ConservativeChristianRepublican-Report - 20100204

Motivational-Inspirational-Historical-Educational-Political-Enjoyable

Promoting "God's Holy Values and American Freedoms"!



"My Comments" - Ronald Reagan Week

Clear Vision for the 21st Century
http://reagan2020.us/

"We, the members of the New Republican Party, believe that the preservation and enhancement of the values that strengthen and protect individual freedom, family life, communities and neighborhoods and the liberty of our beloved nation should be at the heart of any legislative or political program presented to the American people." —Ronald Wilson Reagan (1911 - 2004)

Reagan 2020 is the Internet's most comprehensive resource on Ronald Reagan. It represents a permanent campaign advocating individual, family and community rights and responsibilities in acts of self-governance, as set forth by our Founders in the Declaration of Independence and codified in its subordinate guidance, our Republic's Constitution, the original intent of which is specified in the Federalist Papers.

Ronald Reagan's tenure as President, and his enduring legacy, was and remains dedicated to the plurality of Americans who uphold the most basic tenets of our Republic, "... that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

We American Patriots, as guardians of our Republic's liberty and custodians of Ronald Reagan's legacy, represent President Reagan's "New Republican Party." In addition our mission of providing an exposition of his leadership of, and contributions to, the 20th century's conservative revolution, President Reagan's vision for constitutional government is outlined on this site in the New Federalist Platform -- the quintessential conservative platform — a template for citizens, for candidates from all levels of government and a touchstone for American conservatism in perpetuity.

Reagan2020.US is Sponsored by:

"The vision and legacy of the Reagan Revolution flourish on the pages of The Patriot Post." — Michael Reagan



"Daily Motivations"

"Once the game is over, the king and the pawn go back in the same box." -- Anonymous

"How soon not now, becomes never." -- Martin Luther

"It's wonderful what we can do if we're always doing." -- George Washington



"Daily Devotions" (KJV and/or NLT)

...let us follow the Holy Spirit's leading in every part of our lives. (Galatians 5:25)

A businessman came to see me one day, greatly distressed because his church was splitting. "Half of our members are going to move out and start another church," he said. This distressed me, too, because I cannot think of anything more tragic than for a body of Christians to be divided.

As we talked, the man discovered and admitted that he was a worldly Christian. I explained to him how God had made provision for him to be a spiritual person. He did not need to continue to live as a worldly, carnal Christian. Finally, we knelt together and prayed. He asked forgiveness for his sins and invited God to fill and control his life by the Holy Spirit.

As we rejoiced together over what God had done, he said, "You know, there won't be any problems in my church now. You see, I'm the one who has been causing all the trouble."

Unfortunately, the acid of worldliness doesn't just burn into churches. It also dissolves marriages, homes, families, and jobs. You may have felt its affect in your life as relationships with loved ones have deteriorated and friends have become mere acquaintances.

But you can discover the same freedom the apostle Paul found. You too can enjoy victory. The key is the Holy Spirit who supplies power for you to live as a spiritual person.1

Your View of God Really Matters …

Answer the following question: As I think about my life I feel like I am:

1) Riding the wave.
2) Pushing the ocean.

The key to riding the wave is to allow the Holy Spirit to empower you for service.



"The Patriot Post"

Before I refuse to take your questions, I have an opening statement.
Ronald Reagan

But there are advantages to being elected President. The day after I was elected, I had my high school grades classified Top Secret.
Ronald Reagan

Concentrated power has always been the enemy of liberty.
Ronald Reagan



Upright

"It really is the people's seat, and yesterday the people took it back." -- columnist Jeff Jacoby

"Voters in the often wayward Cradle of Liberty looked danger in the eye, stood up, and said, 'Enough.' Tuesday's takeaway is this: if Obama & Co. can't sell their agenda there, it's an epic fail everywhere." -- columnist Tom Blumer

"[Scott Brown's] message of lower taxes, smaller government and fiscal responsibility clearly resonated with independent-minded voters in Massachusetts who were looking for a solution to decades of failed Democrat leadership." -- RNC Chairman Michael Steele

"Democrats are settling on a new strategy to blame the defeat not only on Coakley's inept campaign but also on her personality and strained relations with both the Kennedy family and President Obama." -- columnist Byron York

