ODNI To Drop Ven/Cuba MM for Russia MM??

Fair Use Notice, must source to "HMJ, Western Hemisphere Policy Watch"

(From the Banks of the Potomac) A reader sent us the following clip from yesterday's Senate Armed Services Committee ODNI testimony:

"I've been troubled by some of the trends in Russia over the last year or so ... so that's a scenario that needs attention," he said, adding that his efforts would include the naming of an official to oversee intelligence efforts on Russia.

A Mission Manager for Russia?! Earlier today we posted an item that has caught WHA policy watchers by surprise, the elimination of the Mission Manager for Venezuela-Cuba. Read the earlier post, here.

Our sources advise that ODNI is vehemently denying that it is eliminating the post, but as of this posting, the ODNI organization chart still does not list the post as it does for Iran and North Korea. See the image above, bottom row (click on it to make it larger).

The reader that sent us the above quote asks: "Are folks in this town still living in the Cold War? A MM for Russia of all places? This sounds like a Foggy Bottom/Langley special with embedded Sovietologists looking for something to do."

Well, we have no clue what is afoot. We're still digging for nuggets ... and all were digging up is really bad iron ore.

ODNI Venezuela-Cuba Mission Manager Post, Going, Going ... Still Here, But Not "Officially" ...

Fair Use Notice, must source to "HMJ, Western Hemisphere Policy Watch"

(From the Banks of the Potomac) As of yesterday, we've had a flurry of e-mail from people about town wondering if the ODNI has done away with the Mission Manager post handling Venezuela-Cuba. After much inquiry, we too have no idea what is afoot. Read a series of our initial posts on this position, here (follow the hyperlinks).

According to a Miami Herald story, the most recent chapter of this tale began this past weekend when the current Mission Manager for Venezuela and Cuba, Dr. Norman Bailey, sent an e-mail to associates advising that the ODNI was doing away with all three of the Mission Manager posts: Iran, North Korea, and Venezuela-Cuba. Well, the Miami Herald story contradicts Bailey, or the ODNI, or both.

One reader sent us a link to the ODNI's organization chart that, no surprise based on recent stories and Potomac buzz, does not show the Mission Manager slot for Venezuela-Cuba, but does show the other two. We last accessed the chart at 2:00 or so (You can visit the site, here). At yesterday's Senate Armed Services Committee hearing with the ODNI and DIA Directors, there was some cryptic discussion about Cuba and Venezuela, and nothing on Mission Managers per se.

Our conservative U.S.-Cuba policy associates are, rightly so, upset about the whole matter. Did they really have to hand Sen. Byron Dorgan, Rep. Bill Delahunt, or other Cuba Working Group Congressional Members any more political ammunition? Wait until the Cuban Communist Party's (CPP) Granma or Chavez's Alo Presidente hit piece sure to come from this - it will be a keeper.

But, we ask, what has happened? If any of this is true (i.e., the elimination of the post) we wonder, why create a post that you are going to abolish just three months after it was created?

Alright, this may not be as exciting as when the FBI busted DGI/Cuban Superspy Ana Belen Montes in 2001, but as far as Cuba antics are concerned, well worth the ink and follow-up. We'd like to make sense of this whole lot. Keep the nuggets coming.

Terrorism in Guatemala Claims Lives of Salvadoran Congressmen

(From the Banks of the Potomac) If three members of the Knesset had been charred by radicals while visiting Egypt it would be "Breaking News" for a few days here in Washington, DC. Yet, as usual, similar acts in the Western Hemisphere such as beheadings in Mexico, or the recent attacks that claimed the lives of three Salvadoran parliamentarians will get little, if any, coverage.

Three Salvadoran congressmen, including the son of a civil-war era death squad chief, were killed on Tuesday by massive gunfire and fires. The charred bodies blazing on a Guatemalan back road were found by Guatemalan authorities after they were not spotted in an official motorcade. Eduardo D'Aubuisson, William Pichinte and Jose Ramon Gonzalez were deputies in the Guatemala-based regional Central American parliament from El Salvador's conservative ruling ARENA party. The remains of a fourth man were found with them.

A top Guatemalan police official and three other officers were arrested yesterday in the killings of three. Among those arrested was Luis Arturo Herrera, head of the Guatemalan National Police organized crime unit, said Interior Minister Carlos Vielman.

The three slain politicians represented El Salvador at the Central American Parliament, which is based in Guatemala City and has 132 members representing five of the seven Central American nations. They were all members of El Salvador's ruling party, ARENA.

More is surely to come on this issue ...

Long Overdue ... Bush Administration Cracks Down on Cuba Sanctions Scofflaws

(From the Banks of the Potomac) We need not say more, as it is all said here so well:

In a criminal complaint unsealed today, defendants Victor Vazquez and David Margolis are charged with conspiracy to violate Cuba-related travel regulations. Defendant Vazquez is additionally charged with the making materially false statements in applications to obtain religious travel licenses to Cuba. As alleged, the fraudulently obtained religious licenses were then used to facilitate more than 4,500 trips to Cuba.

The Defendants allegedly sold licenses for $250 (a bargain we are told by sources in South Florida who tell WHPW that people sell licenses for as high as $1,000 or more). We look forward to more crack downs of this sort.

Why did it take so long?

Read the complete release and complaint, here.

ECRISIS: Correa’s New Government is Not Much More than a Front Group for Hugo Chavez’s Crime Cartels and Off the Books Deals

(From the Banks of the Potomac) As the mercury starts to rise once again in the Greater Washington, DC Metropolitan area, so does the political heat in Ecuador. The good people at ECRISIS, never fail to satisfy with hard-hitting analysis from Ecuador. One wonders if the Potomac River would heat a few degrees of people spoke with such bluntless about things Washington:

Rafael Correa is leading Ecuador off a cliff and right in to the waiting arms of Hugo Chavez’s crime capitol. Every step that Correa has made to date appears as if it is fully coordinated with the Bolivarian coordinators now overseeing Rafael Correa’s intentions, whatever they are at the moment. To Hugo Chavez, Karl Marx’s Das Capital now means capital flows for his capitol of crime. Indeed, this is the new perversion of socialism as enabling criminals. Chavez’s capital is a capital crime scene in his new capitol.

Read the complete post, here.

Mexican Zapatista Leader Converted to Islam Claims Radical Turkish Paper

Fair Use Notice, must source to "HMJ, Western Hemisphere Policy Watch"

(From the Banks of the Potomac) We were doing research on the presence radical Islamic movements throughout the Western Hemisphere and we came across the following interesting nugget on Mexican Separatist movement leader, Subcomandante Marcos.

A MEMRI Special Dispatch dated 7 Aug. 2005 includes an item from a radical Turkish Islamic group (IBDA-C) that maintains that hooded Zapatistas leader Marcos had "converted to Islam." The IBDA-C group claims that it had been in contact with Marcos, provided him and his people with Islamic literature published by IBDA-C leader Salih Mirzabeyoglu. The magazine states that "the public must prepare for surprising developments regarding Marcos, the brave commander of the Zapatistas, after Carlos 'the Jackal'." Well, its 2007 and, unless we missed it, Marcos has yet to make any revelations about his "new" religion.

According to MIPT's Terrorism database, the IBDA was created "in the 1970s by Salih Mirzabeyoglu, the Islamic Great Eastern Raiders Front, known by the acronym IBDA-C, is an Islamist terrorist organization operating in Turkey. While the group's early activities appeared limited to anti-Turkey demonstrations, the IBDA-C has emerged as an increasingly violent organization."

In 1998, the IBDA-C's leader, Salih Mirzabeyoglu, was arrested by Turkish authorities. Mirzabeyoglu has denied being the leader of the IBDA-C, insisting that the group he heads is merely one of ideas and not an "armed organization." Read the MIPT post, here.

WHPW Editors would find it odd that Marcos, or any other radical Mexican leaders, would publicly announce a religious conversion to Islam. Whether Marcos or his Zapatistas cronies like it or not, Mexico has been and will continue to be a strong Catholic country, even amongst the indigenous populations in whose name the Movement wages its so called liberation effort. Any public shift in religions with these group would be viewed with much skepticism by hundreds upon thousands of Zapatistas followers. The movement cannot afford that, at least not yet.

While radical Islam is present throughout the Hemisphere, WHPW Editors hold it is more of a haven than breeding ground. Although, despite the region's strong Christian influence, there are pockets of Islam growth throughout the Americas, especially in the Caribbean area. That said, these groups have a ways to go before it extends it Caliphate into our southern regions.

