Apparently indifferent to concerns about women's health, John Ashcroft immediately pledged to fight the decisions. IRAQ #8211; ALLOWING INSURGENTS TO REGROUP: A Washington Post editorial observes that in " the Sunni cities of Fallujah, Ramadi and Samarra...the United States has withdrawn its forces, allowing extremist movements and foreign terrorists to take over. " Strongholds in these cities " now pose a serious threat to U.S. forces, to Iraq's interim government and to the plan to hold national elections in January. " Nevertheless, " the U.S. military leadership has announced that it cannot eliminate these sanctuaries for Baathists and suicide bombers before December. " The WP asks, " Is it only a coincidence that the Pentagon's timetable postpones a difficult and potentially costly showdown until after the U.S. presidential election? " Whatever the answer, the result is that terrorists and insurgents have been " conceded a haven in a country that the United States invaded to preempt just such a threat. " INTELLIGENCE #8211; GOP DEMANDS BUSH RELEASE DOCUMENTS: Sen. Bob Graham (D), who was chairman of the Senate Intelligence Committee in 2002, has published a new book asserting that " the Bush administration and FBI blocked a congressional investigation " into the relationship between the Saudi Arabian government and the 9/11 hijackers. Graham objected to the White House's decision to classify 27 pages of a congressional report that dealt with the relationship. While the Republican National Committee and Fox News anchor Brit Hume have attacked the Florida Senator, he is not the only one who wants the 27 pages released. Top Republicans do, too. Sen. Richard Shelby (R-AL), who was the ranking Republican on the committee, said on 7/27/03 that " I think [the 27 pages are] classified for the wrong reason#8230;My judgment is 95 percent of that information could be declassified, become uncensored, so the American people would know. " Sen. Pat Roberts (R-KS), who is now chairman of the committee, said on 7/27/03 that " I was upset with the process, and I was upset with the amount of material that was redacted. " Sen. Chuck Hagel (R-NE) said on 7/31/03, " I think it's in the interest of this administration to have some of this opened up. " TERRORISM #8211; SPINNING THE NUMBERS: Newsweek reports, " Without any public explanation, President George W. Bush last week increased the estimate of al Qaeda leaders who have been killed or captured. " Bush claimed for the first time that " more than three quarters of al Qaeda's key members and associates have been detained or killed. " In his previous statements, Bush said the number was " nearly two-thirds. " According to Newsweek, " White House and U.S. intelligence officials declined to provide any back-up data for how they developed the new number#8212;or even to explain the methodology that was used. " An official from the recently disbanded 9/11 Commission said, " It was meaningless when they said two-thirds and it's meaningless when they said three-fourths. This sounds like it was pulled out of somebody's orifice. " The vast majority of the FBI's most wanted terrorists are still at large. CUBA #8211; COUNTERPRODUCTIVE POLICIES: The report of the State Department-anointed Commission for Assistance to a Free Cuba continues to rear its ugly head. Among the recommendations of the commission #8211; and among those already going into effect #8211; is a call for limiting remittances and family visits to Cuba. The nonpartisan Inter-American Dialogue, which convened its own commission to study the report, recently released a letter to Secretary of State Colin Powell arguing that " the recommendations for hastening the end of the current regime are not conducive to the subsequent goals of a successful transition to democracy and market economy, " and that " the report's recommendations might well increase the risk of violence and social unrest in Cuba during a transition period. " Even Powell, who chaired the commission, disagrees with U.S.-Cuba policy; Powell's chief of staff, Larry Wilkerson, told GQ magazine that Powell thought U.S. Cuba policy was the " dumbest policy on the face of the earth. " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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