How many thousands of acres of trees have been cut down and turned into paper to print the countless articles relating the controversy over the waterboarding of just three terrorists or to falsely report that electronic eavesdropping on terrorists was somehow domestic spying?
The fact is that these two Bush Administration programs, shamefully described as threatening the civil liberties of all Americans, have instead saved the lives of thousands.
In September 2006 President Bush delivered a speech where he went into detail on how effective these programs were in helping us unravel Al Queda's terror network and put it's top lieutenants, including Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the mastermind of the September 11th attacks and the man seen on video sawing off the head of American Daniel Pearl, into the detention facility at Guantanamo Bay where he remains today.
What was missing from that speech is a fuller accounting of all of the plots that have been foiled as a result of the efforts undertaken by President Bush. It seems he never was much for tooting his own horn, but I have no problem in doing so:
Foiled Terror Attacks
From the confession of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed(KSM):
- Dirty Bomb attacks on American soil.
- A “second wave” of attacks after 9/11. Targets included the Library Tower in Los Angeles, the Sears Tower in Chicago, the Plaza Bank in Seattle and the Empire State Building in New York City.
- Assassination attempt against Pope John Paul II while he was visiting the Philippines.
Information from the interrogation of KSM and the subsequent wiretapping, arrest and interrogation of persons he named was a key factor which led to many of the following plots being foiled. Other plots were foiled by using these same techniques:
- Iyman Farris's plot to destroy the Brooklyn Bridge in New York.
- New York City Subway System, and the trains connecting New York City to New Jersey.
- Attack on Fort Dix, New Jersey.
- Attack on JFK Airport in New York.
- Plot to blow up ten jet liners over the Atlantic coming from Great Britain.
- Bombing apartment buildings in the United States. One of the plotters, Jose Padilla, also discussed the possibility of using a "dirty bomb" in the U.S.
In addition, Al Queda agents sent to gather information on U.S. targets such as gas stations and major tourist destinations and population centers were arrested.
Rename saved buildings and bridges in President Bush's honor!
Remember the idiotic idea some left wing nuts had in San Francisco to rename a sewage treatment plant for President Bush? Even the voters in San Francisco thought that was over the line.
But how about renaming some of the buildings, bridges and facilities which were saved by President Bush's policy in his honor? There's a reason the photograph of the Library Tower, now called the U.S. Bank Tower (seems they like renaming it) is running up the right hand margin of this page. It's one of the structures that were targeted in that second wave of September 11th style attacks thwarted by President Bush.
Same goes for the Brooklyn Bridge in the photograph below taken by yours truly when the twin towers of the World Trade Center still stood.
photo by Mike's America
Tens of thousands of people who cross the Brooklyn Bridge, or work in the Library Tower and other buildings were spared the horror of a 9/11 attack due solely to the fact that President Bush was committed to protecting the lives of Americans in the wake of that awful day in 2001. Thousands more lives would have been lost in the planes crossing the Atlantic or flying over the Pacific had those plots succeeded.
If President Bush is to be blamed for every bad thing that has happened the last eight years he should also receive the full credit for saving tens of thousands of American lives and sparing those citizens and their families the agony and horror which has visited our homeland only once in the past eight years.
President Bush deserves not only our profound thanks for that achievement but also a more fitting and lasting tribute!
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