Muqtada Cries Uncle, Saddam Money Influenced Leftist Congressmen

[phk]

 Muqtada Cries Uncle, Saddam Money Influenced Leftist Congressmen

It seems that Muqtada al-Sadr has thrown in the towel: according to this declaration allegedly signed by him, al-Sadr is ordering his followers to put down their arms and to refrain from targeting government troops. The source is Buratha News, which is affiliated with Sheikh Jalaleddin al-Saghir who is a leading parliamentarian and a member of the Supreme Islamic Council an organization that rivals, and is often in conflict with, Mr. al-Sadr. But otherwise, I have no reason to doubt the authenticity of this document; we’ll know more tomorrow.

Muthana al-Hanooti turns out to be an asset of Saddam’s intelligence service: Well, Hanooti (an Iraqi-American of Palestinian descent) had me fooled—he had convinced me at the time (we spoke over the phone a couple of times in 2001) that he wasn’t a bad guy. But he also managed to fool three Democratic congressmen who were vocal critics of America’s policy regarding Iraq. But if Saddam’s money found ways to influence the U.S. Congress and convinced certain leftist-leaning representatives to stand against the war then isn’t it reasonable to wonder who else was influenced by this sophisticated and well-funded charm campaign mounted by the Iraqi Intelligence Service? What if it wasn’t Barack Obama’s “sound judgment” that led him to oppose the war? What if he had been influenced by talking points authored in the mukhaberat’s Harthiya HQ that ended up as leftist rhetoric in Chicago?

[Person Man]

Haven't the two Shia gangs already agreed to a cease-fire? What is this? An all-out disbandment of the Madhi army. That could sow things shut....and all will determine if the peace with Sunni people holds up. If it does, I could see how the war would over by the end of the surge. The surge is the most we can commit to Iraq. If it works, we have no reason to have a war in Iraq, if it doesn't, we have no reason for a war in Iraq.

I am a bit skeptical about your second claim. I don't know how a state senator would be affected by national politics, though he began his rise to the national level at that time. However, it appears to be normal business to associate with rivals and enemies. Hell, Bush and McCain are doing that with Iran right now.