We'll give them this much, groups such as the Zapatistas, Tupac Amaru, Sendero Luminoso, the political party being started in Guatemala by Rigoberta Menchu, the Sandinistas, the Bolivarian Alternative Axis countries, and other points of access throughout the Hemisphere such as Cuba and Venezuela, must be closely monitored for contacts with radical Islamic groups and leaders. If not breeding ground for Islam, the mutual hate for the West and the U.S. in particular could create dangerous synergies impacting U.S. interests and allies throughout the Hemisphere.

Yet, why would a Turkish Islamic newspaper publish such a story about a "conversion" by Marcos? Another ancillary, yet related issue, what is the Roman Catholic Church doing to protect its interests, and flock, throughout the Western Hemisphere from radical Islam? It warrants further reading and research.

Are We Underwriting Cuba's WMD Program?

"The United States believes that Cuba has at least a limited offensive biological warfare research and development effort," former Assistant Secretary of State John Bolton (2002)

(From the Banks of the Potomac) In 2004, the Bush Administration authorized a U.S. company to enter into a business and research arrangement with the Cuban Community Party's (CCP) biotechnology sector. The company, CancerVax, has since been bought out by a German company but is still traded on NASDAQ and has offices in Carlsbad, California.

At the time the deal was announced, we learned that if "the drugs are successfully developed and commercialized in the United States, Europe and Japan, the Cuban company can receive up to an additional $35 million, part of it in bartered goods and part in cash. CIMAB will also earn royalties on sales of the drugs, if they are approved." Read a related San Diego Union Tribune article, here.

CIMAB is the Cuban biotechnology company that collaborates with the U.S., now German-owned company Micromet. If you try and search the website for the Cuban deal, do not bother, the press release was removed years ago when the company, and the Bush Administration, was criticized by anti-Castro leaders in Congress and elsewhere that questioned, rightly so, the propriety of such an arrangement.

WHPW Editors have been curious about this arrangement since its announcement. What exactly is this exchange all about? We thought, at first, that it was somewhat foolish to engage Cuba in this manner. Then again, we also beleive that Cuba does have a WMD capability so what better to learn more than to invite them to share some of their "expertise" with out scientists?

When former UN Ambassador John Bolton was at the State Department, he made this declaration, watered down we hear, about Cuba's WMD program: "The United States believes that Cuba has at least a limited offensive biological warfare research and development effort." So, if true, what better way to learn more about it than to get closer to it - as the foolish Cubans obviously did.

Think about it, the risks are minimal in the short run and we have a great deal to gain in the long run. The Cuban Communist Party was not supposed to get any money in the short run. We learn about their methods, maybe even travel to Cuba and get closer to scientists doing the really bad deeds. So, even if we were to underwrite the program indirectly, it appears that the risks are substantially outweighed by the potential benefits of such an arrangement.

Not much has come, as far as public notices, of the Cancervax arrangement. If you review the website and some of its pipeline drugs, it is not even mentioned. And while on pipelines, it bears pointing out that FDA Regulations on new drugs hitting the market make it highly unlikely that the CCP will ever see one red cent, if any, from this process.

Indeed, by the time democracy is restored in Cuba, if this drug does work, the money will go to a wholly new state or privately owned entity. In the meantime, we can keep closer tabs on a sworn enemy of the U.S. and, we hope, that the people who run the company in Carlsbad do not allow U.S. technology to get into the hands of the Cubans. It is a dangerous mix of issues taking place here and, one hopes, if Cuba does have offensive biological or chemical weapons cababilities, we best work to get at them before it gets into the wrong hands.

HMJ

Ecuador Threatens to Force Down U.S. Planes Fighting Drug Smugglers, Terrorists

(From the Banks of the Potomac) As Ecuador's democracy continues to unravel via legal means in a defacto dictatorship, its President Rafael Correa threatened the U.S. this week that "not even one more time will we allow Ecuadorian airspace to be denigrated by the intrusion of planes that are not even Colombian, but rather American."

So, does this mean that he will shot down and kill Americans? In a related missive, Ecuador's Vice President fired off this rhetorical hit saying that Colombia is “bowing to the orders of the Empire.” Guess who is the "Empire"?

While relations with Ecuador are not in total disarray, we expect the situation will continue to deteriorate. The Bolivarian Alternative Axis countries want Colombia in its camp and will stop at nothing to ensure that she falls its way at some point or another. For now, Ecuadorean leaders are using coca eradication spraying as its public relations target. Meanwhile, Cuban and Venezuela military "advisors" continue to sneak into Colombia to assist the FARC and other terrorist groups.

Now, more than ever, the Colombians need our assistance and it is our best strategic counter-balance to the Bolivarian Alternative Axis countries in the region. We should be talking about bolstering military assistance, training, and funds, as well as other more robust measures. For now, if Ecuador's president keeps firing off his mouth the way he did this week, maybe its time to take a long and hard look at U.S. programs to Ecuador.

HMJ

As Left in Congress Seek Ways to Cut U.S. Assistance to Colombia, Terrorist Attack in Colombia Near U.S. Embassy

(From the Banks of the Potomac) As our ally Colombia fights indigenous terrorist groups and other external foes such as Bolivarian Movement led by the Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez, Democrats in Congress continue to look for ways to cut U.S. anti-terrorism and military training assistance to Colombia. And, is usual with terrorist attacks in Latin America, the U.S. media never covers them because, as we say many times on WHPW, the only terrorism that matters to the Left is that of the Middle East.

According to Colombian news sources, earlier this week an explosion of a device at Cundinamarca Department government headquarters in Bogota, near the Prosecutor General's Office and the US Embassy, left one injured and two arrested. The device had been placed in the trash at the entrance of the basement of a building near the U.S. Embassy. Bogota Police Commander Daniel Castiblanco said that "the device was made up of 250 grams of indugel, a Colombian-military manufactured explosive, and it did not have the capacity to cause major damage."

This is the first explosion that occurs in Bogota since 19 October, when a car bomb, which the government attributed to Marxist guerrillas of the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), wounded five soldiers at a military university in the northern area of the capital.As President Alvaro Uribe canceled all rapprochements with the rebels to exchange 58 kidnapping victims for some 500 jailed rebels as a result of that attack, and he ordered the armed forces to rescue the captive.

Despite this recent explosion, and many others much worse, events in Colombia barely register a beep in U.S. media. To boot, in Congress left-wing Democrats on the Senate and House Foreign Affairs Committees are starting to look at ways to cut funding to Colombia. All of this plays right into the hands of the Bolivarian Movement and its goal of crushing Colombian democracy once and for all. The Andean region is about to fall to these people if we do not get serious about assisting our most staunches ally in the region.

Another interesting point. Why is it that some U.S. policymakers on pay so much, we would say disproportionate attention, to the domestic issues of Colombia and Colombian politicians? Indeed, they do this to most Latin American countries with right or center-right leaders. But, if similar scandals break in certain Middle East countries, we still keep pumping foreign and military aid, no problem. Certain Members of Congress are starting to do just that with Colombia, again, in yet another vain attempt to cripple a center-right government that has been somewhat successful in destroying a terrorist group.

We note with great curiosity the recent interest in the Western Hemisphere by the Bush Administration. Let's see what comes of the President's trip to the region next month.

HMJ

Mexican Authorities Investigating Al-Qaeda Threat

(From the Banks of the Potomac) A few days ago, while Mexican President Felipe Calderon toured Culiacan Maximiliano Cortazar, his Coordinator for Social Communications, told the media that the government has been investigating Al-Qaeda threats.

The initial reports indicate that Al-Qaeda may be threatening Mexico for selling petroleum to the United States. During a press conference in Culiacan, Cortazar said that no official decisions have been made regarding the threat.

These threats against Western Hemisphere interests by Al-Qaeda, and other Middle Eastern radical groups, is probably not a new thing in recent years. With Hizballah cells and other radical groups in South America, possibly in Mexico, and parts of the Caribbean, along with other groups, it is only a matter of time that threats become more vocal and more numerous. The more we squeeze them at their base of operations in the Middle East, the more they may begin "reacting" in the Americas.

