American Glob

Could it be because they’re treated better by America than they would be treated by the government of their own country?

In a word? Yes.

The Obama administration would quickly send home six Algerians held at the military detention center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, but for one problem: The men don’t want to go. Given the choice between repatriation and incarceration, the men choose Gitmo, according to their lawyers.

The administration secured a significant legal victory Thursday when a federal appeals court overturned a lower court’s ruling that had barred the government from repatriating one of them. The detainee had asserted that if he is returned, the Algerian government will torture him or he will be targeted by terrorist groups who will kill him if he refuses to join.

Hat Tip to John Hinderaker at Powerline who adds:

The detainees fear that they might be tortured or killed if they return to Algeria. Which is to say, actually tortured, something that has never happened at Gitmo, notwithstanding the global hyperventilation of the last seven or eight years.

Wouldn’t it be nice if leftist organizations, like – oh I don’t know – the Democratic Party, would acknowledge this as a fact just once?

I guess it’s too bad that the Algerian detainees aren’t Uighurs because if they were, they’d probably be headed to the sandy pink beaches of Bermuda.

Of course, that plan worked so well that it inspired graffiti in the subways of Boston, Massachusetts.

Jennifer Rubin of Commentary Magazine knows why…

Recall that when Obama was in suck-up mode with American Jews (who gave him a pass for twenty years of listening to the anti-Semitic ravings of Rev. Wright) during the campaign, he went to the Wall in which he touchingly placed a note. No, he didn’t at the time mention that he wanted to carve up Jerusalem. But now that it’s out in the open, wouldn’t it seem extraordinarily hypocritical (even for him) to go there? Yes, we’ve come to the point where a trip to the Wall by an American president becomes an act of gross hypocrisy. Tragic, really.

So toxic is the Obama Administration in Israel, that White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, who is Jewish, has received threats over his son’s Bar Mitzvah.

William Jacobson at Legal Insurrection notes the tragic reality:

I feel for Emanuel’s son, and it is unfortunate that the father’s political actions are impinging on an important family event. Any threats made should be condemned.

But, there is an ancient Hebrew saying which addresses this very situation: “You can’t have it both ways.”

You may have seen the now famous footage of David Horowitz dealing with a pro-Hamas college student who, when pressed, advocates a second Holocaust.

Today, the NewsReal blog released a new video of another anti-semitic college student trying to convince Horowitz that her twisted anti-Israel thinking somehow makes sense.

There is an ugly anti-semitic side to liberal politics in America.

It is something I will never understand and I suspect it is at least a part of the reason we won’t see President Obama in Israel any time soon.

It was hard to resist the title of “Dude, Where’s my State Department?”

I know I’m going out on a limb here by asking this question but…. What the hell qualifies Ashton Kutcher for work in United States diplomacy?

Perhaps you, like me, were forcefully encouraged to see the new movie “Valentines Day” last weekend. In the course of diplomacy, perhaps you, too, said that it was a wonderful movie.

You will be fascinated, then, to discover that the movie’s star, Ashton Kutcher, has become a U.S. government diplomat.

No, not one of those who takes an overseas posting, sleeps with women who are not his wife, and, having embarrassed himself by dropping his trousers at an official function, is forced to function at a slightly lower level for the remainder of his career.

According to the LA Times, Kutcher is being sent by the State Department to Russia as part of a tech delegation that aims to use its bits to foster diplomacy with that particularly bearish, bullish part of the world.

I feel so much better about American foreign policy now that I know this! Hey, I have a few other suggestions as long as we’re setting this new standard for diplomacy.

Let’s send Pauly Shore to the middle east as a special envoy to the Taliban.

How about sending Michael Moore to Ethiopia to assess the famine situation?

Perhaps Janeane Garofalo would like to visit Saudi Arabia to talk about equal rights for women? I’m sure that would go over well.

Do you have any suggestions? Leave them in the comments section.

Temperament: A+

Foreign Policy: Incomplete

Domestic Policy: D

This can’t be good news for anyone…

“TEHRAN, Iran  —  Iran approved plans Sunday to build 10 new uranium enrichment facilities, a dramatic expansion in defiance of the U.N. nuclear watchdog, days after it demanded Tehran stop construction on one plant and halt all enrichment activities.”