"[Nancy] Pelosi met with House Democrats yesterday to tell them how the negotiations on a compromise health care bill between the House and Senate were going. As she spoke, one Democratic member whispered to another, 'It's like talking about your date on Friday, but the date's in the emergency room.' ObamaCare went into the emergency room in Massachusetts and didn't make it out alive." -- columnist Fred Barnes

"[T]the American people are losing confidence in Team Obama because quite simply they are tiring of being lied to, and treated like children in need of Ivy-League Platonic guardians." -- columnist Victor Davis Hanson

"Obama was supposed to be a great persuader. It turns out that's only half true. He did persuade most of us that he should be president. But in Year One, he has failed to persuade most of us to support his major proposals. He's even moved us in the other direction." -- political analyst Michael Barone

"Increasing numbers of Americans are saying that they are having trouble recognizing the country in which they were born and grew up. They will have even more trouble recognizing America if the Washington juggernaut does not lose a substantial part of its power in this year's elections." -- economist Thomas Sowell



The Demo-gogues

The Wise Sayings of Master Barack: "We can't win them all." -- Barack Obama (Memo to Obama: Please keep campaigning for other Democrats.)

No change here: "Regardless of the size of their minority caucus, Senate Republicans have always had an obligation to join us in governing our nation through these difficult times. [Tuesday's] election doesn't change that. In fact it is now more important than before for Republicans to work with us rather than against us if we are to find common ground that improves Americans' lives." -- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV), himself in election trouble, on how Republicans should now shut up and help pass health care "reform"

What states' rights? "Massachusetts has health care and so the rest of the country would like to have that too. So we don't [think] a state that already has health care should determine whether the rest of the country should." -- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), telling voters what's good for them

Pot and kettle: "You know how politics is. At times like this, there are always some who are eager to exploit that pain and anger to score a few political points. There are always folks who think that the best way to solve these problems are to demonize others. And, unfortunately, we're seeing some of that politics in Massachusetts today." -- Barack Obama, who specializes in demonizing George W. Bush at every opportunity

Speaking of blaming Bush: "One thing the Democrats have done wrong? We haven't kept the focus on this disaster on the Republicans who brought it upon us. We've tried too hard to do that right thing, and that's to fix it, as opposed to spend more of our time and energy pointing the finger at who got us [here] in the first place." -- Rep. Patrick Kennedy (D-RI), campaigning for who he kept calling "Marcia" Coakley and doing just what Obama said we shouldn't do

Tough luck: "Health care was the cause of my friend Ted Kennedy's life. So it sickens me that the Republican running to take Ted's place is vowing to be the 41st vote to kill health care reform." -- Sen. Chris Dodd (D-CT)

From the crystal ball: "Let's remove all doubt: We will [take over] health care one way or another." -- Nancy Pelosi

World's smallest violin: "You know, folks ask me sometimes why I look so calm. I have a confession to make. There are times when I'm not so calm. ... There are times when progress seems too slow. There are times when the words that are spoken about me hurt. There are times when the barbs sting. There are times when it feels like all these efforts are for naught. Change is so painfully slow in coming. And I have to confront my own doubts." -- Barack Obama

Ditto: "We're all pretty unpopular. Why? Because people don't feel good, and we're the leaders and we're in office, and they expect us to do something about it." -- House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer (D-MD)



Dezinformatsia

Black Tuesday? "If you are looking for an analogy for a Republican victory in Massachusetts, the best one for Democrats may well be the stock market crash of 1929. ... [Y]ou could have Democrats jumping out windows and off roofs." -- Roll Call's Stu Rothenberg

Unhinged: "It's that rare election where voters know exactly what they're voting on. If they're with Democrat Martha Coakley they get health care reform. If they go for Republican Scott Brown it's deliberate, premeditated murder for health care!" -- MSNBC's Chris Matthews

Despicable: "I wanted to apologize for calling Senator-elect Scott Brown an 'irresponsible, homophobic, racist, reactionary, ex-nude model, tea bagging, supporter of violence against women and against politicians with whom he disagrees.' I'm sorry, I left out the word 'sexist.'" -- MSNBC's Keith Olbermann

Predictions: "[I]'s just going to get a lot uglier in Washington." -- CBS News political analyst John Dickerson

Blame game: "[W]hile Coakley is a solid Democrat, she had never really worked directly with Kennedy on anything, according to a former Kennedy aide, so she didn't have the appellation of 'a Kennedy person,' which would have opened the door to a lot more resources earlier in the race." -- Newsweek's Eleanor Clift with a strange explanation on Tuesday's election

