Progress Report: From Bad to Worse

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#160;#160;DON'T MISS

DAILY TALKING POINTS: Failing to Protect America

 

TERRORISM: President Bush running the war on terror in

the wrong direction

 

HEALTH CARE: Double-digit increase in health insurance

putting increasingly heavy burden on employers and

consumers.

 

HEALTH CARE: FDA accused of withholding data on

negative effects of antidepressants on kids.

 

 

DAILY GRILL

Saddam Hussein " provided safe harbor and

sanctuary#8230;for Al Qaeda. "

 

#8211; Vice President Dick Cheney, 9/9/04

 

VERSUS

 

There is " no evidence " Iraq and al Qaeda ever

developed a " collaborative operational relationship. "

 

#8211; 9/11 Commission Report

 

 

DAILY OUTRAGE

At a time of stagnating wages, President Bush is

threatening to veto legislation that would roll back

his effort to cut off overtime pay protection for 6

million American workers.

 

 

ARCHIVES

Progress Report

 

 

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by David Sirota, Christy Harvey, Judd Legum and

Jonathan Baskin

 

SEPTEMBER 10, 2004

REPORT CARD Not Making the Grade

PRISON ABUSE From Bad to Worse

UNDER THE RADAR Go Beyond The Headlines

 

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REPORT CARD

Not Making the Grade

 

Three years after 9/11, American Progress' report

card, " Failing Grades, " judges the Bush administration

deserves a " C- " for its prosecution of the war against

terrorism, a " D " for its use of the military, and a

long stay in detention for its disastrous field trip

to Iraq. The Bush administration's key moments of

failure in these three subjects were, respectively,

failing to secure Afghanistan or apprehend Osama bin

Laden, stretching the military thin by embarking on a

war of choice before Afghanistan was secure and,

finally, misleading the American people and rushing to

Iraq on false pretenses without international support.

All in all, the report concludes the Bush

administration is " failing the test of protecting the

American people from the terrorist threat at home and

abroad. "

 

IRAQ: A BAD TRIP: In terms of America's security, the

report judges the Bush administration's excursion to

Iraq as nothing less than a " catastrophic diversion. "

To date, the U.S. has spent $145 million on the

invasion and occupation of Iraq, resources which could

have been deployed to fix critical gaps in our

homeland security and help reduce the chances a

terrorist group would acquire nuclear materials. The

original justifications for war #8211; weapons of mass

destruction, Saddam's ties to al Qaeda #8211; have

been utterly discredited, and by nearly every measure

the war in Iraq has made the Middle East more

dangerous than it was before. A study by The

International Institute for Strategic Studies

concluded the war had " helped al Qaeda recruit more

members. " Likewise, a report by the British House of

Commons asserted Iraq had become a dynamic new " battle

ground " for al Qaeda and other foreign fighters.

 

IRAQ: A BAD STAY: Today, U.S. forces " rolled into the

insurgent bastion of Samarra " in an attempt to " dispel

the perception that growing swaths of Iraq had become

'no-go' zones for U.S. troops. " The guerilla

insurgence in that region underscores the legacy of

the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA), which

handed over an insecure and badly mishandled country

to Iraqi officials more than two months ago. Former

CPA senior advisor Larry Diamond recently admitted

that due to " a long chain of U.S. miscalculations, "

the CPA left Iraq " in far worse shape than it need

have and has diminished the long-term prospects of

democracy there. " Combined with the horrific abuses at

Abu Ghraib, America's largely unilateral occupation

shattered U.S. credibility and bolstered

anti-Americanism abroad. It also damaged the fight

against terrorism and weakened America's military.

 

TERRORISM: THE THREAT REMAINS: According to senior

U.S. officials, diplomats and counterterrorism experts

quoted in today's Miami Herald, " Three years after the

attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the terrorist threat to the

United States and its allies remains as serious as

ever. " The threat comes not just from al Qaeda, but

from " the spread of Osama bin Laden's ideology and

methods, which have been adopted by violent Islamic

groups worldwide. " Indeed, American Progress' report

indicates the administration has failed to stem

anti-Americanism and disaffection abroad, breeding

thousands of new terrorists. Distrust of American

policy in Europe has risen and majority support in

Islamic countries for the U.S. war on terror has

evaporated. The Bush administration has exacerbated

problems by failing to devote necessary resources to

public diplomacy and development assistance.

