CALIFORNIA YANKEE

Muhammad Rahim Transferred To Guantanamo

Reuters reports Muhammad Rahim, a suspected al Qaeda member with close ties to Osama bin Laden, is in U.S. custody and has been transferred to Guantanamo Bay.

Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman said Rahim helped prepare the Tora Bora caves used as a hideout for bin Laden in Afghanistan in 2001, and also attempted to procure chemicals for a plan to attack coalition forces in Afghanistan

Whitman would not say when, where or how Rahim was initially detained.

Admiral Fallon Resigns

Admiral William Fallon, the head of U.S. Central Command, and the military commander responsible for overseeing the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan submitted his resignation today.

Fallon insists that he had no substantive policy differences with the White House, even though a statement issued by his headquarters, said news reports of "a disconnect between my views and the president's policy objectives" had become a distraction at a crucial time, coming a month before highly anticipated recommendations on the way forward in Iraq from U.S. officials in Baghdad.

"Although I don't believe there have ever been any differences about the objectives of our policy in the Central Command area of responsibility, the simple perception that there is makes it difficult for me to effectively serve America's interests there," Fallon said.

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates accepted Fallon's resignation and agreed that the ongoing speculation over a split between the Centcom commander and the White House had become a distraction.

There must be more to this story.

Meet Miss Utah - Sgt. Jill Stevens

I'm a bit late with this, but Sgt. Jill Stevens, Utah's Miss America hopeful, is too impressive to ignore.

There is more to Sgt. Jill Stevens than the CBS report reveals. This Biographical information is from G.I. Jill, the website the Army's website which chronicles her preparation and competition in the Miss America pageant:

For the past 6 years, Jill Stevens has been serving in the US Military as a Combat Medic in the Utah National Guard, while earning her degree in Nursing at Southern Utah University. In November 2003, Jill was deployed to Afghanistan, returning home in April 2005. She has earned 5 medals for her outstanding service, and was the first female finisher of the inaugural Afghanistan Marathon, making a total of 12 marathons she has completed together with earning the highest Fitness award during Army Basic Training. In representing the Army National Guard, Sergeant Stevens recently addressed Generals from 40 different nations gathered at Hill Air Force Base.

In addition to her US Military service, Jill recently graduated Summa Cum Laude from the Nursing program at Southern Utah University on a four-year leadership scholarship. Last summer, she placed 3rd in the Cinco De Mayo Sailboat Regatta in Mexico, and this summer, Jill was chosen one of four women for the “Women of Strength” featured in Muscle and Fitness Hers Magazine September/October 2007 issue. Additionally, Jill has been a fitness instructor for Gold’s Gym for several years, as well as a bread baker for Great Harvest.

The Miss America pageant will be broadcast live from Las Vegas January 26th on TLC.

Photo by Joe Whiteko via Pageant News Bureau.

Clinton Caught In Yet Another Lie

Newsweek's Michael Isikoff and Mark Hosenball, weigh in on the scathing CIA Inspector's General Report the CIA didn't want us to see.

Buried on page three of the web exclusive is a passage which shows that Slick Willie lied during his September 2006 encounter with Fox News anchor Chris Wallace. As I'm sure you remember, during an interview, Clinton erupted in anger, became unhinged, pointed his finger at Wallace, and boldly asserted:

What did I do? What did I do? I worked hard to try to kill him. I authorized a finding for the CIA to kill him. We contracted with people to kill him. I got closer to killing him than anybody has gotten since.

