In this issue:

LaRouche Warned You About Kissinger's Role in 9/11

California: The Shortfall Is Too Big To Bury

Hi-Tech Unemployed Fill Dallas Homeless Shelters

Powell Says 'No-Fly' Zone Incidents Won't Trigger UN Resolution

Powell Will Host 'Quartet' Meeting To Discuss Middle East Peace

Powell Will Host 'Quartet' Meeting To Discuss Middle East Peace

DOJ Uses 'Material Witness' Law To Hold Many Detainees

'Night To Honor Israel' Draws 5,000 to Hagee's San Antonio Church

From Volume1, Issue Number 39 of Electronic Intelligence Weekly, Published Dec. 2, 2002

UNITED STATES NEWS DIGEST

LaRouche Warned You About Kissinger's Role in 9/11

America's leading war criminal, Sir Henry A. Kissinger, was appointed Nov. 27 by President Bush to head the newly created "independent commission" to investigate the Sept. 11 attacks. The appointment should be a wake-up call to those who oppose a new "Hundred Years' War," as proposed by Sir Henry's colleagues on the Defense Policy Board in the Pentagon, that it is time to listen to 2004 Democratic Party Presidential pre-candidate Lyndon LaRouche. LaRouche identified Kissinger's role in the Sept. 11 irregular warfare attack, in a LaRouche-in-2004 campaign Special Report entitled Brzezinski and Sept. 11. Among other details, the LaRouche report details the policy involvement of Kissinger and Brzezinski in building up the Osama bin Laden network in Afghanistan. As late as 2001, Kissinger was negotiating with Afghanistan's Taliban government for oil contracts!

Commenting on Nov. 27, LaRouche suggested that, as opposed to this coverup commission, there be the creation of a "Team B"--a Truth-Seeking Commission, to seek the real truth as to who was behind the Sept. 11 events.

According to a New York Times leak Nov. 28, the Kissinger choice was made by Vice President Cheney, leader of the Iraq war "chickenhawks" in the Administration, who foisted it on Bush. As reported by EIW, Cheney's office is a center for neo-imperial doctrine, and is contaminated with Likud-run Israeli espionage operations through his chief adviser, "Scooter" Libby, the former lead attorney for financier and Israeli spook Marc Rich.

The proposal for such a 9/11 independent commission first came from the organized-crime-linked Senate duo of John McCain and Joseph Lieberman, the biggest Iraq warmongers in the Senate. Their commission is nothing more than a 9/11 version of the Establishment's Warren Commission of 1963-64, which covered up the John F. Kennedy assassination. President Bush originally opposed a commission of inquiry, but did a rapid reversal after the Nov. 5 election, in return for Lieberman's pushing through the Homeland Security bill.

Former Senator George Mitchell (D-Me) has been named as co-chairman, recommended by the Democrats, who get to select five of the Commission's 10 members. All selections are due by Dec. 15, and the panel has an 18-month deadline to issue a report of findings.

Already, prominent U.S. figures are warning of a coverup. Veteran journalist Daniel Shorr, interviewed Nov. 30 on National Public Radio (NPR), said the Bush Administration was "desperately anxious" to make sure that nothing is found that would implicate it in a failure of intelligence or a failure among intelligence agencies to communicate, as has been charged. But Bush, under tremendous pressure from the families of 9/11 victims, finally agreed to the Commission, anticipating that Kissinger would be someone who would keep the lid on.

California: The Shortfall Is Too Big To Bury

The California budget crisis shows that the only solution on the table adequate to the problem is Lyndon LaRouche's "Super TVA." State Representative Herb Wesson (D-LA), the Speaker of the California Assembly, gave a flavor of the disaster by saying that the California budget gap "is so vast that even if we fired every single person on the state payroll, we'd still be more than $6 billion short," according to USA Today. Shutting every state prison, university, and mental health service "would only cover about half the shortfall," now estimated at $25 billion, as compared with general spending of about $78 billion. It is the largest deficit in California's history.

Hi-Tech Unemployed Fill Dallas Homeless Shelters

Charities are overwhelmed with former "techies" in Greater Dallas, Texas, according to a p. 1 article in the Business section of the Houston Chronicle Nov. 24. More than 15,000 layoffs in the telecom sector alone have devastated families of upwardly mobile, college-educated workers who only three years ago, were making an average of $80,000 a year, moving into $200,000-300,000 homes, and counting on stock options and 401(k) plans to retire early and rich. The Dallas-Ft. Worth area has also been hit by layoffs at American Airlines, with more expected.

The director of a homeless shelter, Howard Dahlka of the Samaritan Inn, says the shelter used to house the "usual down-and-outers or chronically impoverished underclass. Showing up ... now are families who lived in middle-class comfort or upper-middle-class luxury at this time last year." Dahlka added, "The number of degreed people is increasing. We had a couple in their 50s who were here for four months. He had a master's in physics and a Ph.D...." Dallas-area charities "are reporting budget-breaking demands" to accommodate the new homeless.

