In response to former President Carter’s talks with Hamas this week, Rep. Sue Myrick, a Republican from North Carolina, has called for his U.S. passport to be revoked and for the Carter Center to be cut off from taxpayer money. “[Pulling his passport is] up to the secretary of state,” Myrick said yesterday on the Fox News Network. “But, frankly, I wanted to send a strong message, because we have a policy in this country about Hamas. And he is just deliberately undermining the policy, and it’s wrong.” The State Department lists Hamas as a terrorist group, which means that U.S. officials are not to meet with them.
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Like most good ideas, it won’t happen for political reasons. Carter is only going there “as a private citizen”.
With reference to cutting the Carter Center off from public money, I would be interested to know how much tax revenue gets spent each year on the various presidential libraries. While I agree with Chas that this idea isn’t going to get anywhere, it would be interesting to see if federal money is effectively underwriting Carter’s meetings with Hamas thru the Carter Center.
We civilians should ignore Carter as a doddering old man who doesn’t have all his marbles. Politically, he should be sanctioned as strongly as possible. I’ve heard him called “one of our worst presidents, but one of our best ex-presidents.” I personally think he’s the worst ex-president we have ever had, because he deliberately, repeatedly undermines U.S. policy. That’s treason, or close; it isn’t cute or funny, but stupid and dangerous and quite possibly evil.
The Habitat for Humanity stuff is nice. But it’s the only good thing he has done (in a public way at least) as a former president. This kind of stuff is typical, and he shouldn’t get a pass because we think of him as “a nice guy.” But again, I wish we could simply ignore him (not give him the attention he wants) and that he could be taken care of on some level that would let him know in no uncertain terms that he cannot do this and remain a citizen in good standing.
There are criminal charges available for people who do this.
KRM There are criminal charges…
In which case Bush and most of the folks trying to run Iraq for us should go to jail.
One man’s “terrorist group” is the same man’s negotiating partner the very next month.
It is just utterly bizarre to suggest punishing an ex-President who is talking to the group which won elections and rules much of occupied Palestine.
Such reflexive hatred of a Democrat speaks much more about you than him.
Can they pull his passport WHILE he is out of the country? That way, he can’t get back in.
Drill, he can always go to Mexico and come across the border.
U.S. Officials aren’t allowed to speak with terrorist groups, but he’s not a U.S. official anymore.
Granted, he’s doing more harm than good, but this is largely a symbolic gesture. I doubt that it will go anywhere.
I didn’t think much of Carter as president, but his work with Habitat for Humanity earned my respect. His subsequent attempts to be a “player” on the world stage strike me as arrogant particularly this trip to talk with Hamas. He has been asked not to do it, but he’s doing it anyway. You can say all you want that he is a private citizen, but the truth is that as a former president he is never really a private citizen again in the the eyes of the world. After all, would Hamas arrange to have a meeting with just a “private citizen” from the U.S.? Probably not.
Ajisuun,
More than that, in the eyes of the world (at least the parts that don’t understand the American system), if he’s asked not to go but goes anyway, I’d think he’d be seen as having more authority than the government. The little boy who willfully disobeys his father doesn’t make his father look good. That’s part of our form of government that we don’t lock dissenters up, but a former president should understand the importance of not dissing the current government.
I can’t remember the title of the book, but an unflattering biography about Carter shows that he does this sort of thing all the time, and it hurts us in the eyes of rogue governments. That’s why I don’t think Carter is as “nice” as his image–if he were, he’d care about more than his ability to speak with powerful people; he’d care about his country, and his government, in the eyes of the world.
I’m all for pulling Carter’s passport. He’s a fool, and he’s using his celebrity as a former President to harm our country.
I’m also in favor of cutting funding to his Carter Center.
Finally, I’m all in favor of filing the appropriate criminal charges against him.
I hope Carter likes it so much over there he decides to stay.
Arcadia - The criminal charges relate to private citizens (which Carter is) engaging in psuedo-diplomatic endeavors contrary to those of the actual government.
President Bush heads the actual government.
Please explain your prior (clearly erroneous) comment.
And, I don’t reflexively hate Democrats (I reserve my outrage for their ever so frequent outrageously anti-American behavior).
Have any of you given thought to how many ‘Secret Service’ go with Carter on these trips? The USA pays for Carter’s protection wherever he goes, wouldn’t that include travel expense?
How many hundred thousands of dollars are we the US spending for this?
Here’s a resolution for you all.
Whereas: Bush’s war in Iraq is a disaster and generally regarded as began on false pretenses. AND
Whereas: Bush’s approval is below 30% NOW. AND
Whereas: There are legal questions surrounding what he knew about Valerie Plame and when. AND
Whereas: He generally disgraced the nation with a extreme botched response to hurricane Katrina revealing that he put a “law student” in charge of FEMA. AND
Whereas: Historians have already labeled Bush on of our worst presidents ever. AND
Whereas: Calls by right minded people to hold Bush and his cronies accountable for the disgraceful way he has run this country are NOT likely to stop on Jan. 20, 2009…
Therefore: Conservatives/Republicans who want to minimize the utter embarrassment to their party, should think very carefully before doing anything that sets a standard for treating a former president in this or any other disrespectful manner!