Isikoff and Hosenball write the IG report criticized intelligence problems when Clinton was president, "detailing political and legal 'constraints' agency officials felt in the late 1990s." Then they mention Clinton's 2006 temper tantrum and explain Clinton's prevarication:

Clinton appeared to have been referring to a December 1999 Memorandum of Notification (MON) he signed that authorized the CIA to use lethal force to capture, not kill, bin Laden. But the inspector general’s report made it clear that the agency never viewed the order as a license to “kill” bin Laden—one reason it never mounted more effective operations against him. “The restrictions in the authorities given the CIA with respect to bin Laden, while arguably, although ambiguously, relaxed for a period of time in late 1998 and early 1999, limited the range of permissible operations,” the report stated. (Scheuer agreed with the inspector general’s findings on this issue, but said if anything the report was overly diplomatic. “There was never any ambiguity,” he said. “None of those authorities ever allowed us to kill anyone. At least that’s what the CIA lawyers told us.” A spokesman for the former president had no immediate comment.)[Emphasis added]

So now we can see why Clinton went nuts when asked if he did enough to get Osama bin Laden - he knows he did not do enough.

In case you want to review the whole sorry Clinton meltdown, a YouTube video of the Wallace interview can be watched below and the FoxNews transcript is available here. My post refuting Clinton's Clarke Defense is here. A post about Chris Wallace's reaction to Clinton's temper tantrum is here.

No matter how many times I watch that video, it always make me think of Clinton getting on national television, pointing his finger at the camera and saying "I did not have sexual relations with that woman..."

Musharraf Suggests We Mainstream The Taliban

At Counterterrorism Blog, Jeffrey Imm writes about Musharraf "calling for the political mainstreaming of the Taliban in Afghanistan:"

In the concluding August 12, 2007 session of the Afghan-Pakistan peace jirga meeting, Pakistan President Musharraf argued that there is a place for a mainstream Taliban in Afghanistan, as the "Taliban are a part of Afghan society".

Pakistan President Musharraf was quoted at this jirga arguing for acceptance of Taliban within Afghan society as long as such Taliban are not "diehard militant":

"We must understand the environment. Taliban are a part of Afghan society. Most of them may be ignorant and misguided, but all of them are not diehard militants and fanatics who even defy the most fundamental values of our culture and our faith Islam." He said that military action was necessary against Al Qaeda militants and Taliban diehards who refused to reconcile, but a more comprehensive political and development approach was needed to defeat extremism and 'Talibanization'. "Talibanization and extremism ... represent a state of mind and require a more comprehensive long-term strategy where military action must be combined with a political approach and socio-economic development". More importantly, he said, the population that appears to be sympathetic to the Taliban is not militant. "Our approach must be focused on isolating those diehard militants who reject reconciliation and peace. Here, it is a question of winning hearts and minds," he said.

What's next? Calls for a politically mainstreamed Al-Qaeda?

This illustrates how imperative it is for America to remember why they are at war and with whom.

You would think that a year after his failed truce with the Pakistan Taliban in Waziristan, Musharraf would see making deals with the Taliban for the appeasement it is. Musharraf's failure to get this is reminiscent of Neville Chamberlain's "peace for our time" declaration. Read the whole thing.

Hoyer Confirms Dems Drop Withdrawal Timelines

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer confirms the war spending bill will not include a deadline for troop withdrawals from Iraq. According to the Associated Press, the House plans to vote on the bill Thursday, 108 days after President Bush sent Congress his urgent request for funds to support our troops fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.

NBC's Kelly O'Donnell reports "senior White House advisers say 'it's premature' to 'announce' an agreement on the war supplemental."

Maybe the Dems aren't yet done trying to score petty partisan political points instead of supporting the troops.

Dems To Fund War Without Withdrawal Timeline

Finally, 105 days after President Bush sent Congress his urgent request for funds to support our troops fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan, it looks like Reid, Pelosi, and Murtha have decided that they have gotten all the partisan political points to be gained from withholding funds for our troops fighting the war:

In grudging concessions to President Bush, Democrats intend to draft an Iraq war-funding bill without a timeline for the withdrawal of U.S. troops and shorn of billions of dollars in spending on domestic programs, officials said Monday.

Democratic leaders have said they hope to send a war spending bill to President Bush by week's end, with the intention was to avoid a veto.