Meanwhile, the Houston Chronicle also revealed that the top brass of the Texas Workforce Commission issued a gag order that prohibits all employees from responding to media inquiries about the Texas economy. Commission spokesman Larry Jones claimed that negative reports were being issued which could be harmful to the state's economy. The order especially targets Houston-based analyst Joel Wagher, who recently stated to the media that 2002 would be a year of job losses in the Houston area, with more cuts to come in energy trading, telecommunications, and retail. This contradicted a more upbeat official report. Jones said that, from this point forward, "I am the official response."

Powell Says 'No-Fly' Zone Incidents Won't Trigger UN Resolution

In an interview with NPR Nov. 28, Secretary of State Colin Powell said that there is no longer any "debate" or disagreement in the Administration over Iraq, or even over whether the incidents in the "no-fly" zone would cross the threshhold of "material breach" of the recent United Nations Security Council resolution or previous resolutions.

"No, there isn't a debate going on. We'll wait and see what happens, rather than prejudge where that threshold might be," Powell said, adding that "what we're looking for is a new spirit of cooperation from Iraq." As to the Iraqi shooting at U.S. and British planes in the "no-fly" zones, Powell stated: "They've been shooting at U.S. and British planes for, oh, eight or nine years now, so this is a pattern of behavior that is inconsistent with what we believe their obligations are, and we are responding to them every time they do fire at our aircraft. But we don't see that series of incidents ... as something that triggers the demands and the consequences of the new resolution.... [T]he Security Council should take note of the fact that since we've passed this resolution, Iraq continues to operate in this way." Powell repeated that "President Bush sees war as a last resort."

Three days earlier, on Nov. 25, senior political columnist Robert Novak cited a Bush-Powell conversation en route to the NATO summit in Prague as evidence of Bush's tilt away from the Iraq warmongers. Novak wrote that after the lengthy one-on-one discussion aboard Air Force One, Powell immediately phoned his deputy, Dick Armitage, to report that Bush was not committed to going to war with Iraq--despite the fire-breathing speech Bush gave several days later to Prague students.

Novak reports that, for the time being, the "Rumsfeld-Wolfowitz" hard-liners have lost control over the President. "Bush has gone well beyond what ... Rumsfeld ... Paul Wolfowitz and their non-governmental advisers have opposed. They did not want UN involvement, weapons inspectors, coalition-building or even an active role by Powell." Richard Perle's attacks on UN weapons inspector chief Hans Blix also fell on deaf ears at the White House, where Blix received a "hero's welcome" from Bush last week, says Novak.

Novak adds that the Administration hawks have deep concerns about their desire for regime change in Iraq. "If Hussein opposes or stalls the inspector, he surely faces multinational military action to seal his fate. But what if he cooperates and no cache of weapons is found? The calm and collected George W. Bush who talked with Powell on the way to Prague seems ready to accept that outcome."

Powell Will Host 'Quartet' Meeting To Discuss Middle East Peace

Secretary of State Colin Powell will host a meeting of the "Quartet" (the U.S., Russia, the European Union, and the UN) Dec. 20, to discuss a "roadmap" for peace between Israel and Palestine, State Department spokesman Richard Boucher announced Nov. 25.

Russian Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov, UN Secretary General Kofi Annan, and top EU officials are expected to attend, to discuss how to proceed towards the creation of a Palestinian state by 2005.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon had sent his deputy, Natan Sharansky, to Washington last week, to lobby specifically against any discussion of peace efforts until after the Israeli and Palestinian elections are held in January. Sharansky told the press Nov. 20, after meeting with Vice President Dick Cheney and Deputy Secretary of State Dick Armitage, that Yasser Arafat's Palestinian rule was a dictatorship, and all discussions should be put on hold until changes in the Palestinian Authority are made, and, at minimum, until after the elections are held.

An article in the Israeli newspaper Ha'aretz Nov. 26 reported that Israeli Military Intelligence Maj. Gen. Aharon Ze'evi has written letters to Sharon, Foreign Minister Netanyahu, and Defense Minister Mofaz, warning hat if Israel does not intervene, the Palestinians will use the time before the Israeli elections to "influence the shape" of the road map, and Israel will be faced with an unpleasant fait accompli.

Ha'aretz says the U.S. okayed Israel's request to postpone giving a response until after the January Israeli elections. But Colin Powell said that "we will not sit back idly" while "they are sorting out who should be the next Prime Minister of Israel," and scheduled the Dec. 20 meeting. The Sharon government wants the U.S. not to publicize the road map, because it could "complicate" the Israeli elections. Of particular concern to hardliners is that the updated plan calls for "a total settlement freeze, including ... on natural growth construction" around Jerusalem.

