Eric Holder Lindsay Graham: Eric Holder Jon Kyle: Holder Senate Questioning on 9/11 Civil Trials

Attorney General Eric Holder spoke in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee today, saying he wanted to address his controversial decision to try the mastermind of the September 11, 2001 attacks, Khalid Sheik Mohammed in New York City. See a video below.

Eric Holder

Holder told the mother of a man who died aboard Flight 93 which crashed into a Pennsylvania field near Shanksville, PA that "there was evidence, not yet made public, that makes federal court the best place to try Mohammed."

I guess what I'm saying is trust me," the attorney general said quietly, as reporters and security staff crowded around the pair.

I will trust you. I will defer judgment," said Hoagland, though she added she still has serious doubts about his plan. 

Here are some of the "highlights" of Holder's appearance before the Senate Judiciary Committee today:

(1) The 9/11 attacks were both an act of war and a violation of our federal criminal law

(2) There are more than 300 convicted international and domestic terrorist currently in Bureau of Prisons custody. Including those responsible for the 1993 World Trade Center bombing in the attacks -- embassies in Africa.

(3) In fact I expect to direct prosecutors to seek the ultimate and most uncommon penalty.

(4) I know that we are at war. I know that we are at war with a vicious enemy who targets our soldiers on the battlefield in Afghanistan and our civilians in the streets here at home.

(5) Prosecuting -- 9/11 defendants in federal court does not represent some larger judgment about whether or not we are at war. We are at war. And we will use every instrument of national power civilian military.

(6) I'm not scared of what Khalid Sheikh Mohammed has to say at trial, and no one else needs to be afraid, either,” Holder said.

(7) We need not cower in the face this enemy.

 No. 6 is pure elitist arrogance, bathed in contempt and disdain for the country and the citizens. The American people are not "scared," are not "afraid," of what KSM has to say. What the animal has to say is irrelevant. How much more demeaning of the American people can a public service get?

Senator Jon Kyl (R-AZ) asked Holder how a civil trial could be better when KSM had already tried to plead guilty before a military commission"

How can you be more likely to get a conviction in a (civilian) court than that?" pressed Kyl, to applause from some in the hearing room.

Holder's non-answer to a very direct question was that the decision to try KSM in New York was not based on the whims or the desires of KSM - "he will not select the prosecution venue. I will. And I have." The question was, why would you think a conviction in civil court will easier than in the military commission - where KSM wants to plead guilty?

Senator Lindsay Graham (R-SC) asked Holder to name one enemy combatant (now known legally as an "unprivileged enemy belligerent") captured on a battlefield and tried in a U.S. civil court. Holder could not name one, and Graham pointed out that there are none. Graham accused Holder of "making bad history," and said "I think you've made a fundamental mistake here."

Senator Jeff Sessions (R-AL) said: "I believe this decision is dangerous. I believe it's misguided. I believe it is unnecessary." Holder boasted that 300 terrorists are currently held in U.S. prisons. Sessions asked for a list of those terrorists, and after a slight pause, Holder said he would get the list for the Senator.

In the meeting, Senator Jon Kyl mentioned a previous request from Senator Charles Grassley, who has asked Holder for list of DOJ attorneys who have previous ties to terrorists. Holder indicated he would think about it. Here is what Grassley says on his website:

I plan to ask the Attorney General about potential conflicts of interest within the department related to political appointees working on detainee issues.  Media reports have highlighted certain political appointees at the department and their prior advocacy on detainee issues.  I would like to know more about these appointees and the work they are currently doing at the department.  Any prior representation on the other side of these issues could raise potential conflicts of interest that should be fully disclosed as part of basic transparency and accountability at the department. 

The video below is excellent. Listen as Senator Lindsay Graham tells Holder, your actions "are a perversion of the justice system.




 Eric Holder and Lindsay Graham (video)

Senate Drops End of Life Health Care Legislation? Down-right Evil Legislation

Senators, who are working on their August vacation, have dropped the end-of-life legislation from the Senate version of the health care bill. Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) says the end-of-life text has been dropped because "it could be misinterpreted or implemented incorrectly." Uh huh!

In a statement, Grassley criticized the House bill, saying there was a difference between a "simple education campaign, as some advocates want," and paying "physicians to advise patients about end-of-life care."

Sarah Palin...you remember her; the former Governor of Alaska who's approval ratings are in the flusher - the Sarah Palin who really has no influence over anyone; the Sarah Palin who has no followers and no one agreeing with her? That Sarah Palin, said the end of life legislation was downright evil and hundreds of thousands agreed with her. It was a real irritant at those Townhalls that voters demanded an explanation of that portion of the bill. What a shame. No Democrat could explain it, or more importantly, explain why it was so obscenely vague.