It will be interesting to see how issues such as these develop throughout the Western Hemisphere in the ongoing GWOT. Latin American and Caribbean nations, with the possible exception of Argentina, do not have any direct experience whatsoever with these type of fundamentalist groups. And while efforts are underway with the U.S., i.e., CICTE and others, to help prepare, train, and combat the menace, the region remains a favorite haven for these radicals where they can wait to take direct aim at us when called upon to do so.

In addition smoking out groups that have been in the region since the 1980s, we should try to pressure countries to continue cooperating in the GWOT. We should also start to take a tougher stance against Hugo Chavez - supporter of the radical Islamic movement and it main sponsor, Iran.

HMJ

Government media executive pleads guilty to corruption charges

Bring Martis Back to DC, Purge BBG/Cuba, Update and Streamlin Programming and Management

(From the Banks of the Potomac) When a reader sent us a Miami Herald article on Radio and TV Marti, we did a double take. However, upon reading it ... and, we know we are going to upset our fellow Republicans and Bush Administration supporters but, people, it is really time to start thinking about moving that operation out of Miami and bringing it back to DC.

According to the Miami Herald:

A senior executive with U.S. government-run station TV Marti pleaded guilty Tuesday to charges that he accepted more than $100,000 in kickbacks from a company doing business with his employer, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.

Jose M. Miranda pleaded guilty to unlawfully participating in government matters in which he had a financial interest. He was indicted by a federal grand jury last November and is scheduled to be sentenced on April 18. Prosecutors say he took bribes from Perfect Image Film and Video Productions, a vendor doing business with the Office of Cuba Broadcasting. The office oversees the TV Marti operation, and pays Miranda a salary of $103,000, according to federal records.

Talk about giving Delahunt, Leahy, Flake, and other Members of Congress political ammunition just around budget and appropriations consideration time, eh??!! In due course, we shall also see an article in Granma about the "Miami mafia," and supporters in Congress.

We are engaged in a propaganda war with the Cuban Communist Party (CCP) and the other supporters of the Cuba regime. It should go without saying that these indictments are not helpful whatsoever.

Not only should these crooks be locked up if found guilty, but more importantly, the Martis need to come back to DC in a much more scaled back form. We agree with the Marti mission, but have any of you taken time to see the programming? It needs help, bad.

In addition to moving the Martis out of South Florida, in order to make this work, purge the Broadcasting Board of Governors members that have allowed this to fester and that use the political appointments as resume-enhancers rather than advocacy slots. We need people that are fighters, not political hacks and foreign policy expert wannabes.

Read the complete Miami Herald story, here.

Telesur Employee Flees to Venezuela, Wanted for Terrorism in Colombia

(From the Banks of the Potomac) A correspondent for the Castro/Chavez news network Telesur, Freddy Muñoz, is a fugitive from Colombian law. According to Colombian news sources, Muñoz is wanted for rebellion and terrorism due to his presumed involvement in attacks on electric power turrets by the Colombian Revolutionary Armed Forces (FARC) in 2002.

According to El Universal, "the version of the security agent was made known after the disclosure of a picture of the journalist holding a rifle and in combat uniform, next to a fugitive rebel chief. This would be a new evidence of the reporter's alleged links with the guerrilla, according to the [Colombian] Attorney Generals Office."

Colombia is the new target for the Bolivarian Axis. As we have discussed on this blog many times before, Venezuelan and Cuban military and intelligence "advisors" are swarming the FARC camps, plotting ways to undermine the Colombian federal government. A strong ally of the U.S., Colombia will now have to deal with the FARC, Cuba, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Bolvia - the Bolivarian Axis - all at the same time.
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As far as this Muñoz fellow, in all likelihood he is one of countless numbers of Cuban DGI, or DGI-trained operatives sneaking about in Colombia and the Andean region. As a side note, for all intents and purposes, the Venezuelan intelligence system could be an official arm of the DGI as there are hundreds of Cubans based in Caracas "advising" and training Venezuelan officials in the craft.

It is appears that Muñoz is hiding out in Telesur offices in Caracas. Hmm, we wonder if Hugo Chavez will extradite the fellow or not? What do you think?

Congressman Mack Blasts Former Congressman Kennedy, Chavez Supporter

(From the Banks of the Potomac) As we prepare for a slight dusting and icing in our nation's capital today, Rep. Connie Mach (R-Fla.) sent former Massachusetts Congressman Joe Kennedy an excellent reminder note that dealing with thugs and anti-American rogues is a bad thing.

"Dear Congressman Kennedy: Venezuela’s Communist President Hugo Chavez is a sworn enemy of the United States. That is why there is absolutely no excuse for you to be praising him in television commercials and media interviews for any reason whatsoever.

More than forty years ago, your uncle, President John F. Kennedy, spoke about the perils of communism in the Western Hemisphere and the threats posed by Fidel Castro, saying, “We and our Latin friends will have to face the fact that we cannot postpone any longer the real issue of survival of freedom in this hemisphere itself.” Those words still ring true today. "

Mack called on Kennedy to cease airing television ads that praise the most dangerous man in the Western Hemisphere. Our only caveat is that Chavez is one of the two most dangerous men in the Western Hemisphere, with Fidel Castro and his brother Raul taking top honors. (Kennedy pictured, at left, with another Castro/Chavez supporter, Appropriator Rep. Jose Serrano, in the Bronx pumping Chavez "propaganda" oil)

It's good to see younger Members of Congress take serious interest in the important issues of the day. Mack understands that threat to U.S. interests are right here in the Western Hemisphere, not only thousands of miles away.

We hope that Mack's interest continues in earnest. Take aim at Cuba Mr. Mack. You knock out the Cubans, Chavez will have nowhere else to play his quixotic games. Read the complete Mack letter to Kennedy, here.

State Sponsor of Terror Praise U.S. Members of Congress

(From the Banks of the Potomac) No, it is not Iran or North Korea, but the rubes 90 miles from U.S. shores, Cuba, that are praising several members of the U.S. Congress for their efforts to work closer with the Cuban Communist Party (CCP) and the Castro regime. Here is an excerpt from Granma, the CCP newspaper:

William Delahunt and his colleague Jeff Flake presented a report to the House a few weeks ago demonstrating how the money allocated by the Bush administration for overthrowing Fidel Castro’s government is merrily being squandered away under cover of “aid programs for diverse groups for facilitating a peaceful, democratic transition in Cuba.”

The report was drawn up by the Government Accountability Office (GAO), an arm of Congress, at the request of Delahunt, a Democrat who is the chair of the International Organizations, Human Rights and Oversight Subcommittee, and Flake, who also sits on that committee. Both have stood out for advocating normalization of relations with Cuba as something that serves the real interests of the United States.

We cannot figure out if Delahunt and Flake, smart individuals and able legislators in their own right, are playing with a full deck on the Cuba issue. It has been suggested by individuals that read this site that they are xenophobes, immensely disliking Cuban-Americans and their advocacy. We are not sure that is the case, but we have no evidence either way.

They wax incessantly about Americans' constitutional tight to travel to Cuba, to change the system from within, etc. Fair enough, while we disagree on that approach for the Cuba case, a fallacious argument, but one that they are entitled to make. And, before you the reader decide to fire off an e-mail about travel to Cuba, i.e., why can we travel to Iran and North Korea, but not Cuba, here is this answer: sanctions are supposed to target the unique economic circumstances in each target country, the main revenue generator. With Iran, we target the oil industry. In Cuba, tourism is the primary revenue generator for the state, hence, if we get our policy act together, we target tourism. Yet, it should be a bigger analysis than just main revenue targets.

In a post 9/11/01 world, with all the places in Central America, South America, and the Caribbean that need American tourists and money, why is it that these two - and other Members of the Congressional Cuba Working Group - continue to rail against U.S. policy and conservative Cuban-Americans? Why would they provide political ammunition to a state sponsor of terror?

Why do they go to Cuba, refuse to meet with opposition leaders or demand the release of political prisoners such as Dr. Oscar Elias Biscet, and undermine U.S. leadership? These people are just like the jihadist appeasers in Congress that seek a withdrawal from the Middle East (for this crowd, view this video for a reminder why we are at war).

As far as Flake, and any other Republican that advocates engaging a state sponsor of terror, get real and stop being so flippant. A Latin American dictator is just as lethal as one located thousands of miles away in the Middle East. Cuba is an enemy of the U.S. It spies on us, it steals our commercial secrets from private companies, it runs biological facilities of dubious vintage, it works with Hugo Chavez to undermine U.S. interests throughout the Hemisphere ... and much, much more. You folks are either clueless or bending principle to appease big donors for your campaign.

