[Mb-civic] Bush Administration Misleads About Afghanistan

[The Daily Mislead]

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THE DAILY MIS-LEAD
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BUSH ADMINISTRATION MISLEADS ABOUT AFGHANISTAN

Vice President Dick Cheney claimed yesterday that under the President's
leadership we "closed down the training camps [in Afghanistan] where
terrorists trained to kill Americans."[1] His comments are not only bold,
but a look at the record shows they are deliberately misleading. Just two
weeks ago the Bush administration essentially contradicted the claim,
warning Americans of an imminent attack on the U.S. homeland from terrorists
operating in Afghanistan.

As CNN reported on July 8, Bush administration officials are warning that "a
plot to carry out a large-scale terror attack against the United States in
the near future is being directed by Osama bin Laden and other top al Qaeda
members." According to the administration, these terrorists are operating in
the Afghan-Pakistan border region.[2]

Unfortunately, in 2002, the Bush administration shifted key special forces
out of Afghanistan, effectively removing them from the hunt for al Qaeda.
These troops were sent to prepare for an Iraq invasion.[3] That leaves the
U.S. with only about 15,000 troops in Afghanistan hunting down al Qaeda,
whom they now say are plotting an imminent attack against the country.[4]
Meanwhile, the Pentagon has designed plans to add troops to the 140,000
already stationed in Iraq[5] - a country that never had any collaborative
relationship with al Qaeda[6] or connection to the 9/11 terrorist attacks[7]
(even though the Bush administration has claimed both).[8]

Sources:

1. The Vice President Delivers Remarks at a Reception for Senatorial
Candidate Bill Jones, WhiteHouse.Gov, 7/27/04.
2. "Officials: Bin Laden guiding plots against U.S", CNN.com 7/08/04.
3. "Shifts from bin Laden hunt evoke questions ," USA Today, 3/28/04.
4. "Afghanistan: 'Unrelenting Battle'," CBSNews.com, 5/26/04.
5. "U.S. force in Iraq to grow as Marine deployment pushed up," USA Today,
6/08/04.
6. "Administration Moves to Regain Initiative on 9/11 ", New York Times,
8/27/04.
7. "Bush rejects Saddam 9/11 link", BBC News, 9/18/03.
8. "Cheney Link of Iraq, 9/11 Challenged",The Boston Globe 9/16/03.

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