In a Facebook posting late Wednesday night, Palin argued that the elderly and ailing could be coerced into accepting minimal end-of-life care to reduce health care costs. "With all due respect, it's misleading for the president to describe this section as an entirely voluntary provision that simply increases the information offered to Medicare recipients," she wrote. "It's all just more evidence that the Democratic legislative proposals will lead to health care rationing."

Palin was right. The administration says the end-of-life counseling is voluntary, but when Democrats were asked to put the word "voluntary" into the legislation, they refused - (read You and the New Advanced Care Planning Industry).

The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama’s ‘death panel’ so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their ‘level of productivity in society,’ whether they are worthy of health care,” the former Republican vice presidential candidate wrote. "Such a system is downright evil," she added.

The House version says the legislation is mandatory, that Medicare will reimburse doctors for "voluntary counseling sessions." Just go to the link in the above paragraph and read about the bureaucracy being created to handle "your counseling." Billions will likely be needed to get this huge structure set up - then you will probably find that a "practitioner" will probably not do your "counseling session," because he/she is just too darn busy shuffling papers. Who knows who might sit across from you as you obediently sit through your end-of-life meeting. Well, I don't trust any of them. Let's watch for that 3 a.m. amendment the night of the vote. Read more about President Obama's advisor's thoughts - the people closest to him - on health care and what it means for you.

Destroy Obamas Presidency: Health Care Freedom Plan

If Barack Obama is shocked that American's are pushing back against the kind of health reform he envisions, then he doesn't know red-blooded Americans. Here's some snippets of the fight being fought for those of us who ARE red-blooded Americans. Senator Charles Grassley quotes an unnamed senator quoting Obama:

A Democrat congressman last week told me after a conversation with the president that the president had trouble in the House of Representatives, and it wasn't going to pass if there weren't some changes made ... and the president says, 'You're going to destroy my presidency.'

Rep. Bart Stupak (D-MI) basically called Grassley a liar, saying he doesn't think the president would say that: "He's [Obama] got too much self-confidence." In the spirit of bi-partisianship, 6 senators from both sides have been "negotiating" for weeks.

The bipartisan Finance group met earlier in the day with two actuaries to discuss potential penalties for individuals and businesses that do not acquire insurance.

Senator Orrin Hatch (R-UT) was the 7th senator in that group of negotiators, but confirmation came today that there was little in the negotiations that he could back:

...including the employer mandate, the individual mandate, Medicaid expansion and tax increase.

Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) made this statement:

July 20, 2009 - WASHINGTON, D.C - Today, U.S. Senator Jim DeMint (R-South Carolina) made the following statement: “The last time the President made grand promises and demanded passage of a bill before it could be reviewed, we ended up with the colossal stimulus failure and unemployment near 10 percent,” said Senator DeMint. “Now the President wants Americans to trust him again, but he can't back up the utopian promises he's making about a government takeover of health care. He insists his health care plan won't add to our nation's deficit despite the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office saying exactly the opposite.

And today we learn that the President is refusing to release a critical report on the state of our economy, which contains facts essential to this debate. What is he hiding? "If the actual legislation came close to matching the President's rhetoric, he would have no problem passing this bill with huge Democrat majorities in both chambers. But Americans aren’t being fooled and are discovering the truth about his plan which includes rationed care, trillions in new costs, high taxes and penalties that will destroy jobs, and even government-funded abortions. “Let’s be clear, there is no one in this debate advocating that we do nothing despite the President's constant straw man arguments.

Republicans have offered comprehensive health care reform solutions that cover millions of the uninsured without exploding costs, raising taxes, or rationing care. We can give every American access to a health plan they can own, afford and keep without a government takeover." Senator DeMint has authored the Health Care Freedom Plan that gives patients more control instead of government and reduces the uninsured by over 22 million without any new cost to taxpayers.

What is the Health Care Freedom Plan?

• Protects the right of Americans to keep their employer-based plan without having to pay additional taxes on those benefits.

• Provides Americans without employer-based coverage with vouchers of $2000 for individuals and $5000 for families to purchase health insurance. The premium for the average private policy sold in the individual market in 2007 was $1,896 for an individual and $4,392 for a family (Source: eHealthInsurance)

• Allows Americans with Health Savings Accounts (HSAs) to use their HSA funds to pay for insurance premiums, encouraging employers to contribute to their employees’ HSAs.

• Creates a nationwide market for health insurance by allowing individuals to purchase health insurance plans in any state.

• Provides block grants to states to develop innovative models that ensure affordable health insurance coverage for Americans with pre-existing health conditions.

• Reduces predatory and frivolous malpractice lawsuits against physicians and hospitals.

• Assures that every health care consumer has access to price information prior to treatment so they can make informed decisions about their care.

• Repeals financial bailouts (TARP) to ensure that the plan does not add to the deficit.