If you want to see what Cuba does with Members of Congress and trips to Cuba, read the complete article, here.

For the Good of the People, U.N. Out of Haiti, Now

(From the Banks of the Potomac) We noted from our post library that it has been quite some time since we weighed in on the happenings at Satan's Caribbean Vacation Spot. A news item on a MINUSTAH action gone bad caught our attention.

On Friday, three people died and seven were injured in the operation carried out by the blue helmets in Haiti. According to the U.N. "the purpose of this operation was to dislodge the gang headed by the redoubtable leader known as Evans Tikouto ... five civilians, or rather, five alleged bandits were injured in the exchange of fire. We only fire at armed individuals who threaten MINUSTAH soldiers."

The goal of these recent operations is to attempt, yet again, to control banditry and gang warfare that destabilize the state. The state, by the way, is run by a group of leader that are pals of Fidel Castro and Hugo Chavez. It is the wrong combination - MINUSTAH and pro-left leaders - for U.S. interests in the region. Jean Bertrand Aristide was no better either, but that was a Clinton Administration mess.

The U.N., along with our tacit "support," is using this poor country of as a leftist experiment in nation-building. Taking guns from the population is a favorite project of the MINUSTAH troops, along with forced vaccinations, forced gentrification, forced feeding of genetically modified UN food, and forced brainwashing through the re-making of the Haitian education system. Scroll through this U.N. Photo Album, note the "themes" labeling each photo album. Ironically, some people on the left think that the U.S. is using the U.N. as a cover for an imperialist occupation (click here for one example).

What has always irked WHPW Editors about MINUSTAH is its mere existence, a U.N. nation-building corp, right here in our hemisphere, operating with impunity with little or no regard for the people of Haiti, its rich traditions (yes, it may be poor but it was/is a country), and its potential. Unfortunately, the surrounding Caribbean countries find all to easy to pass the buck and let someone else deal with Haiti's challenges - problems that are in many ways intrinsically linked to other countries in the region.

As far as us, we could do a much better job that the blue helmets - members of yet another dysfunctional international organization - could ever do in Haiti. We know that our military could, just look at some of the good work it has done throughout the Western Hemisphere. But, alas, that is not a role for the military per se. Trying to snuff out Haitian nationalism is the primary mission for MINUSTAH. If it can succeed in this former French colony, it will take it nation-suppressing project to other poor countries. We know it will fail, because any freedom-snuffing project must.

The Haitian people deserve better than the shenanigans taking place down there. We can do better by starting to request that the MINUSTAH folks begin to pack their bags by the end of the year (oh, does that sound like an "exit strategy" talk like what the Democrats want us to do in the Middle East??). See one our prior Haiti posts, here.

More importantly, we can do better than allowing the Cuba/Venezuela Axis to prop up a base of operations in the Caribbean by using the MINUSTAH and Haitian leaders to advance its goals. Haiti has become a breeding ground for leftist adventurism and terror magnet. For example, there is a well-document gun smuggling operation run in that region, one between Jamaica and Haiti. Where are those guns ending up? Gangs? Terrorists? Both?

Anyhow, the U.S. needs to take the lead in cleaning up the Haiti mess. In the meantime, Satan is right at home in the Caribbean.

Ecuador's Correa Plays his Nation for Fools in his Money Making Games with their Future

(From the Banks of the Potomac) It appears that our friends at ECRISIS are working overtime, even on the weekends. Another good posting on Correa antics was up yesterday afternoon.

The ECRISIS post reminds us of a matter that should be of great concern to the U.S., the Bolivarian effort to crush and weaken the strongest ally in the Andean region, Colombia. What Chavez does by supporting the FARC, Correa will attempt to do at the Hague, and other places:

We say that Ecuadoreans must interrupt this clandestine romance between Correa and Chavez because it is not only costing Ecuadoreans their sovereignty (never much considered when profiteering or self enrichment is on the line) but because it is marrying Ecuadoreans to a vast money making scheme which Ecuadoreans now pay for- over and over. This is not an arranged marriage that benefits any but state kleptocrats and global criminals, who are profiteering from the Chavez and Correa criminal madness.

Rafael Correa, in his short tenancy, has openly pledged to merge Ecuador with Venezuela, remove functional democracy, has lied to international multilateral banks and investors as well as to the Congress of Ecuador about his own Annual Budget. He has filed a criminal law suit against Colombia in The Hague. He has no plans to provide Ecuadoreans with a solid future or job growth: indeed he has insured that there will be no jobs and no growth outside his Cuban style state enforced poverty of the serfs.

Read the complete post, at ECRISIS.

Archbishop/Mason Hugo Chavez?

(From the Banks of the Potomac) The following item comes from a reader in Caracas. We must caution, it borders on conspiracy theory; however, the link to a news article from FOX News written by a Roman Catholic priest, Father Jonathan Morris, caught our attention and felt it was worth passing on for review and comment.

Our reader, that requested anonymity, writes:

"The attacks are not limited to the political organs, but to the Roman Catholic Church itself. I am not making this up, read the story I have included for you (sic)by a priest in your country; he appears to know what Chavez and his Freemason supporters are up to. The Latin Freemason do not care for your American counterparts. They are as responsible for keeping Castro in power as they will take care of helping Chavez on this latest crusade."

There was a lot more in the e-mail, but we were asked not to publish it. Since the Fox News article is more relevant anyhow to what we talk about on this site, it really makes no difference what else he told us (interesting and fascinating as it is).

Anyhow, keep sending us the notes. We'll get to them as soon as we can. Read the FOX News piece, here.

Sendero Luminoso Terrorists Caputured Yesterday, While Another Arrest Warranted Issued for Fujimori ... and Peru/Venezuela Sing Kum-Ba-Ya

(From the Banks of the Potomac) Several news items from Peru report that federal authorities rounded up several members of the Peruvian terrorist group, Sendero Luminoso.

The suspects were rounded up while they were, apparently, asleep in the Huancabamba province. They are José Chanta Puelles, Porfirio Salvador Huancas, Pedro Huancas Torres, Félix Lavan Chinchay y Leonardo Huancas Huamán. The Police Counter terrorism Division (DIVCOTE) were tipped to a meeting of this group, among others in the San Miguel del Faique, Canchaque, Huarmaca and Huancabamba sectors.

The Sendero suspects are wanted in connected to a 1993 terrorist attack that claimed the lives of close to twenty police officers. No report of U.S. participation, if any, in this raid. However, U.S. intelligence services do cooperate with Peruvian counterparts to track down Sendero terrorists, among others in the region.

Meanwhile, a Peruvian Magistrate issued another arrest warrant for former Peruvian President, Alberto Fujimori. The charges stem from corruption allegations, his former intelligence services, and a television station owner. Too complicated to address in this post, however, on the issue of compating the Sendero thugs, Fujimori wins kudos, hands down. Fujimori currently resides in Chile.

Finally, after a year having severed diplomatic relations, Peru and Venezuela agree to tie the knot, again, for now. Relations were broken off after Venezuela's tin horn dictator Hugo Chavez began to lob verbal attacks on Peruvian presidential candidates that he did not like. Our question, why did we allow this "reunification" to take place to begin with?! We should be seeking to isolate Hugo Chavez and his thugs.

Cuban Military Begins Annual Training Exercises

(From the Banks of the Potomac) As politicians and policymakers wrangle in Washington, DC about "bread and butter" Cuba laws and regulations (i.e., lifting travel restrictions to Cuba), the Cuban Revolutionary Armed Forces began its annual training without a hitch.

"A cultural/political ceremony and military review took place in the grand tank unit of that important command of the FAR-Revolutionary Armed Forces, presided by Army Corps General Joaquín Quintas Solá (Chief, Central Army and member of the Central Committee) in Matanzas province. Also in attendance were the provincial presidents of the defense councils from Matanzas, Cienfuegos, Villa Clara, Sancti Spíritus y Ciego de Ávila, as well as other chiefs and officers of the FAR and MININT - Interior Ministry," reports Cuban Armed Forces Review. Read the complete report, here.

It appears that the Chavez money - indirectly U.S.-paid oil money - keeps making it way into Cuba, along with foreign assistance from Russia and the Chinese. If people in Congress and the Bush Administration would focus, just a little, on state-to-state issues, we may be able to start putting a dent on the Cuban regime. This exercise is but a recent example of how we fail to focus on the issues that really matter.