Cheat to win: "I tell you what, if I lived in Massachusetts, I'd try to vote 10 times. I don't know if they'd let me or not, but I'd try to. Yeah, that's right, I'd cheat to keep these bastards out. I would. 'Cause that's exactly what they are." -- MSNBC's radio talk-show host Ed Schultz

Time to worry: "You have top Democrats like Barney Frank of Massachusetts who said flatly if Martha Coakley, the Democrat, loses, health care is dead. So what kind of planning is the White House doing right now for backup? What's their Plan B?" -- ABC's George Stephanopoulos

Nothing tragic about that: "[It would be] a tragedy of Greek proportions if Ted Kennedy's successor ... is the one who was responsible for the death of health care." -- PBS's Judy Woodruff

Blame Bush more: "The stimulus was too small; policy toward the banks wasn't tough enough; and Mr. Obama didn't do what Ronald Reagan, who also faced a poor economy early in his administration, did -- namely, shelter himself from criticism with a narrative that placed the blame on previous administrations." -- New York Times columnist Paul Krugman



Village Idiots

Sometimes Hollywood gets it right: "This isn't the Democratic party of our fathers and grandfathers. This is the party of Woodstock hippies. I was at Woodstock -- I built the stage. And when everything fell apart, and people were fighting for peanut-butter sandwiches, it was the National Guard who came in and saved the same people who were protesting them. So when Hillary Clinton a few years ago wanted to build a Woodstock memorial, I said it should be a statue of a National Guardsman feeding a crying hippie." -- actor John Ratzenberger

Most of the time, though, they don't: "I went to the White House and was star-struck by our president and first lady. ... I think it is thrilling to have someone who is thoughtful and can articulate with a certain amount of passion and dispassion, the necessary choices that we have in the world." -- actress Meryl Streep, admiring the actor in the White House

From the global village: "What is happening in Haiti seriously concerns me as U.S. troops have already taken control of the airport." -- Nicaragua's Commie-Red "President" Daniel Ortega

"I read that 3,000 soldiers are arriving, Marines armed as if they were going to war. There is not a shortage of guns there, my God. Doctors, medicine, fuel, field hospitals, that's what the United States should send. They are occupying Haiti undercover." -- Venezuela's Commie-Red strongman Hugo Chavez

"This is about helping Haiti, not about occupying Haiti.." -- French International Cooperation Minister Alain Joyandet (Of course, the moment the French see foreign troops, they have to assume it's an occupation.)



Short Cuts

"I've been out of the country for a couple of days, so let me see if I've got this right: America's preparing to celebrate the first anniversary of Good King Barack the Hopeychanger's reign by electing a Republican? In Massachusetts? In what the tin-eared plonkers of the Democrat machine still insist on calling 'Ted Kennedy's seat'?" -- columnist Mark Steyn

"The Cambridge Chronicle reports that the union representing policemen in the college town near Boston has endorsed Scott Brown for Senate. This is especially amusing because Martha Coakley has intimate ties to the Cambridge police: 'Ms. Coakley along with some of her campaign workers have talked publicly about how her husband is a retired Cambridge Police Officer, giving appearances that she is being endorsed by the Cambridge Police,' the endorsement reads in part. President Obama did not say whether he thinks the Cambridge police acted stupidly." -- Wall Street Journal columnist James Taranto

"Democrats regularly say things that would end the career of any conservative who said them. And still, blacks give 90 percent of their votes to the Democrats. Reid apologized to President Obama, and Obama accepted the apology using his 'white voice.' So now all is forgiven. Clinton also called Obama to apologize, but ended up asking him to bring everybody some coffee. Now the only people waiting for an apology are the American people who want an apology from Nevada for giving us Harry Reid." -- columnist Ann Coulter



"ACU"

Putting Unions First

by Donald Devine

http://acuf.org/issues/issue148/100116news.asp

Considering that President Barack Obama was himself an organizer, it is not surprising that labor unions are very close to his heart, especially those in the public sector where he performed most of his work. It does not hurt that unions also have been and remain the number one financial and organizational supporters of his campaigns and presidency. In fact, one could argue that without them he would not be president.