 

TERRORISM: NO FOLLOW THROUGH: Even the battle against

al Qaeda has been waged inconsistently. Soon after

9/11, American forces dealt al Qaeda a significant

blow in Afghanistan, but the terrorist group has been

allowed to regroup and possibly grow even stronger

since the Bush administration withdrew resources and

troops to invade Iraq. Today, the Taliban boasts it

can " strike at will, " and a Center on International

Cooperation report indicates Taliban attacks have

reached their highest level since the collapse of the

government in 2001. Meanwhile, the Bush administration

has failed to make significant inroads into al Qaeda's

worldwide organization or funding network. The 9/11

Commission noted the U.S. needed to do a better job of

identifying " potential terrorist sanctuaries " and

disrupting financing.

 

MILITARY POWER: TOO THIN: Campaigning in 2000,

President Bush said America needed to " stop extending

our troops all around the world, " or there were going

to be " serious problems coming down the road. "

Unfortunately, the president has ignored his own

advice. Current commitments in Afghanistan and Iraq

have stretched the military dangerously thin. Extended

and back-to-back deployments in those places have

damaged readiness and reenlistment, with more than 40

percent of the troops now in Iraq coming from the

Reserve or National Guard. And despite lofty rhetoric

about supporting the troops, the Bush administration

has shortchanged many of our soldiers, supporting cuts

in combat pay, health insurance, education and

disability care for soldiers deployed abroad and their

families at home.

 

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR ACTION: The Center recommends the

administration revisit several of its policies for

dealing with terrorism, including its apathetic

disengagement from the Middle East peace process,

which is " widely seen as the greatest source of

anti-Americanism. " Other important steps include

rolling back the drug trade in Afghanistan, restoring

funding for public diplomacy programs and doing a

better job identifying failing states. On military

power, the Center recommends adding 40,000 active-duty

troops to the army, including a doubling of troops

with special-operations capabilities. For many other

recommendations for improving America's grade on

security, read the full report here. #160;

 

PRISON ABUSE

From Bad to Worse

 

Army General Paul Kern told members of Congress

yesterday that " the CIA has held as many as 100

'ghost' detainees in Iraq without revealing their

identities or locations, " which permitted the CIA to

conceal their treatment from the International Red

Cross (IRC). Kern said that the practice was in

violation of international law. The scope of the

illegalities is far greater than previously reported

#8211; an army inquiry last month had uncovered just

eight so-called " ghost detainees. " The exact number of

those hidden from the IRC, however, is still unknown

because " CIA officials have refused to cooperate with

Pentagon investigators, denying repeated requests for

documents and information on the detainees. " It is

known that " at least three Iraqis have died while in

CIA custody. " Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) said, " The

situation with CIA and ghost [detainees] is beginning

to look like a bad movie. This needs to be cleaned up

rather badly. " Sen. John Warner (R-VA), chairman of

the Senate Armed Services Committee, said he would

consider taking further action to compel the CIA's

cooperation.

 

RUMSFELD DIRECTLY RESPONSIBLE: In at least one case,

Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld " has

acknowledged...he ordered military officials in Iraq

in November to hold a man...at Camp Cropper, a

high-level detention center, but not to register him. "

The Bush administration has later since acknowledged

that Rumsfeld's conduct " violated international law. "

 

NO ACCOUNTABILITY: Significantly, " the malfeasance by

senior officials so far documented has not been

attached to any formal consequences. " The

investigations confirmed " that senior officers in the

headquarters of Iraq commander in chief Lt. Gen.