“Iran’s defiance will likely heighten tensions with the West, which has signaled it is running out of patience with Iran’s continuing enrichment and its balking at a U.N. deal aimed at ensuring Tehran cannot build a nuclear weapon in the near-term future. The U.S. and its allies have hinted at new U.N. sanctions if Iran does not respond.”

Iran claims it had to make this decision… because the UN told it not to…..

“Iran’s nuclear chief on Monday accused the U.N. atomic watchdog’s critical report of pushing Tehran to develop new nuclear facilities, even as France said diplomacy was not working and new international sanctions were needed.”

“Vice President Ali Akbar Salehi told state radio that Iran’s decision to build 10 new uranium enrichment facilities was necessary after the International Atomic Energy Agency’s resolution Friday demanded that Iran halt all enrichment activities.”

So far, the only reaction from the White House is this:

“The IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) said it would not comment on Sunday’s announcement. But in Washington, White House spokesman Robert Gibbs called the announcement “another example of Iran choosing to isolate itself.”

“The international community has made clear that Iran has rights, but with those rights come responsibilities,” Gibbs said in a written statement. “As the overwhelming IAEA board of governors vote made clear, time is running out for Iran to address the international community’s growing concerns about its nuclear program.”

And frankly, she sounds like she has a better command of the subjects than President Obama.

In case you’re wondering why she’s not dressed up for the interview, it’s because she’s wearing an ARMY t-shirt. You see, she was on her way to meet with over 4,000 people at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.

The German paper Der Spiegel took the opportunity to smack Obama around a little bit today noting that “His Nice Guy Act is Getting Him Nowhere.”

“When he entered office, US President Barack Obama promised to inject US foreign policy with a new tone of respect and diplomacy. His recent trip to Asia, however, showed that it’s not working. A shift to Bush-style bluntness may be coming.”

“Barack Obama looked tired on Thursday, as he stood in the Blue House in Seoul, the official residence of the South Korean president. He also seemed irritable and even slightly forlorn. The CNN cameras had already been set up. But then Obama decided not to play along, and not to answer the question he had already been asked several times on his trip: what did he plan to take home with him? Instead, he simply said “thank you, guys,” and disappeared. David Axelrod, senior advisor to the president, fielded the journalists’ questions in the hallway of the Blue House instead, telling them that the public’s expectations had been “too high.”

“Upon taking office, Obama said that he wanted to listen to the world, promising respect instead of arrogance. But Obama’s currency isn’t as strong as he had believed. Everyone wants respect, but hardly anyone is willing to pay for it. Interests, not emotions, dominate the world of realpolitik. The Asia trip revealed the limits of Washington’s new foreign policy: Although Obama did not lose face in China and Japan, he did appear to have lost some of his initial stature.”

Meanwhile, Andrew Malcolm at the Los Angeles Times notes that the approval gap between Obama and Palin continues to shrink…

“Not that it matters politically because obviously she’s a female Republican dunce and he’s obviously a male Democrat genius.”

“But Sarah Palin’s poll numbers are strengthening.”

“And President Obama’s are sliding.”

“Guess what? They’re about to meet in the 40s.”

“Depending, of course, on which recent set of numbers you peruse and how the questions are phrased, 307 days into his allotted 1,461 the 44th president’s approval rating among Americans has slid to 49% or 48%, showing no popularity bounce from his many happy trips, foreign and domestic.”

“Riding the wave of immense publicity and symbiotic media interest over her new book, “Going Rogue,” and the accompanying promotional tour, Palin’s favorable ratings are now at 43%, according to ABC. That’s up from 40% in July.”

“One poll even gives her a 47% favorable.”

Tonight was the second segment of Bill O’Reilly’s interview with Sarah Palin.

Part 1

Part 2

The following clip is an interview of syndicated columnist, Dr. Charles Krauthammer by Frank Gaffney of Secure Freedom Radio.

Krauthammer speaks at length about Reagan, the Cold War, President Obama’s absence from the celebration of the fall of the Berlin Wall and much more.

At 7:20, Frank Gaffney announces his summary of the “Obama Doctrine.”

“Undermine our allies, embolden our enemies and diminish our country.”

This is why I love Charles Krauthammer…