President Obama has taken many steps to repay this debt. Among Mr. Obama’s first acts as president was appointing a Task Force on Working Families headed by the Vice President that was proposed during the campaign by the Change To Win unions that endorsed Sen. Obama early in the nomination process. Following a long Democratic precedent back to President John Kennedy, he also issued three Executive Orders favoring federal sector government unions: one to repeal an obligation for federal contractors to post workers’ rights against union fees, another guaranteeing federal workers keep their jobs even if a private contractor takes over, and a third promoting “project agreements” on construction contracts favoring union over non-union firms. In announcing these goodies, the president said, “We know you cannot have a strong middle class without a strong labor movement." To prove his bona fides, new AFL-CIO head Richard L. Trumka was appointed to a council of economic advisors and has become a frequent White House visitor, as have several other top union heads.

In a period of high unemployment and recession, it is very expensive to do favors for unions. At least $300 billion of the $787 billion so-called stimulus can be considered a state and local government labor union subsidy and much of the rest helped fill highly-unionized Federal government coffers. If the goal was to revive the economy quickly, why not give money directly to individuals who can spend immediately rather than incurring delay through government bureaucracies? Public school unions do very well under the stimulus and state and local government clerical and blue collar unions are close behind. Construction unions who do work mostly for government are especially favored. The stimulus bill requires that all of the $199 billion spent by governments on construction projects must comply with Davis-Bacon “prevailing” (higher union) wage rates, effectively barring nonunion competition with lower private bids that save money compared to higher-cost union labor. No wonder that a new Associate Press study found that President Obama’s construction “stimulus has had no effect on local unemployment rates.”

In addition, Federal grants require a “maintenance of effort” that forbids state governments from cutting their own spending in 15 programs as a condition of receiving funds, granting unions extra protection against state legislators trying to balance stressed budgets by cutting costs.

As far as the Feds, the Washington Post civil service column headed its annual review for 2009: “Union leaders find many reasons to be merry about 2009.” First, all of the civil service regulatory agencies have been staffed with former union officials and associates. The number one goal of Federal sector unions has been to stop contracting jobs to the private sector. President John Gage of the American Federation of Government Employees declared, “ There is no question that this has been a banner year for our efforts to create laws and policies that make sourcing more accountable,” which was mainly accomplished by suspending studies that lead to privatization savings.

The next Federal union priority was to end pay based on performance rather than on seniority. William R. Dougan, president of the National Federation of Federal Employees, said 2009 was: "a fantastic year for the federal workforce. The biggest accomplishment of this year is the repeal of" the pay for performance systems at the two largest departments, Homeland Security and Defense. Post columnist Joe Davidson even argued the “pay-for-performance program was the prime target of union leaders.” Congress complied by revoking both agency plans against arguments that security would decline if no one could be disciplined for poor performance.

Even little favors count. To great fanfare the Obama Education Department announced support for an increase of $400 million a year federal funding for performance pay for public sector teachers after years of avoidance under previous administrations fearful of reaction from teachers unions. What changed? Officials clarified that such performance pay was not the same as “merit pay” for individual teacher excellence. Rather, “performance pay” could be awarded to all teachers at the school regardless of their individual performance if overall results at the school improved!

Even this is only the tip of the union iceberg. Many other increases in Federal government spending fulfill union promises. One of organized labor’s top priorities is health reform. As Trumka put it recently, “The labor movement has been fighting for health care for nearly 100 years and we are not about to stop fighting now, when it really matters.” His only objection was proposed limits on expensive health plans bargained by his unions – but he was promised this would not be in the final bill. Labor support for health reform is one of the key reasons Democrats cannot stop pushing what has now become a very unpopular bill, which could cost over $2 trillion to the economy if it is adopted.

Of central importance to private sector unions, President Obama has moved to give Democrats a majority on the critical National Labor Relations Board by nominating two strongly pro-union members. He has announced support for the so-called Respect Act that would eliminate supervisors as management officials and transfer them to representation by unions and thus prevent supervisors from arguing against union organizing. After appointing former pilot and flight attendant union officers to the National Mediation Board, it moved to end a 75 year rule requiring a majority vote to unionize airline employees, without a Board vote or public comments. The former treasurer of the AFL-CIOs American Rights at Work lobbying and political unit, Hilda Solis, was made Secretary of Labor. At year’s end, his Labor Department excused unions from filling Form T-1 Trust disclosures, which reports disclose the finances of union controlled trusts that could be used for political operations funded by forced dues. The Department also announced that it would not enforce tougher conflicts of interest reporting requirements for union officers and employees. The United Auto Workers were given ownership and control of General Motors.