Those here is a new topic for discussion. Remembered as the man who killed the “Republican Revolution” just what IS Bush going to be doing in his retirement years?
Anything even close to the work that Carter has done, or just FINALLY get all the brush cleared?
Luke,
Carter should give RESPECT a big THINK, — that might be the best FIRST THING HE DOES, when he trots off to see Hamas, with a hug.
You can take your “Whereas” and ask yourself WHERE IS Carter’s loyalty?
Luke,
I know this is embarrassing for you and all the DEM’s but the topic is Carter, so lets leave it there.
Just try and hug the topic!
Yeah Vicky,
You know what’s embarassing? Carter left office with higher approval than Bush will!
Heck, a Zogby poll in 2005 showed that Bush would lose an election held then if he were pitted against Carter (and every other preideent since Carter). And incase you wanted some insult with that injury, that was back before he cost his party the majority seating, back when his job approval numbers were 41%. He’d kill for those numbers now; they are a full 11 points higher than his current job aprroval.
You need to worry less about what Carter does to my ego, and more about what Bush is doing to the future of your party!
Bush has kept our country free from another attack, which the DEM’s have forgotten due to selective memory problems.
Carter doesn’t give a hoot what he does as long as he’s in the news….. hugging Hamas no less. A misplaced EGO is as obvious as zippers down, and many people haven’t a clue that their EGO’s are zipped open for all to see.
Many of our greatest Presidents did not receive great acclaim while in office, it was later as history played out that those who couldn’t see earlier, FINALLY realized they were wrong.
A leader such as Bush isn’t interested in how popular he is, his focus is on the safety and well-being of the United States. Only an idiot would be worried about his own popularity. The Presidency is not a popularity contest.
Thank you, Victoria! You took the words right out of my keys. President Bush is not popular in all situations and issues, but he is to be admired for standing by his plan and principles. I do not agree with him on some issues and if asked by a pollster whether I agree or disagree with him on a variety of issues, I would answer honestly. The pollster would take the negative and add it to the other negatives and eventually come up with very low poll numbers.
I seem to recall that Clinton lost the Congressional Majority in 1994, yet he somehow managed to claim a second term; I believe mostly because of the very weak Republican candidate.
In regard to your last statement that the Presidency is not a popularity contest. Unfortunately, there are a lot of idiot voters out there that listen to only what their itching ears want to hear and that is what and how much can the government benefit them, instead of what is best for the country. It was never intended that the government should support the people and be all things to everyone.
OMG-D you’re serious aren’t you?
The selective memory of the Democrats? Maybe.
I seem to remember 9/11 commission recommendations, railroaded by the white house.
I remember an idiot war in Iraq sucking up all of our military resources while the Taliban grows in influence in Afghanistan.
I remember the entire Iraqi defense procurement budget embezzled by corrupt US appointed officials.
I remember a military prison scandal, and Iraq civilian being murdered by US troops.
What do you remember?
Because you certainly don’t remember the 4,000 Americans who have been killed by “terrorists” while Bush has been preventing all these attacks. Nor the more than 30,000 wounded. But go ahead and tell me about my selective memory.
“The Presidency is not a popularity contest.”
This isn’t about who is wearing the coolest sneakers. 70% of this country thinks Bush is a bad president. He cannot care all he wants. He’s still a disgrace to this country, and in November his party will lose 4-7 more seats in the US Senate because of him.
If Bush hadn’t take the initiative to go to Iraq we most likely might have found ourselves with many attacks on our own soil, not to mention thousands and thousands of dead, wounded and injured persons.
Luke only you could insert a silly comment like “This isn’t about who is wearing the coolest sneakers.” —
By the way, most adults no longer say “cool” “coolest” “way cool” —
Go back to Clinton and his Oval Office parties, and the disgrace he brought upon the highest office. He certainly could have been tracking bin Laden and using his time as the President WISELY, rather than pretending he was single and working for Playboy magazine. We might never have had 9-11 if he had been focused on security of our country.
Luke, the last time I checked (which was yesterday), Bush’s approval rating was a full ten points higher than the rating for Congress…
Carter needs to realize his actions have consequences. I don’t know about pulling his passport entirely, but I don’t want him visiting South America or the Middle East right now. At best, he’s sending mixed messages; at worst, he’s undermining the United States and acting illegally.
Luke - Some of the people who are unhappy with the President’s performance don’t think he went far enough.
Luke:
Interestingly, besides this thread being about Carter (widely seen as one of our worst presidents, certainly THE worst in my lifetime) and not about Bush, all your “whereases” are either untrue or irrelevant:
-Everyone, not just Bush, believed Iraq to have WMDs (and they probably did), and Congress supported us going to war. You may not recall, but before the war began, the major criticism was that Bush wasn’t starting the war fast enough.
