Obama Interference Scandal
Move America Forward is out with a new ad that seeks to bring before the American people the fact that the Iraqi Foreign Minister says Obama tried to get the Iraqi Government to delay any decision on U.S. Troop withdrawals until after the election in November. It points out Obama's hypocritical calling for troop withdrawals publicly, while privately he was working against it. The ad actually does not go far enough. The larger issue is that Obama's interfering in U.S. - Iraq negotiations, without any authority to do so, is actually a violation of the Logan Act which specifically prohibits unauthorized U.S. Citizens from interfering in U.S. Diplomacy with other nations.
The Logan Act is a United States federal law that forbids unauthorized citizens from negotiating with foreign governments. It was passed in 1799 and last amended in 1994. Violation of the Logan Act is a felony, punishable under federal law with imprisonment of up to three years. The text of the Act is broad and is addressed at any attempt of a US citizen to conduct foreign relations without authority.
A Barack Obama spokesperson issued a statement from Sen. Obama today that unwittingly confirms the fact that he did interfere with U.S. - Iraq negotiations on the eventual withdrawal of U.S. Forces from Iraq! In the quote below, the Obama Campaign was trying to deny that he interfered, but in the actual statement it confirms the fact that he did!
Barack Obama's White House campaign angrily denied Monday a
report that he had secretly urged the Iraqis to postpone a deal to withdraw US
troops until after November's election.In the New York Post,
conservative Iranian-born columnist Amir Taheri quoted Iraqi Foreign Minister
Hoshyar Zebari as saying the Democrat made the demand when he visited Baghdad in
July, while publicly demanding an early withdrawal."He asked why we
were not prepared to delay an agreement until after the US elections and the
formation of a new administration in Washington," Zebari said in an interview,
according to Taheri."However, as an Iraqi, I prefer to have a security
agreement that regulates the activities of foreign troops, rather than keeping
the matter open," Zebari reportedly said.The Republican campaign of
John McCain seized on the report to accuse Obama of double-speak on Iraq,
calling it an "egregious act of political interference by a presidential
candidate seeking political advantage overseas."But Obama's
national security spokeswoman Wendy Morigi said Taheri's article bore "as much
resemblance to the truth as a McCain campaign commercial."In fact, Obama had told the Iraqis that they should not rush through
a "Strategic Framework Agreement" governing the future of US forces until after
President George W. Bush leaves office, she said.
The McCain Campaign has issued a statement regarding the news that Barack Obama attempted to interfere with U.S. - Iraq Negotiations on withdrawal of American Troops from Iraq:
McCain spokesman Randy Scheunemann stated as follows:
At this point, it is not yet clear what official American negotiations Senator Obama tried to undermine with Iraqi leaders, but the possibility of such actions is unprecedented. It should be concerning to all that he reportedly urged that the democratically-elected Iraqi government listen to him rather than the US administration in power. If news reports are accurate, this is an egregious act of political interference by a presidential candidate seeking political advantage overseas. Senator Obama needs to reveal what he said to Iraq's Foreign Minister during their closed door meeting. The charge that he sought to delay the withdrawal of Americans from Iraq raises serious questions about Senator Obama's judgment and it demands an explanation.
In a potentially devastating story to the Campaign of Barack Obama, a New York Post writer has quoted the Iraqi Foreign Minister on the record as saying that Obama tried to interfere in U.S. - Iraq negotiations regarding an agreement on draw-down of U.S. Troops in Iraq.
WHILE campaigning in public for a speedy withdrawal of US troops from Iraq, Sen. Barack Obama has tried in private to persuade Iraqi leaders to delay an agreement on a draw-down of the American military presence.
According to Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari, Obama made his demand for delay a key theme of his discussions with Iraqi leaders in Baghdad in July.
“He asked why we were not prepared to delay an agreement until after the US elections and the formation of a new administration in Washington,” Zebari said in an interview.
Obama insisted that Congress should be involved in negotiations on the status of US troops - and that it was in the interests of both sides not to have an agreement negotiated by the Bush administration in its “state of weakness and political confusion.”
Ed Morrissey at Hot Air.com has excellent analysis:
Hypocrisy isn’t the issue here; it’s the interference of Obama in military and diplomatic affairs. Just on diplomacy, interfering with the United States in its diplomatic efforts is a Logan Act violation. Interfering with war policy treads on even more serious ground, especially since the primary motivation appears to be winning an election without regard to whether it damages our ability to fight the enemy or drives wedges between us and our ally, the elected, representative government in Baghdad. . . . .
This looks different, if for no other reason than Taheri’s main source goes on the record. Hoshyar Zebari didn’t hide behind a “high-level source in Baghdad” tag for this story. Zebari’s testimony puts the onus on Obama to explain why he attempted to interfere with the Bush administration’s negotiations despite his having absolutely no authority to do so. If Obama wants to negotiate a defeat for America, he needs to wait until Americans elect him to the White House before betraying our allies and our troops in the field.
How will Barack Obama respond to this? If this is true, Barack Obama has done something that is criminal. The Logan Act expressly prohibits this kind of interference in U.S. Foreign Policy by a U.S. citizen not authorized to represent the U.S. in negotiations:
The Logan Act is a United States federal law that forbids unauthorized citizens from negotiating with foreign governments. It was passed in 1799 and last amended in 1994. Violation of the Logan Act is a felony, punishable under federal law with imprisonment of up to three years.
How long will it take the mainstream media to cover this explosive scandal?