Contrary to the myth of business power in elections, unions contribute more and union money is better targeted to officials who will help them. Twelve of the top twenty largest Political Action Committee contributors over the past decade are labor unions, the overwhelming percentage of whose contributions go to Democrats, while the top business firm contributions are mostly diluted between the political parties. Total union contributions to Democrats are estimated nationally as over $400 billion dollars a year, not counting the large amounts from local unions. But the reported contributions are a mere drop in the bucket since unions can also use dues money to support Democratic campaigns through organizer’s time, effort and other activities.

Andy Stern, president of the Service Employees International Union, bragged to a newspaper that "We spent a fortune to elect Barack Obama -- $60.7 million to be exact -- and we're proud of it." Our members "knocked on 1.87 million doors, made 4.4 million phone calls and sent more than 2.5 million pieces of mail in support of Obama. We dispatched SEIU leaders to seven states in the final weekend before the election to get out the vote for Obama and other Democrats.” But only $27.8 million was reported to the Federal Election Commission as direct contributions. And that is just one union’s efforts.

The problem for the president and his Democratic allies in Congress is that unions are among the more unpopular institutions in America. The union role in sinking the U.S. auto industry has made their negative affects on the private sector impossible to ignore even for today’s most sentient Americans. It is also now official that for the first time in history a majority of union members work for the government, which is likewise perceived negatively. Gallup polls now show that approval of unions has decreased from 70% in 1937 and 1957 and even from the 60% range as recently as 2004 to a mere 48% in 2009. More important, while most Americans thought unions were helpful for their own members, a majority have thought for years that unions harm workers who are not in unions, as do 62% today, and of course only 7.6% of private sector jobs are represented by labor unions.

Still, it would be a mistake to sell the unions short on political muscle. They have the money, organization and the people to make their influence felt. At the most recent AFL-CIO convention, President Obama promised the union leaders their number one goal, the Orwellian-named Employee Free Choice Act - that would eliminate the secret ballot to decide whether workers would be organized by and pay dues to unions, and would give arbitrators rather than owners the authority to set wages and benefits if free negotiations between management and unions failed - “would pass” during his tenure. Trumka predicted the bill would be approved before April.

It is nice to have friends in high places even if the election of Massachusetts Senator Scott Brown might slow down the union juggernaut just a little bit.



"The Web"

The UN "Small Arms Treaty"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nDMeDmV0ufU



Seven Year Old Singing the National Anthem
http://video.aol.com/video-detail/7-year-old-sings-national-anthem/40945200



Holder sued over 'Hate Crimes Act'

Bill Bumpas - OneNewsNow

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Legal/Default.aspx?id=880836

A federal lawsuit has been filed against U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, challenging the constitutionality of the recently enacted federal "Hate Crimes Act."

The lawsuit was filed against Holder by the Thomas More Law Center (TMLC) on behalf of three Michigan pastors and the president of the American Family Association of Michigan. Robert Muise, senior trial counsel for the TMLC and the attorney handling the case, tells OneNewsNow this law, attached to a defense authorization bill that the president signed last October, is political payoff.

"Those who supported this recent administration -- the homosexual lobby group, the homosexual activists -- it's no doubt that they had this as one of their top priorities because it’s the wedge to creating greater federal protections for certain class of persons, and those being people who engage in a form of certain deviate sexual behavior," Muise comments.

According to the TMLC attorney, this law criminalizes those who speak out against homosexuality based on biblical principles and violates the plaintiffs' rights to freedom of speech, expressive association, and exercise of free religion as protected by the First Amendment. The petitioners feel that the Tenth Amendment and the Commerce Clause of the U.S. Constitution leave Congress lacking the authority to ratify the legislation.

"It is equating those pastors and religious persons who teach what the Bible teaches on homosexuality with somebody who might express racist comments," Muise contends. "I think what this is about is chilling and inhibiting freedom of speech, the free exercise of religion, and the right of expressive association in particular for Christians."

The TMLC attorney adds that the Hate Crimes Act -- officially known as the "Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act" -- gives government officials the power to decide which thoughts are and are not criminal under federal law.



Ft. Hood report omits important factor: Islam

Chad Groening - OneNewsNow

http://www.onenewsnow.com/Security/Default.aspx?id=880532

A senior Army strategist and Pentagon advisor finds it unacceptable that the recently released Defense Department review of the shooting rampage at Fort Hood, Texas, didn't mention that the suspect's Islamic faith might have been a motivating factor in the massacre.