-Approval rating: irrelevant.
-Valerie Plame: irrelevant. That whole story was much ado about nothing, and says nothing at all about Bush.
-Hurricane Katrina was botched by inept LOCAL government. Blaming Bush for that is mind boggling to me. The mayor got reelected, so locals forgave even the worst offender, and Bush certainly can get a pass on what was never his responsibility.
-Your last “whereas” simply left me scratching my head. You think people will continue to write nasty stuff about Bush? So what? No, there won’t be legal problems following him to his grave, if that’s what you want–that didn’t even happen to Clinton. Bush simply doesn’t have a corrupt administration, to anything close to a level asking for such scrutiny. (I know, I know, after Clinton that’s hard to believe. But there can be basic honor in the White House.)
And your last point, about treating a former president disrespectfully–HUH??!! Are we supposed to see Carter as godlike and beyond criticism? The point of this is that he is treating our nation, and our leadership, with VAST disrespect. Must we “respect” such a choice, such a man? No. It’s beyond despicable, and I for one wouldn’t mind seeing him arrested, or somehow simply not allowed to do what he is doing here.
It’s part of the American way that we hold our presidents, and past presidents, accountable. This is not being disrespectful. Carter is the one being disrespectful. I for one respect the office of the president (even when the man in it besmirches the office, as our previous one did)…but we have no “office of ex-president,” and Carter is doing something that I greatly disrespect, because I respect my country. (If Bush does something equally despicable as an ex-president, yes I want citizens to find it treasonous and not sit back with platitudes about “respect.” It’s not disrespectful to call evil by its proper name.)
That was some post Cheryl.
BRAVO!
I’m with you, Cheryl. Let me remind our friend Luke that George W. Bush, the sitting president, has had more nasty, disrespectful things said about him than Carter has ever had.
This is a great quote from the former First Mother.
“Sometimes when I look at all my children, I say to myself, “Lillian, you should have stayed a virgin.”” -Lillian Carter
It is curious that the media is now touting numerous “advancements” Hamas has made toward peace since Carter’s visit. However, as the Jerusalem Post cites, Hamas who has never been recognized on the world stage is now feeling like Carter’s visit will advance their cause and end the worldwide boycott.
Pretending to be magnanimous, Hamas now says it will negotiate with Israel for peace. However, in reality they have only agreed to release one prisoner, nothing more. That does not matter to the New York Times, which extols Carter as advancing peace.
Muslims Against Sharia Urge Support for Sue Myrick’s “Wake Up America” Initiative
Wake Up America
1. Investigate all military chaplains endorsed by Abdurahman Alamoudi, who was imprisoned for funding a terrorist organization.
2. Investigate all prison chaplains endorsed by Alamoudi.
3. Investigate the selection process of Arabic translators working for the Pentagon and the FBI.
4. Examine the non-profit status of the Council on American-Islamic Relations.
5. Make it an act of sedition or solicitation of treason to preach or publish materials that call for the deaths of Americans.
6. Audit sovereign wealth funds in the United States.
7. Cancel scholarship student visa program with Saudi Arabia until they reform their text books, which she claims preach hatred and violence against non-Muslims.
8. Restrict religious visas for imams who come from countries that don’t allow reciprocal visits by non-Muslim clergy.
9. Cancel contracts to train Saudi police and security in U.S. counterterrorism tactics.
10. Block the sale of sensitive military munitions to Saudi Arabia.
Muslims Against Sharia urge every American to send a letter of support to Congresswoman Myrick. Sample letter is provided below.
==========================
The Honorable Sue Myrick
230 Cannon House Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20515
Phone:(202) 225-1976
Fax:(202) 225-3389
Dear Congresswoman Myrick,
As an American who is concerned with issue of terrorism, I applaud your efforts to prevent radical Islam from infiltrating American society. I wholeheartedly support your “Wake Up America” plan, as well as other initiatives of The Anti-Terrorism Caucus. You bring honor to the title of the United States Representative.
Sincerely,
Signature
Name
Contact info (optional)
==========================
Please print out, sign, and mail or fax this letter to Congresswoman Myrick at the address / fax above. Feel free to modify the letter as you see fit.
http://muslimsagainstsharia.blogspot.com/2008/04/muslims-against-sharia-urge-support-for.html
Regarding #33, Carter does not parse words:
“President Carter has the greatest respect for … Rice and believes her to be a truthful person. However, perhaps inadvertently, she is continuing to make a statement that is not true,” a statement issued by the Carter center in Atlanta said on Wednesday.
“No one in the State Department or any other department of the U.S. government ever asked him (Carter) to refrain from his recent visit to the Middle East or even suggested that he not meet with Syrian President (Bashar) Assad or leaders of Hamas.”
If bloggers think Carter’s trip damaged the United States, they must direct some anger at Bush and Rice for failing to ask him to cancel.
Either Rice or Carter is lying. Wouldn’t you like to know who?
I’m sure it isn’t Condi Rice. No one was happy that Carter went, that should give you a clue.