Durbin Is Hit Where It Might Count

[Annie]

Since we know that the Senate will not seriously punish Durbin, the best we can hope is that he is not re-elected, something I would have thought remote even a couple of days ago. Now comes Richie Daley, who's son happens to be serving in the armed forces. This can change elections-if Daley isn't indicted before then, (heh, it's Illinois. :

http://www.nbc5.com/politics/4635790/detail.html

Daley Calls For Apology From Durbin
Mayor Thinks Senator's Comments Were 'Disgraceful'

POSTED: 4:18 pm CDT June 21, 2005
UPDATED: 6:22 pm CDT June 21, 2005

CHICAGO -- Mayor Richard M. Daley said Tuesday that U.S. Sen. Richard Durbin should apologize for his recent statements regarding the treatment of prisoners at a U.S. prison camp in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.

Mayor Daley
Mayor Richard M. Daley at a previous event.
In a Senate speech last week, Durbin read an account by an unidentified FBI agent of the alleged treatment of a prisoner who had been chained to a floor in the fetal position without food or water and had been subjected to extremely hot and cold temperatures.

Durbin said if a person read the report without knowing it was an FBI agent's account of the treatment of prisoners under the control of Americans, he or she would believe the actions had been taken by Nazis, Soviets or the regime of Cambodian dictator Pol Pot, reports stated.

Daley said Durbin should apologize for making the comparison, especially since Daley claimed there have been no reports of deaths or serious injuries to prisoners at Guantanamo Bay.

The mayor said there is no comparison between the Nazi Holocaust and the treatment of prisoners at Guantanamo Bay.

"If you read the history of the Holocaust, nothing can compare with the Holocaust," Daley said. "Let us set that aside. Anytime people mention the Holocaust and they start referring one incident or two incidents to the Holocaust, that's so disrespectful for all the victims of the Holocaust. You talk about 6 million people intentionally killed."

"No one has been killed down there (Guantanamo Bay), no one has been seriously injured," Daley added. WELL RICHIE HAS PROBLEMS WITH KEEPING FACTS STRAIGHT, BUT WE KNOW HE JUST MISSPOKE ON WHICH CASES OF ABUSE DURBIN HAD CITED.

When reporters noted that Durbin made no mention of the Holocaust and that he only said that a person reading the report without knowing its source would believe it to be the account of actions of Nazis, Soviets or other dictatorships, Daley disagreed that the report could be read in that way.

Daley said he still considers Durbin a friend, but he said he believes the senator's comments were disgraceful.

"Well, I think it's a disgrace and he's a good friend of mine, but I think it's a disgrace to say that any man or woman in the military acts like that or that report is like that," Daley said.

"You go and talk to some victims of the Holocaust and they will tell you horror stories and there are not horror stories like that in Guantanamo Bay," he said.

"I have a lot of respect for Dick Durbin, he's a friend of mine," Daley added. "But doing any comparison, you know, it is the whole issue of Washington, how people are hating each other. Now Dick is not a hater, I know that, but this rhetoric is getting worse and worse and I don't think it's good for the country."

"I'm going to get you a book on the Holocaust and have you read the Holocaust, and if you really believe those men and women in Guantanamo Bay are Nazis, then you'd better rethink what America's all about," Daley said.

Calls to Durbin's Chicago office were referred to spokeswoman Christina Angarola, who was not immediately available for comment.

After several Republicans criticized Durbin for his comments last week, the senator's office released this statement:

"More than 1,700 American soldiers have been killed in Iraq and our country's standing in the world community has been badly damaged by the prison abuses at Abu Ghraib and Guantanamo. My statement in the Senate was critical of the policies of this Administration which add to the risk our soldiers face.

"I will continue to speak out when I disagree with this Administration.

"I have learned from my statement that historical parallels can be misused and misunderstood. I sincerely regret if what I said caused anyone to misunderstand my true feelings: our soldiers around the world and their families at home deserve our respect, admiration and total support."

Information provided by City News Service