The Defeat of al Qaeda

…Orwell style.

[President Barack] Obama said in a speech to the National Defense University May 23 that because of the death of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden and most of his top aides, “we are safer.”

While terrorist threats still exist, “the core of al Qaeda in Pakistan and Afghanistan is on the path to defeat,” the president said.

Because, you see,

focus on Pakistan and Afghanistan resulted in a lack of targeted counterterrorism efforts in other locations…. …counterterrorism efforts have been weakened by the administration’s policy of dissociating Islam from al Qaeda and other Islamist terrorism.  The policy was a key effort of John Brennan, White House counterterrorism chief during the first Obama administration.  As CIA director, Brennan has expanded the policy of limiting links between Islam and terrorism at the agency.

The result is that Islamist terror groups are flourishing, posing direct threats to the United States and to US interests outside the country[.]

And a report from Lignet, a private intelligence group run by ex-CIA officials, had this on the matter in a report published last Tuesday:

…the U.S. government’s overreliance on sanctions and surveillance has limited the war on terror.

The result is “a decentralized al Qaeda structure—and a much greater threat….

“Al Qaeda has transitioned from a hierarchical cell structure to a franchise organization that is now responsible for four times as many terrorist attacks a year as it was before 9/11….

“Al Qaeda training camps are now being established on the Arabian Peninsula, in Africa, countries of the former Soviet Union, and Southeast Asia.”

Indeed, the al Qaeda empire is rapidly spreading, and with more than just training camps.

Truly, a defeat of Orwellian proportions….

YouCut, Citizen Cosponser

Recall the YouCut program that the House of Representatives Republican caucus instituted in the wake of the 2010 mid-term elections.

Now, building on the heels of that program’s success, the Republican caucus under the leadership of Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R, VA), whose leadership also led to the YouCut program, is instituting a new program that moves the House—and by extension the Federal government—closer to us citizens.  This program is CoSPonsor.gov, and it presents all legislation openly and clearly and allows each citizen to become a cosponsor of any piece of legislation—or not.

Here’s Cantor’s email that announces the plan [emphasis in the original]:

When we launched YouCut three years ago, we never imagined how engaged people would become and how successful the program would be in achieving its mission of changing the culture of spending into a culture of savings.
Millions cast votes across the country to encourage the House to cut spending, and that is exactly what we continue to do. Throughout the program, we’ve seen YouCut proposals drive public discussions, pass the House and even become signed into law. Now, as our new Majority continues to work to cut spending and grow our economy, it’s time to leverage the latest technology to expand YouCut into its next phase.
I am excited to announce the launch of CoSponsor.gov – a new platform that allows you to become a Citizen CoSponsor of any bill in the House.
Now, any engaged citizen can become a Citizen CoSponsor and track the status of the legislation they care about in the House.
Whether you want to cosponsor new legislation like the Kids First Research Act or become a Citizen CoSponsor of legislation that has already passed the House, like No Budget, No Pay, you can now do so here.
House Republicans believe that transparency, open government and engagement are vital to a modern Congress, and CoSponsor.gov is an important step in that direction.
Visit CoSponsor.gov today and become a Citizen CoSponsor of the bills you care about:
http://www.cosponsor.gov/
Regards,
Eric Cantor
Majority Leader
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What issues do you care about? Visit CoSponsor.gov today to become a Citizen CoSponsor of any bill.

The link to CoSponsor.gov has been added to the right sidebar, near the top.