I Won’t Go To War With Russia For Randi Weingarten
American civilians have no business traveling to Eastern Europe in the midst of a conflict that is teetering on the edge of nuclear war.American civilians have no business traveling to Eastern Europe in the midst of a conflict that is teetering on the edge of nuclear war.Ted Cruz hits ex-CIA boss John Brennan over 'bizarre' support of Iran following killing of nuclear scientist
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and former CIA director John Brennan traded barbs regarding the killing of Iran's top nuclear scientist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh.
"This was a criminal act & highly reckless. It risks lethal retaliation & a new round of regional conflict," Brennan wrote on Twitter. "Iranian leaders would be wise to wait for the return of responsible American leadership on the global stage & to resist the urge to respond against perceived culprits."
"I do not know whether a foreign government authorized or carried out the murder of Fakhrizadeh," Brenna continued. "Such an act of state-sponsored terrorism would be a flagrant violation of international law & encourage more governments to carry out lethal attacks against foreign officials."
"These assassinations are far different than strikes against terrorist leaders & operatives of groups like al-Qaida & Islamic State, which are not sovereign states," he tweeted. "As illegitimate combatants under international law, they can be targeted in order to stop deadly terrorist attacks."
Cruz reacted by saying, "It's bizarre to see a former head of the CIA consistently side with Iranian zealots who chant 'Death to America.' And reflexively condemn Israel. Does Joe Biden agree?"
It’s bizarre to see a former head of the CIA consistently side with Iranian zealots who chant “Death to America.”… https://t.co/jUiCIT3Z1v— Ted Cruz (@Ted Cruz)1606506808.0
Brennan, who was director of the CIA between 2013 and 2017, retorted, "It is typical for you to mischaracterize my comment."
"Your lawless attitude & simple-minded approach to serious national security matters demonstrate that you are unworthy to represent the good people of Texas," Brennan said, besmirching the senator.
Cruz then hit back, by pointing out that Brennan voted for Gus Hall, a U.S. Communist Party candidate who only secured 0.07% of the vote in 1976.
"Gosh, I touched a nerve. Facts matter," Cruz tweeted. "FACT 1: you've admitted, in 1976 you voted for the Communist candidate for President because, I guess, Jimmy Carter wasn't liberal enough for you."
Then the Texas senator took aim at the Obama administration's cozy relationship with the Iranian government.
"FACT 2: you gave $150 Bn to Ayatollah Khamenei, knowing it would be used to kill Americans," Cruz said.
Gosh, I touched a nerve.Facts matter.FACT 1: you’ve admitted, in 1976 you voted for the Communist candidate for… https://t.co/znuCOpjkFI— Ted Cruz (@Ted Cruz)1606585708.0
The two then exchanged blows about the Logan Act, which "forbids private citizens from engaging in unauthorized correspondence with foreign governments," and nobody has been indicted on the legislation since 1852.
"@tedcruz is now misrepresenting the Logan Act. Apparently, he is a poor Senator & a bad lawyer," Brennan wrote. "A private citizen publicly criticizing what could be a state-sponsored assassination of a government official & cautioning against retaliatory killing is called freedom of speech."
"In contrast, an individual tapped to be National Security Advisor (but not yet one) in an incoming Administration who privately contacts a foreign government official & advises how to conduct relations with the U.S. could be in violation of the Logan Act," Brennan said.
"My commitment to Israel's security & my efforts to counter Iran's malign activities are well documented throughout my 33 years of national security work serving Republican & Democratic Administrations," Brennan stated, then attacked Cruz. "Aside from his tiresome rhetoric, what has Senator Cruz ever done?"
Cruz fired back, "Ok, let's apply your proffered standard: Ben Rhodes has publicly stated, 'foreign leaders are already having phone calls with Joe Biden, talking about the agenda they're going to pursue on Jan. 20.' Does that mean you think Joe Biden should be prosecuted under the Logan Act?"
"The only coherent answer is NO, neither Biden nor Gen. Flynn violated the Logan Act bc it's unconstitutional—which is why nobody has been convicted of violating it in the history of the US," Cruz contended. "But you want to use it as a partisan cudgel, a weapon to attack your political opponents."
