powell: jews not driving us to war

  1. 5,748 Posts.
    So much for all the nerds who posted yesterday....where there's smoke there's fire sh*it.......


    Mar. 14, 2003
    Powell: Jews not driving US to war
    By MELISSA RADLER
    NEW YORK

    Allegations that American Jews and Israel are leading the country into war with Iraq was publicly and firmly rejected yesterday by US Secretary of State Colin Powell.

    Asked by Rep. Jim Kolbe (R-Arizona) to clear up media speculation on the role of US Jews and Israel in America's Iraq policy, Powell told a House Appropriations Subcommittee that the country's push for Iraqi disarmament is driven by US interests in the region and UN resolutions over the past 12 years.

    "It is not driven by any small cabal that is buried away somewhere that is telling President Bush or me or Vice President Cheney or [National Security Adviser] Condi Rice or other members of our administration what our policies should be," said Powell.

    "This is not just the result of a few individuals who are running loose, as some suggest, but it's a comprehensive policy developed over the years, over several administrations, with the support of the United States Congress."

    Powell's made his comments just days after Rep. Jim Moran apologized for accusing the Jewish community last week for leading the nation into war. Moran, a Virginia Democrat and seven-term incumbent, also attributed the Jewish community with the power to stop the war.

    "They are influential enough that they could change the direction of where this is going, and I think they should," he told 120 people at a town hall meeting on March 3.

    Leaders from both major parties immediately condemned Moran's remarks, and a group of rabbis that called for Moran's resignation rejected an invitation to meet with the congressman this week.

    On Wednesday, six Jewish Democrats sent a joint letter to House Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi in which they urged Moran not to seek reelection. Pelosi criticized Moran's statement earlier this week but said his apology was sufficient.

    The letter, signed by representatives Tom Lantos of California, Nita Lowey of New York, Benjamin Cardin of Maryland, Martin Frost of Texas, Sander Levin of Michigan, and Henry Waxman of California, deemed Moran's statements "grossly irresponsible" and noted that they came at a time when such comments can have dangerous consequences.

    "Under any interpretation, they violate the basic standards we hold to ourselves as Democrats," they wrote. "We hope that as Jim reflects on his actions, he will decide not to seek reelection to the House of Representatives. Should he seek reelection in 2004, however, we cannot and will not support his candidacy."

    The Republican party's only Jewish congressman, fellow Virginian Eric Cantor, urged Pelosi to remove Moran from his position on the House appropriations and budget committee.

    "The Democratic leadership must reexamine Rep. Moran's influence in his caucus and reassign him to positions and committees that limit the damage his beliefs can do," said Cantor.

    He urged the entire party to "condemn Rep. Moran's hurtful and fraudulent linkage of Jewish influence to the problems America faces as a nation."

 
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