It's about time. Congress' failure to act in a responsible and timely way belies the Democrats claims that they support the troops, if not the mission. The Delay in providing the funding has resulted in problems for our troops.

The Defense Department has notified Congress that in order to meet the force protection needs of the Marine Corps and the Army, it has been forced to borrow funds from other Marine and Army procurement programs. The borrowing means using funding intended for tactical vehicle replacement, Humvees and Humvee equipment, the tactical communications modernization program, and upgrades for other vehicles.

The borrowing forced by the Democrats and their preference to make partisan political points rather than fund the troops has negative impacts. On April 2, Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker, Adm. Michael G. Mullen, Gen. T. Michael Moseley, and Gen. James T. Conway, sent a letter to the House Appropriations Committee Chairman David Obey, stating:

Without approval of the supplemental funds in April, the Armed Services will be forced to take increasingly disruptive measures in order to sustain combat operations. The impacts on readiness and quality of life could be profound. … Reprogramming is a short-term, cost-inefficient solution that wastes our limited resources. Spending restrictions will delay and disrupt our follow-on forces as they prepare for war, possibly compromising future readiness and strategic agility.

In a March 28, letter to Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, Army Chief of Staff Gen. Peter J. Schoomaker and Acting Secretary of the Army Pete Geren, warned:

Without approval of the supplemental funds in April, we will be forced to take increasingly draconian measures which will impact Army readiness and impose hardships on our soldiers and their families.

Right, the Democrats support the troops.

If the Democrats truly want to end the war, they can refuse to fund it. If they don't want to end the war, the Democrats should provide the required funds to fight it. Having made their political points, it is way past time for the Democrats to stop using the money, needed to support our troops fighting the war, to seek some partisan political advantage.

Taliban Target Cheney

Vice President Cheney is okay after a terrorist bomb exploded at the entrance to Bagram Airbase in Afghanistan on Tuesday, during a visit by Vice President Dick Cheney.

The Taliban claimed responsibility and said Cheney was the target of the blast which killed 14 people and wounded about a dozen more outside the base.

A purported Taliban spokesman, Qari Yousef Ahmadi, said Cheney was the target of the attack, which Ahmadi said was carried out by an Afghan called Mullah Abdul Rahim from Logar province.

"We knew that Dick Cheney would be staying inside the base," Ahmadi told AP telephone from an undisclosed location. "The attacker was trying to reach Cheney."

Fortunately, we can write this off as another failed Taliban attack. The attacker didn't make it past the first of three gated checkpoints vehicles must pass through before gaining access to the sprawling airbase. Cheney "was safely within the base at the time of the explosion," not near the site of the explosion.

The Taliban's targeting of the Vice President is more evidence that Pakistan's President Pervez Musharraf should heed the warning Cheney delivered to Pakistan to act against al-Qaeda and Taliban terrorists. According to the New York Times, the Pakistani government responded to the warning in a series of statements insisting that “Pakistan does not accept dictation from any side or any source.”

Apparently, President Musharraf has forgotten what he said in his "60 Minutes" interview last September. How does he think the United States would react to having its vice president killed in a terrorist attack?

Coalition Begins Another Anti-Taliban Operation

The Associated Press reports U.S.-led coalition and Afghan troops launched Mountain Fury, a large-scale anti-Taliban operation in five Afghan provinces:

The goal of the operation, called Mountain Fury, is not only to defeat Taliban insurgents but also to assist with economic growth and development in the communities, a coalition statement said.

The 7,000 troops will concentrate their fight on the central and eastern provinces of Paktika, Khost, Ghazni, Paktya and Logar, the statement said.

Stars and Stripes has a fascinating report about the movement and arrival of U.S. troops into Miri on the first day of operation Mountain fury:

They drove by night — more than 70 Humvees, Afghan army pickups, trucks and a mine sweeper.

Howitzers were already in place, and an air show flew overhead: a predator drone, an F-15 and two pairs of Apaches.