Ricardo S. Sanchez, including two generals, knew of

the illegal abuses at Abu Ghraib but failed to report

them to more senior commanders. " Sanchez himself

" twice signed off on interrogation policies that, the

investigators found, contained illegal methods and

opened the way to abuses. " But no senior officials

have been subject to any type of discipline. Rather,

the Bush administration investigators insist that

Sanchez is " a hero. " Meanwhile, low-level officers are

being subject to courts-martial.

 

PRIOR INVESTIGATIONS INADEQUATE: Although there have

been numerous investigations by the government in

response to the prison abuse scandal, they all " fail

to fully explain what happened, why, who is

responsible and, how such abuse can be prevented in

the future. " Three investigations led by generals

#8211; Jones, Taguba and Fay #8211; were limited by

" their own place in the chain of command, by a lack of

subpoena power, and by their institutional inability

to inquire beyond the four walls of the military

itself. " Two other investigations #8211; by the Army

inspector general and former Secretary of Defense

James Schlesinger #8211; " were limited to

investigating the role of military forces in detention

and interrogation. " Both Schlesinger and the Army

inspector general reports " expressed frustration with

their inability to inquire into the role, and

relationship with the Army, of other U.S. actors,

including the CIA. " The Schlesinger panel, moreover,

lacked independence because it was handpicked by

Rumsfeld.

 

THE NEED FOR AN INDEPENDENT INVESTIGATION: On

Wednesday, eight former Army generals wrote President

Bush and urged him " to commit #8211; immediately and

publicly #8211; to support the creation of an

independent commission to investigate and report on

the detention and interrogation practices of U.S.

military and intelligence agencies deployed in the

global 'war on terror.' " The commission would be

" modeled on successful efforts such as the

just-concluded 9/11 Commission. " Read the full letter.

Then, write your representative and your senator, and

tell them that to restore our credibility in the world

we need a comprehensive, independent investigation on

the treatment of detainees.

 

Under the Radar

 

POLITICS #8211; VOTE BUSH OR DIE: In the upcoming

issue of the Nation magazine, the Progress Report's

Judd Legum and David Sirota published an expose on how

the Bush administration has deliberately politicized

9/11 and the fight against terrorism. The story comes

out just days after Vice President Dick Cheney made

the outrageous claim that if Sen. John Kerry (D-MA)

wins the November 2 election, " we'll get hit again " by

terrorists. The piece shows how just weeks after the

devastating 9/11 attacks, White House political guru

Karl Rove began urging GOP candidates to make the war

on terror a political issue. By the fall of 2002,

President Bush was aggressively impugning Democrats'

commitment to protecting America, while one prominent

GOP candidate put a picture of triple amputee Vietnam

War hero Max Cleland in the same ad as a picture of

Osama bin Laden. In 2004, it only got worse, as the

White House campaign to politicize national security

began eroding the credibility of the government's

terror warnings. As the article states, " today

critical decisions appear to be guided by political

operatives instead of terrorism experts. And in the

long run, that has weakened national security#8212;the

very issue Republicans want so desperately to call

their own. " See the full article here.

 

HEALTH CARE #8211; WHITE HOUSE DRUG PROBLEM: The

Washington Post reports the Food and Drug

Administration #8211; which is supposed to protect the

public #8211; has " repeatedly urged antidepressant

manufacturers not to disclose to physicians and the

public that some clinical trials of the medications in

children found the drugs were no better than sugar

pills. " For at least three medications, the " FDA

blocked the companies' plans to reveal the negative

studies in drug labels, and in one case the agency

reversed a manufacturer's decision to amend its drug

label to say that the drug was associated in studies

with increased hostility and suicidal thinking among

children. "

 

TERRORISM #8211; CHENEY HAS NO SHAME: The myth that

Iraq had a relationship with al Qaeda has been

debunked time and time again. That makes no difference

to Vice President Dick Cheney, however. Cheney ignored

all the evidence once again yesterday and said " that

Saddam Hussein had given 'safe harbor' to al Qaeda

when he ruled Iraq. " Asked to explain this outrageous

statement, Cheney's spokeswoman said the vice

president in his comments was linking Hussein to Abu

Musab Zarqawi, " believed to be behind elements of the

insurgency in Iraq. " No dice. The independent 9/11

Commission, which thoroughly examined all evidence,

flatly stated last June that Hussein had no

" collaborative relationship " with al Qaeda. Former

White House counterterrorism expert Roger Cressey said

on 5/12/04, " I think some of the administration's

claims of direct links between Zarqawi and al Qaeda as

we knew it, frankly, are not true. " CIA Director

George Tenet testified there was no coordination

between Zarqawi and Iraqis, saying, " I did not suggest

operational direction and control " of Zarqawi by Iraq.