Rather, we obsess about propping up a resistance movement that, we argue, will take root on its own. Human nature being what it is will know freedom when seen. That does not mean we abandon efforts to assist the opposition, but that we focus on Cuba more as a regional, geo-strategic issue.

Ecuadoreans Must Stop Chavez’s Madness

(From the Banks of the Potomac) We are not huge fans of the OAS as an institution. It is in much need of a political purging and administrative reform. We had high hope for the Secretary General this go around, but alas, he has disappointed.

Pedro Camargo at ECRISIS make an interesting suggestion that could be of interest to OAS crats. We doubt, however, that the OAS would take up such as challenge as it is not only politically impotent, but institutionally and administratively unable to carry out such a task.

Next week the Congress of Ecuador will take up the impossibly ridiculous task of reviewing Ecuadorean president Rafael Correa’s aberrant and irresponsible demands that the Congress of Ecuador convert itself into a dysfunctional, rubber stamping, pass through entity for the state as envisioned by Hugo Chavez. This will be the end of transparency, the end of any independent legislating and the end of Ecuador as a constitutional Republic were this to happen. The Congress of Ecuador must never surrender its constitutional obligation to perform with full transparency to protect and defend the constitution of Ecuador ...

"...The United States, instead of crafting very expensive U.S. tax payer backed spiritual experiences for U.S. Senator Harry Reid, sometimes called Congressional vacations or sometimes called pro-Chavez lobbying activities to cast harm to Plan Colombia, should instead act responsibly and trigger the OAS to be on the ground in Ecuador to review the illicit acts of Rafael Correa as he moves his state-backed machinery of violence and deception across Quito to destroy one more democracy..."

Pedro, your point is well taken. However, are things in such dire straits in Ecuador that you need a politically anemic organization in your country to keep an eye on the reds or pinks? If so, the OAS is fully comprised with these people. Our suggestion is to keep them out as much as you can unless, that is, you can assure that the U.S. will lead the mission. And you know what the OAS would say to that ...

The left continues it de facto legal machinations to rob power from elected institutions throughout Latin America. In effect, the left is centralize more and more power in the federal branches and, in the long run, will turn these countries into South American Cubas. It is a sad state of affairs.

We with your overarching premise, "Ecuadoreans Must Stop Chavez’s Madness." Fight hard, fight smart, and use the very tools they are using against you. Forget about the OAS - it is part of the problem. If that entity cannot make up its mind that Fidel Castro is a thug, how can you expect it to play a meaningful role in Ecuador to keep an "elected" government in line?

We wish you well. Keep up the good work.

HMJ

Read the complete ECRISIS post, here.

Hughes to Mexico, Are the Zapatistas, Recent Spate of Beheadings, or Violence on Americans on the Agenda?

(From the Banks of the Potomac) The Department of State announced yesterday that "Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs Karen P. Hughes will travel to Mexico February 12-15, 2007. The visit underscores the important relationship between Mexico and the United States and recognizes the strong ties and common values shared by the peoples of Mexico and the United States."

Hughes will visit Mexico City, Chiapas, and Guadalajara during her four day trip. It will include the usual meetings with government officials, business and community leaders, and, lest we forget, many visits with children and students. This would also be a good opportunity to raise many other issues to further strengthen ties and common values.

What are some of these common issues? Here are a few: Mexico's anemic efforts to control the flow of illegal immigration to the U.S., Mexico's inability to control an out-of-control drug war that results in beheading of government officials, Mexico's inability or unwillingness to more robustly cooperate with the U.S. on key regional issues such as ending the Communist regime in Cuba or assist with combating Chavez antics in the Americas, or even the control of the Zapatistas that contribute to the mara problem, and other issues, in Central America.

Will she address the death of American citizen at the hands of Mexican extremists late last year in Oaxaca, Mexico? The State travel warning advises Americans visiting that region that "several protest groups have engaged in increasingly violent demonstrations, which have resulted in violent reactions from other groups."

The warnings are not just limited to Oaxaca: "U.S. citizens to the rising level of brutal violence in areas of Mexico. This violence has occurred throughout Mexico, but has been particularly persistent in the city of Nuevo Laredo within the state of Tamaulipas." The State Department should also issue another warning for Acapulco where earlier this week two Canadians were grazed by bullets while in a hotel that came under fire by extremists.

We wish her mission well. We expect the Mexican government propaganda ministers will be working over time. We hope that she takes Spanish speakers with her. She should watch the media reports about the trip while she is in country. Just like Univision and Telemundo Spanish network news in the U.S., she will note how critical and anti-American the media trends. It puts CNN and the New York Times to shame.

DHS: Protecting the Nation from Dangerous Goods

(From the Banks of the Potomac) The Bush Administration released the federal budget recently and is usual the Cabinet secretaries set out to explain and begin seeking support for key spending priorities. During the next few days we'll bring you links to key sections of the budget touching Western Hemisphere related issues. Today, DHS.

"Bottom line, it's a strong budget, a budget that will allow us to continue our mission to protect the American people while balancing trade, travel, and our way of life. And it is a fiscally responsible budget that strikes the right balance in terms of our security and our prosperity," DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff said recently.

"President Bush’s fiscal year 2008 budget request for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) represents $46.4 billion in funding, which is an increase of 8 percent over the FY 2007 level – excluding funds provided in emergency supplemental funding. The request targets five areas that are essential to preserving freedom and privacy, meeting future challenges, and fulfilling our mission of securing America." Read a summary, here.

First Responders Beat Up in Prison; Republicans Use the "I" Word

(From the Banks of the Potomac) We thought we would hear Democrats use the "i" word before the first 100 days were up, but it turns out to be a Republican Member of Congress from California.

At a press conferece yesterday California Republican Congressman Dana Rohrbacher said: "I tell you, Mr. President, if these men -- especially after this assault -- are murdered in prison, or if one of them lose their lives, there's going to be some sort of impeachment talk in Capitol Hill," he said during a press conference in Washington, D.C." CNS News has the complete story and audio of the presser. Click here.

The question we keep asking ourselves about the border patrol agents case is why did we allow it to devolve to where today our first responders are in jail for doing their job? Are we not in war against radical terrorists? Did not some of the 9/11 hijackers break our immigrations laws to get in and stay in the U.S.?

We suspect that the State Department has cut some deal with the Mexican government for something that has nothing to do with this case. Reciprocity is a nimble and fickle creature; we have seen it used for a lot of good, but sometimes, maybe in this case, the State Department and the Department of Justice stepped way over the line.

If these two Border Patrol fellows broke the law, they should be punished. We think that no one would disagree with that, not even fellow Border Patrol Agents. But, read the facts folks. Something is just not right in this case.

The Bush Administration talks a good game about "Hispanic" or "Latino" outreach, whatever that means. These good mean appear to have fallen victims to Republican political correctness and outreach campaigns that characterize almost everything that we do nowadays vis-a-vis Latin America (and, yes, Mexico may be a NAFTA member, but it is still a third world Latin American country) in the lens of "what can we do so as not to offend Latinos"?

The Bush Administration is probably so worried about what radical Latino groups would say if we help these men that it has gone weak. Now, we've possibly made a mistake that could put these men in jail in the prime of their lives.

Folks, we do not have DNA evidence to pardon these people that will somehow appear a few years from now to make this right. They may be stuck in jail for a long time. Show some leaderhip, crack down on the Justice Department people that prosecuted this case. And, for the sake of sanity, do not make any side deals with the Banana Republic of Mexico.

As far as impeachment ... well, it got our attention. We doubt though that folks on the Hill are taking the threat very seriously.

WHPW Mailbag: Someone "Left of Mao" to OAS Post?

(From the Banks of the Potomac) Did that headline grab you?! Recently, we published information from a source advising that the Bush Administration was considering a Senate Democrat staffer for the post of U.S. representative to the OAS. We received a lot of interesting and some outright funny e-mail like the following:

"I understand from your blog that the administration is considering naming Janice O'Connell Ambassador to the OAS as a way to placate the Democrats. This is an outrage. You should spare no effort to stop this and you should publish the name. She is to the left of Mao. Congrats on your blog."

Well, we never published a name. So we cannot confirm or deny if it was Ms. O'Connell on the short list of names that we were provided. Look, whether you like her or not, she does know her stuff and while we do not care for her ideology, she would do circles around some of the more recent holders of the post such as Roger Noriega.