The convoy briefing for the 2nd Battalion, 87th Infantry Regiment was brief and somber. In case of enemy contact, “We fight through, we keep moving,” instructed Capt. Bill Adams. And lastly, no one could be allowed close. There was intelligence that a suicide-bomber was looking for the convoy, bound from Forward Operating Base Sharona about 30 miles west to the Andar District in Ghazni province.

[. . .]

The mission was to find and rout Taliban from the district, and restore a governmental presence after local officials and police had reportedly been chased from the new district center. The push was part of a countrywide offensive called Operation Mountain Fury.

“Intelligence led us to believe that this particular part of Andar was the center of gravity of the Taliban forces in the province, influencing Ghazni City,” said Lt. Col. Chris Toner, battalion commander. “It’s right near the ring road, it’s in the interior and there haven’t been a lot of coalition forces there,” Toner said. “We wanted to allow the government to come, bring Afghan security forces.”

The convoy took no fire. It did stop several times for communications checks. And it rolled into the dusty, desolate town of Miri, population 10,000, after more than seven hours, at a little after 5 a.m.

[. . .]

There were no apparent Taliban in the district center, built last year by the U.S. Agency for International Development, just a dozen Afghan police.

[. . .]

The mission to bring the provincial governor to town and leave behind more than 100 Afghan security forces was meant to both intimidate and reassure. Later that night, one U.S. Humvee was hit by a roadside bomb, but no injuries were reported.

A “show of force” included Humvees driving around the town and an A-10 Warthog that buzzed once overhead, delighting the Afghan boys in the streets.

Stars and Stripes gives you a sense of the patience needed to win the GWOT. The townsmen told the soldiers there were no Taliban in their town, that they all came from elsewhere. “They’re never here. They’re always next door,” said an intelligence officer. Village elders said they needed roads, better markets:

“It’s a long process,” Toner said after the meeting with the elders. “You have to have a relationship. If they started giving names and I captured or killed some people, and then we left [there’d be retribution]. And I think they’re waiting to see what the Taliban are going to do.”

Operation Mountain Fury comes as NATO-led troops in the south continue with their operation Medusa, which has killed over 500 militants in the last two weeks. At the Fourth Rail, Bill Roggio has been covering Operation Medusa since it began two weeks ago:

The Taliban continue to attempt to engage Coalition forces in massed formations, and continue to die in droves. Four Canadians were killed compared with over 200 Taliban, making the Taliban's loss ratio of 50 to 1 Coalition soldier in this engagement. While their tactics are poor, the Taliban is accomplishing the desired effect of weakening the resolve of the NATO countries participating in Afghanistan.

In addition to the Taliban's poor tactics, NATO forces trapped 700 Taliban fighters in a several hundred square mile area. According to Roggio, the Taliban are still engaging Coalition forces en masse despite frightful losses because there is a rich supply of replacements across the border in Pakistan.

There is other fighting going on in Afghanistan. In Operation Perth, Australian special forces killed more than 150 Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters during nine days of fierce fighting in southern Afghanistan. Roggio reports French special forces units that are hunting al-Qaeda and Taliban fighters in the mountains and the numbers of Taliban and al-Qaeda killed are high.

The number of Taliban killed this month has resulted in skepticism and plays into the Taliban and al-Qaeda strategy of preventing progress. Even by losing hundreds of fighters the Taliban thwarts NATO's aim to create secure zones, move forward with reconstruction.

Pakistan Frees Taliban fighters

The Telegraph reports thousands of foreign Taliban fighters detained by Pakistan after fleeing the battleground in Afghanistan have been quietly released and allowed to return to their home countries.

The article is not as ominous as the headline implies. According to the Telegraph, the released fighters the newspaper tracked down and interviewed all seem harmless.

Why aren't these captured fighters treated as prisoners of war and detained until the fighting is over? I go ballistic when I hear about released jihadis returning to the battlefield.

UPDATE: Daveed Gartenstein-Ross at Counterterrorism Blog and Bill Roggio at The Fourth Rail have more.