Meanwhile, Israel is desperate for money, and has added a request of $4 billion in new military aid, to the already-sought $10 billion in loan guarantees. Astute commentators in Israel are starting to look at the request by Sharon for $4 billion in defense aid and $10 billion in loan guarantees from the U.S., as merely election spin. Israeli commentator Akiva Eldar noted that there has been no statement from the White House that they would even come close to such a request. In fact, he points out that the U.S. Congress has not even approved the $200 million--which in fact was supposed to be $800 million--promised when Israel pulled out of Lebanon.

New 'Palmer Raids': Over 2,000 People Detained in U.S. Since 9/11

Over 2,000 people have been detained in the U.S. since the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, estimates Prof. David Cole of the Georgetown Law School, who characterized the detentions as the "New Palmer Raids." No one knows the exact number, because the Justice Department stopped publicly counting on Nov. 4, 2001, when the total had already reached 1,147. None of the detainees has been charged with any complicity in the 9/11 attacks, and only four have been charged with any terrorist-related crime at all. "Four out of 2,000 is a pretty bad batting average," Cole said.

Cole described the detainees--mostly immigrants--as America's "disappeared," since most were held in secret, and tried in secret in immigration courts, and many were secretly deported, but no one knows how many are still being held. Even some who agreed to leave the country voluntarily, were still held for many months, although there was no legitimate immigration purpose to do so.

What was done to these immigrants could not be done to a U.S. citizen, Cole said, and he argued that, just because a person is an immigrant who is not a U.S. citizen, he or she cannot be denied due process. The Bill of Rights applies to all people in the U.S., not just citizens, and those rights are today considered as fundamental human rights applicable to all humanity.

Cole made his remarks in a presentation to an audience of mostly government lawyers or former government lawyers at the American Bar Association's national-security law conference on Nov. 22; they were, for the most part, decidedly unreceptive to Cole's arguments. The speaker who followed him, former Justice Department official Victoria Toensing, emphatically disagreed, arguing that "when war has been declared on us, we have to incorporate prevention in our national security."

DOJ Uses 'Material Witness' Law To Hold Many Detainees

According to the Washington Post, which says it has reviewed the cases of 44 persons who were arrested and jailed as potential grand jury witnesses after the Sept. 11 attacks, almost half of those detained have never been called before a grand jury. At least seven of these are U.S. citizens. The number actually detained as "material witnesses" may be much higher, since the Justice Department has not released any figures.

The "material witness" statute is being used as an excuse for indefinite detention, apparently because of its vagueness. It is only a paragraph long, and states no evidentiary requirements nor limits to detention. At least one man was originally held for eight months in solitary confinement, without being assigned a lawyer or taken before a judge.

'Night To Honor Israel' Draws 5,000 to Hagee's San Antonio Church

A "Night To Honor Israel" at the end of November drew 5,000 Christian and Jewish Zionists to the Rev. John Hagee's San Antonio Church, with Rep. Tom DeLay (R-Texas) as featured speaker. This, the 21st annual gathering, which was simulcast to a global television audience. The crowd at the Cornerstone Church included three busloads of Jews from the Houston area.

The theme of the night was full support for Israel's efforts at "self-defense" in the fight against "evil." The audience gave repeated ovations to DeLay and Hagee. Excerpts from their speeches follow:

DELAY: "Since the Republican Party became the majority in the House of Representatives, our leaders have consistently supported Israel as a just and democratic nation. Let me assure all of you here tonight, as long as I remain Majority Leader, I will use every tool at my disposal to ensure that the House of Representatives continues to preserve and strengthen America's alliance with the state of Israel.

"America has a clear duty to stand beside a democratic ally that is besieged by terrorists. I believe most Americans feel the pull of kinship with the men and women of Israel."

HAGEE: Israel has a divine right to its land and is entitled to defend it. "Victory will come over these fanatical Islamic terrorists. Peace will come. Joy will come. Singing and laughter will replace this long night of heartache.

"To our Jewish friends in Israel and around the world, we represent 70 million evangelical Christians in America. We are Zionists. If a line has to be drawn, then draw the line around both Christians and Jews. We are one. We are united. We are indivisible.

"It's time for Christians in America to stop praising the dead Jews of the past--meaning Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob--while slandering the Jewish people across the street. They represent the same family."

After noting that the broadcast of this event would be seen in the Middle East, including Iraq, he said (to wild applause, according to the Houston Chronicle), "Listen up, Saddam ... you can sleep in a different bed every night trying to escape the judgment you richly deserve. It's not going to help you. There's a Texan in the White House and he's gonna take you down.

"The window of opportunity to defeat Saddam Hussein and the axis of evil is limited.... I am thankful that America has a President like George W. Bush, who has the courage to call Saddam's hand ... to stand up for Israel under fire."

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