If true dear reader, it would be interesting to see the reaction from Republicans and Latin America policy people about town. Then again, look at Latin America and how it has devolved in the past few years? Nothing would surprise the WHPW Editorial Team anymore. Nada.

Mexican Terrorists or Drug War Run Amock?

(From the Banks of the Potomac) In Colombia they call them terrorists, in Mexico criminal thugs. What should we call drug dealers and revolutionaries? Well, that long discussion is for another day. For now, we would like to call your attention to the latest rash of violence to hit Mexico.

Yesterday, at least 7 people were killed in an armed attacked on Mexican state offices of the Attorney General in the state of Guerrero. Sounds like this could be terrorism, no? We do not have enough information to tell. Government officials were killed, no targeted, in two separate neighborhoods at about the same time. The attackers - all dressed in military uniforms - escaped unharmed.

By the way, the state of Guerrero includes the tourist resort area of Acapulco. The area has been at the center of an ongoing drug war. And, guess what, beheadings are not just for the Middle East. Last year we posted a piece on how the heads of several police officers had been scattered about town as a warning.

While tourists have been relatively unscathed in this mess, last week several Canadians were injured when bullets were fired at the hotel Casa Inn in Acapulco. Be sure to check the State Department travel warnings when venturing out to Mexico.

And these folks complain about the U.S. taxpayer seeking to protect our borders or restricting foreign aid? It is too bad that we have not been able to link the Zapatistas to this violence. Now there, indeed, we have a candidate for terrorist group ... along with the FARC in Colombia.

ECRISIS: Rafael Correa’s Teen Age Marriage with Chavez is Already Costing Ecuadoreans Billions: An Annulment is Recommended

(From the Banks of the Potomac) It is cold Washington, but not as cold as the following great piece by the folks at ECRISIS. It pulls no punches. Just like it should be:

"In his fist month in power, Ecuadorean president Rafael Correa shows his true colors: red, as in communist party red. Correa’s paid thugs and golpistas already storm troop around the capitol city, Quito causing mayhem and disrupting commercial and citizen traffic. These government backed thugs stormed the offices of the acting attorney general Cecilia Armas on February 6, 2007....

... In other news, Correa’s government intends to take Uribe’s Plan Colombia to court in a reckless law suit to aid and abet the FARC, recently sending formal letters of condolence to Correa over the loss of their friend, the now departed Minister of Defense and FARC friend. Correa’s team seems to be upset that resident Uribe did not reveal his plans to restart aerial spraying in Colombia and did not grant Ecuador the right to issue warnings to their friends and supporters in the FARC ...

Read the complete post, here.

On Cold Fronts and WH Policy, Will the Potomac Freeze Over?

(From the Banks of the Potomac) Friends, colleagues, political enemies, and fellow miscreants ... it is very cold in our nation's capital city today. If temperatures remain in the teens for a week or so, we may see the Potomac freeze over for the first time this winter season. We did not feel much like walking this afternoon, so we stayed about for lunch and read the latest from the people at ECRISIS. As usual, they de not disappoint.

Reviewing an article by the ever so "on point," Mary Anatasia O'Grady on recent events in South America, ECRISIS editors offer their fellow Ecuadoreans some sound advice:

"Ecuadoreans face a similar, if not an identical, fate today [as Bolivians] which can no longer be deemed "just" a Venezuelan problem or some fluke of "progressive political activism" which must be adjusted to under some mythical passive-aggressive enabling of state-backed suicide which kills any remaining light or quality of life."

"There is nothing to be gained from surrendering to Hugo Chavez's plan for obedience to one ruler under a serf-like existence for Ecuador. Ecuadoreans have been given the gift of advance warning: they can learn from Venezuela's mistakes and move with sure steps to bar the total dictatorial power grab underway by Rafael Correa's team of Chavez-backed activists and well funded NGOs, sometimes called his Cabinet and advisors."

Some people think that the Venezuelan Republic is no more, while other more optimistic folk hold that the opposition can still save it before it becomes another Cuba. WHPW Editors say, tough call. Suffice it to say that Bolivia and Ecuador are head toward the same path and could, because of socio-economic and regional issues, slump quicker into a Cuba-style model.

May cooler heads prevail ... well, maybe not as "cool" as folks have been about town these days, months, and possibly the past few years about events in the region. If we were that "cool," the Potomac would have frozen over weeks ago and we'd be able to cross the river at Foggy Bottom (right about the Memorial Bridge area across from State) to Virginia, with relative ease.

Read the complete ECRISIS post, here.

Iran Guard Corp: We Can Kidnap U.S. Soldiers in Latin America

(From the Banks of the Potomac) Today we report on yet another example on how the Cuba/Venezuela Axis gives "aid and comfort" to our enemies in the war on terror right in our own hemisphere.

Sharif News reports that an official publications of the the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp (IRGC) has once again pointed out (i.e., threatened) how easy it would be to kidnap U.S. forced in the Middle East or Latin America and take them to undisclosed locations. The article appears in Sobh-e Sadeq, 288th issue, 29 Jan 07 and is titled "Easier and Cheaper than Trashy Chinese Merchandise."

You see, the Iranians are getting increasingly nervous and upset about the U.S. presence in Iraq. Democrats in Congress, and RINOs, can hue and cry about the state of U.S. engagements in that region, but the fact remains that our prime enemy and regional destabilizer is increasingly concerned because it knows that Iran is next. In turn, Iranian hardliners are looking for things to do to either scare us into not acting or, more likely, act as soon as it thinks it is under eminent danger. Hence, its activities in the Western Hemisphere with the likes of teh Cuba/Venezuela Axis are important to monitor.

The article makes explicit references several times to Iran's presence and capabilities around the world, including Latin America. In one part:

"Highlighting the extensive and scattered presence of American soldiers in Iraq, Afghanistan, Central Asia, the Caucasus, Pakistan, India, Africa, Latin America, and even Europe, the article threatens that kidnapping Americans and taking them to 'whatever destination is easier than procuring a container of trashy Chinese merchandise.'"

In addition to arms sales, diplomatic presence, and economic cooperation with Iran, we have a battery of reasons to pay more focused attention to the antics of the Cuban/Venezuelan Axis. This recent article is another exemplar of why it pays to crush our regional enemies with as much practical political and other robust force.

Unlike the Soviets during the Cold War whose Latin American operations could be kept in relative check, these Iranian and Middle Eastern fighters are a different, and in some respects, deadlier breed of enemy. Why we allow the Cuban and Venezuelan regimes to remain directly unchallenged, on this issue alone, eludes us.

HMJ

As Castro Dies at hands of Cuban Healthcare, the CCP Release Health Propaganda Film

(From the Banks of the Potomac) Every U.S.-based doctor with who we've dicussed the illnesses affecting the Cuban Dictator has told us that, based on what they have seen and read, Castro has received poor medical treatment for many years. That should come as no surprise as the Cuban health care system is a disaster; and the myth of its sucess, a by-product of the Cuban Communist Party's (CCP) propaganda machine.

Now, the good doctor at the Medicina Cubana Blog - Dr. Eloy Gonzalez - ably critiques the latest Goebbels -like creation heralding the so-called Cuban health care system:

The most insulting part is to hear what the useful idiots, beginning with Jimmy Carter and ending with Medea Benjamin, one of the women who was recently in Cuba with Cindy Sheehan to protest the treatment of the terrorist suspects being held at Guantanamo, but who refused to meet with the Ladies in White or to say one single word about the prisoners of conscience that are languishing in Castro's jails, have to say about this piece of crap masquerading as a documentary.

Read his complete post, complete with links to trailers of the propaganda flick. Proof certain that communism is not dead in Cuba, or in the United States for that matter. Once you read the names of some of the U.S.-based supporters, you'll understand what we mean.

In the end, it is ironic that the Cuban health care system will have killed the very dictator that created the program. It sure beats the exploding cigars. Hey, who knows, maybe the CIA planned the whole thing from day one. The tragic part, as we have written in the past, is that the Cuban people may never be able to hold Fidel Castro accountable for his war crimes. He should have met the same fate as Saddam Hussien.

Finally, if after viewing the trailer you recall themes from the U.S. debate on healthcare, it should come as no surprise. "Access to quality and afforable healthcare," "universal healthcare," "comprehensive public medical system," "accesible and afforbale to the common man," etc ... some of same themes rammed down our throats by Democrats, and some moderate Republicans, that want government-run health care for all Americans.