" He thinks of himself as independent. " And if the

White House truly believes Zarqawi was the link

between Saddam and al Qaeda, why did they leave him

off the FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists list?

 

ECONOMY #8211; FORGET UNEMPLOYMENT, WHAT ABOUT EBAY?:

Vice President Dick Cheney had a novel approach to

viewing the economy. " Indicators measure the nation's

unemployment rate, consumer spending and other

economic milestones, but Vice President Dick Cheney

says it misses the hundreds of thousands who make

money selling on eBay. 'That's a source that didn't

even exist 10 years ago,' Cheney told an audience in

Cincinnati on Thursday. 'Four hundred thousand people

make some money trading on eBay.' " In response, Sen.

John Edwards pointed out, " If we only included bake

sales and how much money kids make at lemonade stands,

this economy would really be cooking. "

 

LABOR #8211; TELL ARLEN SPECTER TO PROTECT OVERTIME

PAY: AP reports, " in a sharp rebuke of a new

administration policy, the House moved yesterday to

block the Labor Department from carrying out overtime

rules critics argued could deprive millions of workers

of overtime pay. " An amendment by Rep. David Obey

(D-WI) passed the House with Democrats and 22

Republicans supporting it, despite a presidential veto

threat. The bill would roll back President Bush's

efforts to cut off overtime pay protections for 6

million workers. The American Progress Action Fund

pressed for passage of the amendment, urging Progress

Report readers to demand their representatives support

the bill. The bill now moves to the Senate, where its

main GOP backer is Sen. Arlen Specter (R-PA), chairman

of the appropriations subcommittee the bill is moving

through. During his tight re-election race against

Rep. Joe Hoeffel (D-PA), Specter is promising

Pennsylvania voters he can get things done in

Washington, including passing the overtime bill. His

promises have garnered him the endorsement of the

state AFL-CIO. Now, though, it will be up to Specter

to pass the bill through the Senate, and defy the

presidential veto threat. Hoeffel voted for the bill

yesterday, meaning Specter is under enormous pressure

to deliver. E-mail Sen. Specter at

marlen_specter and tell him to live

up to his promises and pass the bill protecting

workers' overtime pay.

 

POLITICS #8211; CAMPAIGN GETS VIOLENT: First, news

reports revealed the Bush-Cheney campaign was forcing

voters to sign pledges of support to the Republican

Party before they could see the vice president speak.

Then, it was reported that the Bush-Cheney campaign

racially profiled a journalist before allowing her to

cover an event. Now it appears the campaign and its

supporters are becoming physically violent against

those who express their First Amendment rights in

protest of the president's policies. This AP photo

captures it all. As the caption reads, a Bush

supporter " pulls a demonstrator's hair as he forces

her out of an auditorium where President Bush [was]

addressing a crowd of supporters " yesterday. This

follows the Bush administration's decision to deploy

the FBI before the GOP convention to question to those

it suspected of planning protests.

 

PUBLIC OPINION #8211; THE WORLD COURT: The annual

Transatlantic Trends survey released this week by the

German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF)

concludes:#160; " European support for strong American

leadership in the world has declined significantly

over the past two years, as has approval of President

George Bush's international policies. " #160; According

to Dr. Ronald D. Asmus, " In a historically

pro-American country like Poland, for example,

opposition to American leadership has risen from 22

percent to 47 percent over the past two years. In some

ways, the most anti-American country in Europe today

is not France but our traditional ally Turkey, where

the public harbors the coldest feelings toward the

United States and opposition to President Bush and his

policy towards Iraq is most intense. "