Defense Secretary Robert Gates had ordered the review following the November 5 shooting. But according to a recent article in TIME Magazine, when the 86-page report was released late last month, it did not once mention Major Nidal Hasan by name or discuss whether the killings may have had anything to do with his Muslim faith.

Hasan is accused of murdering 14 people at Fort Hood, including an unborn baby, and Lt. Col. Bob Maginnis (USA-Ret.) calls the review's omission "unacceptable."

"For the military, for the Army to ignore what is obvious to everybody in the world -- to include the Islamic world that the motivation was his radical views about his duty to kill American soldiers -- I find unacceptable," Maginnis states, adding that the military is gripped by political correctness.

"Even the chief of staff of the Army, General Casey, was very clear," the strategist notes. "He [basically] said...'I don't want to jeopardize the plurality of the armed forces by stating what to me is obvious: that radical Islam is the motivation here and that any indication that it exists in the military should be scrubbed out.'"

The retired Army officer concludes that while he is not advocating kicking all 5,000 Muslim members of the military out of the service, he does believe the military should take the necessary steps to adequately screen those who might become radicalized.



Geithner and Bernanke: Laundering Money Through an Illegal Trust?

by Frank Gaffney

http://biggovernment.com/fgaffney/2010/02/02/geithner-and-bernanke-laundering-money-through-an-illegal-trust/

This afternoon on Secure Freedom Radio we announced a breaking news story concerning the Administration’s ongoing cover-up of AIG financial wrong-doing. In an interview with David Yerushalmi, senior litigator on the Murray v. Geithner et al lawsuit, we expose possible fraud, money-laundering and criminal activity.

As Yerushalmi says in the interview, “So here’s what we find out in the midst of discovery when we depose the Treasury Department’s deponent and the Fed and get documents, here’s what we’ve learned: The Federal Reserve Bank of New York at the time that it structured the debt that it was going to give AIG insisted that not only did it get the debt, not only would it get principal and interest payments and collateral for that, it wanted 80% of AIG, precisely 77.9% of the shares and the voting rights. But the Federal Reserve Bank and Geithner knew that it was illegal for the Fed system whether there’s a Fed or the Federal Reserve Bank of New York to own that, so what did they do….”

Read the rest – the transcript and audio of the interview – at Secure Freedom Radio. Come back for an update tomorrow involving Neil Barofsky, Special Inspector General for TARP….and an animated movie showing exactly how the AIG, Treasury and Federal Reserve scheme worked…



American Ex-Cons Who Converted to Islam and Moved to Yemen Put U.S. on ‘Heightened Alert,’ Says Senate Committee Report

By Fred Lucas, Staff Writer

http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/60876

Map of Arabia and North Africa with Yemen's location highlighted in red. (Wikipedia Commons).

(CNSNews.com) – U.S. officials say a “significant threat” could come from American citizens, some of them ex-convicts, who traveled to Yemen. The threat has put federal law enforcement on “heightened alert.”

“Most worrisome is a group of as many as three dozen former criminals who converted to Islam in prison, were released at the end of their sentences, and moved to Yemen, ostensibly to study Arabic,” said a Jan. 21, 2010 report by the staff of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. “U.S. officials told committee staff they fear that these Americans were radicalized in prison and traveled to Yemen for training.”

The report says there is no proof that the prisoners are training to be terrorists. However, it warns that several of the ex-prisoners have disappeared for extensive periods of time.

“Although there is no public evidence of any terrorist action by these individuals, law enforcement officials told committee staff members that several have ‘dropped off the radar’ for weeks at a time,” reads the report. “U.S. law enforcement officials said they are on heightened alert because of the potential threat from extremists carrying American passports and the related challenges involved in detecting and stopping homegrown operatives.”

“The officials said there are legitimate reasons for Americans and others to study and live in Yemen, but they said some of the Americans had disappeared and are suspected of having gone to Al Qaeda training camps in ungoverned portions of the impoverished country,” states the report.

While intelligence agencies have determined that Al Qaeda is a less cohesive and centralized organization than in years past, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) has thrived in Yemen largely because of the country’s weak government, according to the report. AQAP was involved with the bombing of the USS Cole in 2000, an attack in which 17 American sailors were killed.

“We knew that Al Qaeda was going to have to make inroads in other ways,” said Kirk Lippold, commander of the USS Cole when it was attacked by the terrorists.