Russia to Sell Surface-to-Air Missiles to Venezuela; Taking Aim at Colombia?

Fair Use Notice, must source to "HMJ, Western Hemisphere Policy Watch"

(From the Banks of the Potomac) One of the odder news items we read last week was an announcement by Venezuelan General Alberto Muller that Venezuela needs Russian-made, Tor-M1 surface-to-air missile systems.

Venezuela says that it needs the system for air defense and to "protect other strategic sites throughout the country" including power plants, dams, and other infrastructure. Muller claims it does not plan to attack any neighbors, and to boot, he added, "We are not the United States of America. We don't have imperialist ambition." This latter point is one of the most laughable and disingenuous of that these people constantly make in defending their aggressive actions. Bolivarianism is imperialism wrapped in communism.

Anyhow, let's stick with the missiles.

According to FAS, the Tor system (earlier version pictured) is a "low-to-medium altitude SAM system is capable of engaging not only aircraft and helicopters but also RPVs, precision-guided weapons and various types of guided missiles." Older models, and newer ones are basically an "autonomous system that can be interfaced into an integrated air defense network." FAS says that the newer Tor-M1 are unique and much better than the older models:

"The Russian company Antei which produces anti-aircraft missile systems has developed a new efficient system Tor M1. A number of countries have precision weapons and a reliable shield is necessary against these weapons. The new Russian anti-aircraft missile system Tor is such a shield. The system consists of a special vehicle and two radars to detect targets and to accompany flying targets and missiles, a computer, and equipment for launch and navigation. The missile it is a transportation and launch container with four missiles.

A anti-aircraft guided missile is a one-stage missile with a solid fuel engine. The system is operated by 3 or 4 people. The Tor system ensures reliable protection for government, industrial and military sites and ground troops from all types of missiles, unpiloted aircraft, aircraft bombs, aircraft and helicopters with stealth capabilities. The Tor system is the only system in the world which can detect and identify various targets." Read the complete article, here.

What does Venezuela plan to do with these systems? Add this purchase, with the current order of 100,000 Russian-made AK-103 assault rifles, as well as a license to open the first ever Kalashnikov rifle factory in South America, well, you would think people at Foggy Bottom and the U.S. Congress would start taking a closer look, eh?

Taking Aim at Colombia?
There can only be two or three reasons why Hugo Chavez would make such purchases: 1. Fuel an arms race in South America; 2. Get into the arms business to cash in the war on terror; and/or 3. Threaten Colombia and make an offensive run to capture FARC-held territory as part of a larger effort to destabilize Colombian democracy.

An arms race would surely be good for U.S. business. If Chavez seeks to compete with the U.S., well, he will lose hands down. He keeps giving us every reason to lift arms control exports and related restrictions to our regional partners in the region, few as they may be, and begin to sell larger amounts of U.S. munitions and weapons to the militaries of the Americas.

Cashing in on the global war on terror, again, would surely be another way to give us even more reason to keep expanding U.S. presence throughout the Western Hemisphere. If wants to manufacture weapons to sell to terrorist groups, he must be stopped. Bomb the factory if he ever builds it???

What is most perplexing is Venezuelan aims on Colombian territory. While he has not explicitly said so, we think that destabilizing Colombian democracy is the next great foreign policy challenge for Cuba and Venezuela. It is in the way of the Bolivarian alternative. Despite some issues, Colombia is a relatively staunch ally of the U.S. It is in the way.

If the Cuban and Venezuelan military "advisors" in FARC camps throughout Colombia can find a way to weaken the Colombian state, it will do so. Ecuador will need to be closely watched. But make no mistake about it, the Anti-American Western Hemisphere Axis is taking aim at Colombia.

Beyond Colombia, Taking Direct Aim at Freedom, U.S. Interests
Moreover, beyond Colombia, consider the military assistance being provided Bolivia in the form of new money for road and base-building. Could Venezuela be preparing an intricate regional defense system for the Bolivarian Alternative with Bolivia as the southern flak - taking aim at the tri-border area and the U.S. bases in the region? Look closely at the Tor-M1 system, its missile range, and non-defensive applications. It can take down any object, including helicopters and planes.

The time has long past to play diplomatic word games with Venezuela. What Fidel Castro did in two years from taking power, open and brazenly that took the world to the brink of nuclear war in 1962; Hugo Chavez is taking a little longer, but with much the same aim: to challenge the U.S. Except this time, the enemies are much more elusive than the Soviets. It has already struck, on 09/11/01 and it will do so again if allowed to do.

DEA: Colombian Cocaine Kingpin Sentenced to 40 Years in Prison

(From the Banks of the Potomac) We found the following items posted at the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA) website earlier today:

Joaquin Mario Valencia-Trujillo, of Cali, Colombia, was sentenced in federal court, in Tampa, for his role as a Colombian cocaine kingpin. Valencia-Trujillo was sentenced to a prison term of 40 years and ordered to forfeit $110 million. Valencia-Trujillo was convicted, in October 2006, by a jury in the MDFL of all charges. Valencia-Trujillo was charged in August 2002 with engaging in a continuing criminal enterprise, conspiracy to import cocaine, conspiracy to distribute cocaine and conspiracy to engage in money laundering. After his arrest in Bogotá, Colombia, in January 2003, Valencia-Trujillo was extradited to the MDFL.

We applaud the good work of teh DEA, and so many others, that go into stopping these people. We look forward to the day, however, when the Colombian government will get its house in order and be able to try these people in their own country.

Read the complete post, here.

OAS: Maisto Out, Who's Next ... a Democrat Senate staffer?

Fair Use Notice, must source to "HMJ, Western Hemisphere Policy Watch"

(From the Banks of the Potomac) The current U.S. Ambassador to the largely ceremonial Organization of American States (OAS), John Maisto, is retiring from government service.

Maisto's announcement comes as no surprise. We have been hearing for weeks now that he was stepping down and, as is usually the case in cases such as these, the political corpse is still warm and prospective appointees have been hovering to make the list for the next appointment.

WHPW has been informed by several sources that one of the prospective appointees is a Senate staffer, a Democrat no less. We have the name but are not going to publish it as we do not want to give the person any "ink" time or exposure. We hope that cooler heads will prevail at the Office of Presidential Personnel.

The OAS has been a proverbial political circus the past few years. The OAS Secretary General lauds, as does our State Department, the many elections throughout the region in 2006 and prior. Yet, Cuba rots with communism, Chavez adventurism spreads, and none of the core issues of the 21st century are being seriously addressed. Indeed, as the good people at PMB blog recently said about the OAS:

"What’s the use of a building where the signing of the Democratic Charter is celebrated with Argentinean and Chilean wines and canapés, and the systematic destruction of democracy is ignored with a collective and duplicitous yawn." Read the complete post, here.

PMB, it is more like a snore than a yawn, has been since Fidel Castro came to power in 1959. What the U.S. needs in its next Ambassador to the OAS is a politically savvy advocate, not a diplomatic weenie, even if just for two years, that will do what Ambassador John Bolton attempted to do at the United Nations.

It may be possible to have an individual of political fiber, rather than diplomatic mediocrity, since the next person will not be able to use the post as stepping stone to, say, Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs. Just, people, do not appoint a liberal Democrat to represent the Bush agenda for the Americas.

Read selected prior WHPW OAS posts, here and here.

Iran/Venezuela Offering $500 Million to Ecuador for Long Range Missile System?

(From the Banks of the Potomac) According to one of our contributors, "our group was told in Quito by opposition congressmen and military that Ahmadinejad and Chavez offered Correa 1/2 billion to set up a long range missile launching system with Chavez on a remote Galapagos Island." We are in the process of tracking down additional sources for this report and will report back as soon as if we have them.

Iran's point of entry in the region is mainly Cuba and Venezuela. For now, suffice to say that it will be interesting to note if Iran uses Venezuela and other South American countries, maybe even Cuba, as a public relations tit-for-tat as public pressure from the U.S. increases for Iranian actions in Iraq and throughout the greater Middle East.

Mack: State Department Turns Blind Eye to Chavez

Administration Fails to Take the Most Dangerous Man in the Western Hemisphere Seriously, Says Mack

(From the Banks of the Potomac) More kudos are in order to one of a few Members of Congress brave enough to take on the people at Foggy Bottom including AS/WHA Tom Shannon and his Latin America team (it should have included some of the people at the National Security Council as well and acolytes of the Roger Noriega gang).

In a press release issued this afternoon, Congressman Connie Mack (FL-14) "sharply criticized the U.S. State Department today following remarks from the top U.S. diplomat for Latin America, Thomas Shannon, which suggest that the State Department is turning a blind eye to the threat that Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez poses to the Western Hemisphere."

After Chavez was granted sweeping powers to rule by decree yesterday, Thomas Shannon, Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, stated in an interview with the Associated Press, "The enabling law isn't anything new in Venezuela. It's something valid under the constitution. As with any tool of democracy, it depends how it is used. At the end of the day, it's not a question for the United States or for other countries, but for Venezuela."

In response to Shannon's statement, Mack, a member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and an outspoken critic of Chavez, said:

"Hugo Chavez is the most dangerous man in the Western Hemisphere. I am astonished and dismayed that the State Department is once again failing to take him seriously.

"Since he has been in power, Chavez has moved to put Venezuela on a rapid path toward dictatorship. Yesterday's law gives Chavez nearly unlimited power - power to rule with an iron fist by nationalizing private industries, snuffing out political dissent and abolishing freedom of the press, as most recently evidenced by the revocation of Radio Caracas Television's operating license.

"Hugo Chavez is a clear and present danger to the people of Venezuela and indeed the entire Western Hemisphere. We cannot continue to let his actions go unnoticed."

The Bush Administration should follow the advice of Members such as Mack that get it. Moreover, we should pursue a complete economic embargo of Venezuela, including, its oil. No need to tap the reserve, just find replacement oil in other market. When Uncle Hugo is unable to refine that heavy crude, he'll be in a true political pickle.

Read some of our prior posts on one of the favorite topic for our readers, dealing with the possible threat of Hezbollah in Venezuela here, here, and here.

Two democracies collapsed in South America

(From the Banks of the Potomac) Publius Pundit leads today with an excellent post on the reality of the state of democracy in South America:

Two democracies collapsed in South America today - Venezuela’s, where Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez has now crowned himself ruler by decree, and Ecuador, where rabid red-shirted mobs aligned with President Rafael Correa, drove the democratically elected opposition congress out of power and into the streets, leaving only Correa with any power and who, as of this writing, is also a dictator in the Chavez-Hitler mould (sic).

As ivory towered politicos inside-the-beltway allow these things to happen, there are real consequences and negative implications for U.S. interests throughout the region.

We should worry less about the state of Fidel's health, and do more to effectuate change. We should talk less about democracy and elections in South America, and find ways to suffocate the Venezuelan economy. We should bolster U.S. efforts in Colombia to beat the narcos and the growing wave of Venezuelan intervevntion, rather than stick our heads in the sand and allow human rights groups to dictate the agenda.

Officials and advisors can lecture all they want at the think tanks, inter-agency meetings, and closed-door briefings in Congress, but a so-called "wave" of dubiously fair elections last year (that has been the latest Theme Team message making the rounds for months in DC) do not a sucessful foreign policy make.

Where have all the Republicans hawks gone? As far as Western Hemisphere policy, with the exception of possibly the former Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs, Otto Reich, some say the hawks were never here.

Read the complete Publius Pundit post, here.

ECRISIS: Correa Stages Auto Golpe; Falsely Claims he Does Not Support his paid Golpistas…No One Believes Him

(From the Banks of the Potomac) Another post today on

South America, this time from the good people at ECRISIS:
Ecuador’s Rafael Correa wants us to believe that he has encouraged non-violence against constitutional democracy in Ecuador. We do not buy his remarkable cover up even as we do not buy his in- the- toilet, or as Quitenos call them `dirty’ Ecuadorean bonds, which have tanked and are taking down Ecuador’s economy and global standing with it….right down the sewer of dirty deceptions.

Read the complete post, here.

USA Engage Seeks to Aid and Abet a State Sponsor of Terror, Tourism Apartheid

(From the Banks of the Potomac) Well, it did not take too long for the peaceniks, RINOs, and agriculture groups to start stoking the pro-Cuba card in the 110th Congress.

“This top ten list is a powerful reminder to Congress and all Americans that sanctions against Cuba do nothing but violate American values, cost American jobs, stain our image overseas, and breach our basic rights,” said Sarah Stephens with the Center for Democracy in the Americas. “As Cuba enters a new era, so should America, and replace our policy of isolating Cuba with one favoring engagement, travel, and trade.”

We have argued many times on WHPW that U.S. policy needs to change, but not throw out the baby, the bathwater, and the tub. Groups such as USA Engage advocate an irresponsible approach that, ultimately, helps our enemies such as Cuba, Iran, and North Korea.

We took each one of the "Top 10" missives and, with a little editorial comment, refuted each and every one.

1. The policy has produced nothing in decades--This gem is a favorite of the Left and the RINOs. We could write whole chapters refuting it. However, the most important accomplishment of U.S. policy is the goodwill it will generate when democracy is restored in Cuba. Unlike current investors in Cuba, the U.S. and our taxpayers did not participate in tourism apartheid, trafficking in stolen properties, or supporting a communist state just 90 miles from our shores. This has to be worth something in a free and capitalist Cuba.

2. Enforcing the policy drains resources from the war on terror -- This is specious. Cuba is a state sponsor of terror. Do the USA Engage researchers read?

3. The policy hurts American companies and American workers -- Another canard. High taxes, government regulations, and lawsuits hurt more than any U.S. policy to a Caribbean nation. Again, yellow dog journalism.

4. The policy is an assault on family values -- The U.S. government has every legal right to restrict travel to state sponsors of terror or travel to countries that is a violator of human rights. Interestingly few, if any, of the USA Engage crowd is Cuban or Cuban-American; they shamelessly go into the Cuban-American community to find the few dissenters on U.S. policy to make a political point.

5. The policy infringes on the rights and liberties of all U.S. citizens -- See our answer to #4; and, we'll add, why should Americans travel to Cuba and stay at hotels that practice tourism apartheid or sleep with underage girls and boys working in Cuba's underground (and some state-sanctioned) sex trade? What about the rights of Cubans that, for example, must use inferior health care system so that foreigners can use the best Cuba has to offer?

6. The policy hurts America’s image abroad--Even if true, so? We think that the true test will come when Cuba is free again and the new power brokers tell the European perverts that abuse the island: "Take your euro somewhere else."

7. The Castro government uses our policy to advance its own ends--Herein lies the beauty of our policy (if only lawmakers would enforce it) that will, if Castro and his regime truly "uses" our policy, is the downfall of the system. The Cuban people keep voting with their feet - seeking asylum in the U.S. Seems to us that as Castro advances his own ends and attacks the U.S., the more the Cuban people want to get here and live free. You seem, it is like telling a child he cannot have something ... the more you talk about it and restrict it, the more the child will seek it.

8. The policy puts political interests above the national interest -- Another canard based in anti-Cuban American and subtle racial overtones. We would like to see this crowd make similar comments about the Jewish Lobby. It is about time someone in the Cuban-American community called these people what they are, racists and anti-Cuban American.

9. Important people oppose the policy and want to see it changed --Huh? We are not sure what this one means. The only important person that matters is the U.S. President. Maybe they mean the Archer Daniels/Dwayne Andreas and George Soros crowd; or other stewards of international leftists efforts in the Americas? RINOs? We're not clear what they mean by this. See #8.

10. The policy stops Americans from doing what they do best -- Traveling to Cuba and practicing tourim apartheid? Visiting an island where people are repressed? Cuba was raped by the left in 1959. It is in shambles. The people, demoralized by the state. Why would any American seek to take any pleasures in that system?

Anyhow, we could really write for hours on this little missive from the USA Engage crowd, but alas, it would take a full blog to fully account. These people are extremely narrow-minded and myopic about U.S. leadership in the Hemisphere and the world.

Someone should tell these "farmers" to stop taking federal subsidies for not growing food, then, maybe then, they would have a moral leg to stand on. Until then, it has nothing to do with re-injecting democracy to Cuba, but rather, lining their pocket books and bank accounts. As far as we are concerned, their efforts amount to aiding and abetting a state sponsor of terror, a human rights abuser, and assists a regional pariah stay in power and, as a consequence, would legitimize our role in that system (the latter something that we have avoided up until now).

If you must, you can read the complete USA Engage post, here.