“I think this was an opportunity that they may not have necessarily initiated but they are certainly trying to take advantage of to try to bolster ranks and to bring people in who are basically able to exploit weaknesses, being Americans and citizens with American passports able to get into our country and wreak devastating attacks,” Lippold told CNSNews.com.

The findings regarding prisons are no surprise to Barbara K. Bodine, a former U.S. ambassador to Yemen, who believes that following radical Islam is not unlike other extremist movements that flourish in prisons.

“A lot of people go to Yemen and some of them are going to be ex-cons,” Bodine told CNSNews.com. “People do get radicalized in prison and our prison system is not the best in the world. The same dynamic that will make a gang attractive to a young man will make different kinds of radical extremism attractive.”

“I don’t think I would get any more concerned about it than I would be concerned about the hardening of people in prisons in general,” said Bodine. “Our prisons are not known for their rehabilitative qualities. So do you come out a member of a gang? Do you come out as a skinhead? Do you come out as somebody who may end up in Yemen as an extremist? Those are all symptoms of the same problem within our prison system.”

Lippold believes it is more a matter of certain prisoners’ criminal tendencies.

“The reality of it is they have already indicated they have a penchant for engaging in behaviors that are not indicative with conforming to society,” Lippold said. “So whether it is a criminal element that is now manifesting itself through religion, they are clearly bent on trying to destroy our way of life and our government.”

The Senate report states that Yemen’s problems include the “limited reach of the central government,” and a “tribal revolt in the north of the country, a secessionist movement in the south and rising poverty rates.”

Soldiers from the anti-terrorism force of the Yemeni Defense Ministry take part in an exercise in a training camp at the Sarif district, north of the capital San'a on Saturday, Jan. 9, 2010. (AP Photo/Nasser Nasser)

“Yemen, from my perspective, never was truly governed,” Lippold said. “It was not governed prior to the attack on the Cole. They have a president, but the reality of it is he is the president of the capital, Sana’a. He is not the president of the entire country. Many parts of the country have tribal loyalties that run deeper than what a central government is capable of ruling over.”

The Senate reporter further stated, “These experts have said they are worried that training camps established in remote parts of Yemen by Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) are being run by former detainees and veteran fighters from Afghanistan and Iraq, and used to instruct U.S. citizens who have immigrated to Yemen to marry local women or after converting to Islam in American prisons.”

The investigation by Senate staffers was done before Christmas Day when Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a 23-year-old Nigerian who allegedly received training from Al Qaeda in Yemen, tried to blow up a passenger jet over Detroit using explosives in his underwear. He was stopped by the passengers and crew.

“The ability of Al Qaeda to expand beyond its core members by recruiting non-traditional adherents was one of the lessons drawn by counter-terrorism experts from the failed attempt to blow up the aircraft,” the report says.

As Al Qaeda is weakened elsewhere, it has become strong in Yemen, said Jim Phillips, the senior research fellow for Middle Eastern affairs at the Heritage Foundation.

“Unfortunately, Yemen has risen in importance to Al Qaeda because Al Qaeda has been expelled from Afghanistan and battered in Pakistan,” Phillips told CNSNews.com. “The American public may not have paid much attention to Yemen, but it has been the focus of U.S. counterterrorism officials for years. The Christmas Day bombing was a wake-up call, but it could have been a lot worse.”

The Senate report itself was non-specific in certain respects, only referring, for example, to “law enforcement officials” or “experts” without stating for which agencies they worked. Further, it never stated how many former U.S. prisoners “dropped off the radar.”

The report was “written the way it was for a reason,” committee spokesman Frederick Jones told CNSNews.com, adding that the committee staff is “not at liberty to talk about” information beyond what is already in the report.

Prisoners are not the only concern.

“Similar concerns were expressed about a smaller group of Americans who moved to Yemen, adopted a radical form of Islam, and married local women,” the report reads. “So far, the officials said they have no evidence that any of these Americans have undergone training. But they said they are on heightened alert because of the potential threat from extremists carrying American passports and the related challenges involved in detecting and stopping homegrown operatives."



"The e-mail Bag"

Redneck Jokes

Did you hear that they have raised the minimum drinking age in West Virginia to 32?
It seems they want to keep alcohol out of the high schools!



What do they call "Hee Haw" in Arkansas?
A documentary.



What do they call it in Kentucky?
"Life Styles of the Rich and Famous."