The only coherent answer is NO, neither Biden nor Gen. Flynn violated the Logan Act bc it’s unconstitutional—which… https://t.co/759tzjEm99— Ted Cruz (@Ted Cruz)1606589986.0
Fakhrizadeh, who was considered the top architect of Iran's nuclear program, was gunned down in a road ambush in broad daylight on Friday. The black sedan the scientist was traveling in was riddled with bullets.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said the assassination was "an act of state terror," there were "serious indications" of Israeli involvement.
Terrorists murdered an eminent Iranian scientist today. This cowardice—with serious indications of Israeli role—sho… https://t.co/oCDn9PmA2C— Javad Zarif (@Javad Zarif)1606490927.0
On Saturday, Iran's supreme leader promised to retaliate for the killing of Fakhrizadeh. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei demanded that Iranian officials make a pledge into "pursuing this crime and punishing its perpetrators and those who commanded it."
Iran's President Hassan Rouhani vowed that the Islamic republic "will respond in time to the assassination of Martyr Fakhrizadeh."
"Once again, the evil hands of Global Arrogance and the Zionist mercenaries were stained with the blood of an Iranian son," Rouhani added.
Top Obama adviser admits Biden talking with foreign leaders about plans
Former Vice President Joe Biden, whom the media has declared the president-elect, is reportedly already talking to foreign governments about his planned agenda as president.
According to Ben Rhodes, one of former President Barack Obama's top foreign advisers and speechwriters, Biden has begun actively preparing his foreign policy agenda by talking to foreign leaders.
What did Rhodes say?
Speaking on MSNBC Monday, Rhodes said that no matter what legal challenges Trump's team launches, none will stick, and Biden is already acting like the definite election winner.
"But here's the thing. This is going to happen anyway," Rhodes said of a presidential transition.
"The Trump people seem to be talking like they have some agency here. We're going to have the pageantry already of the president-elect announcing his advisory board. He's going to start announcing cabinet secretaries. The center of political gravity in this country and the world is shifting to Joe Biden," he continued.
"Foreign leaders are already having phone calls with Joe Biden, talking about the agenda they're going to pursue January 20th," Rhodes admitted. "If that reality hasn't sunk in yet for some people in the White House, it will sink in when they have to leave on January 20th. And they're going to be in for a rude awakening here."
.@brhodes: Biden is already “having phone calls” with foreign leaders about “the agenda they’re going to pursue Jan… https://t.co/G4BoKBR4Jm— Tom Elliott (@Tom Elliott)1604957025.0
What about the Logan Act?
Rhodes' comments immediately generated allegations that Biden is potentially violating the Logan Act, the 18th-century law that criminalizes unauthorized communication with foreign governments by American citizens.
The law reads:
Any citizen of the United States, wherever he may be, who, without authority of the United States, directly or indirectly commences or carries on any correspondence or intercourse with any foreign government or any officer or agent thereof, with intent to influence the measures or conduct of any foreign government or of any officer or agent thereof, in relation to any disputes or controversies with the United States, or to defeat the measures of the United States, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both.
Americans are, of course, familiar with the Logan Act because Michael Flynn, Trump's first national security adviser, was accused of violating the law during the Trump transition period when he engaged in discussions with then-Russian Ambassador Sergey Kislyak. That conversation came after the Obama administration imposed sanctions on Moscow for election interference.
Journalist Glenn Greenwald tweeted, "Obama Official Ben Rhodes Admits Biden Camp is Already Working With Foreign Leaders: Exactly What Michael Flynn Did."
In late 2016, the FBI, under the orders of James Comey and Andrew McCabe, investigated Gen. Michael Flynn when he w… https://t.co/TAkh2I2Ell— Glenn Greenwald (@Glenn Greenwald)1605014762.0
As a timeline of the Flynn incident outlines, Flynn's alleged sin was not simply that he talked to officials from another government, but that he allegedly did so to potentially benefit himself due to his personal and business interests involving Turkey.
Still, as the Washington Post noted, incoming presidential officials customarily begin talking with foreign governments, for they will soon have to work with them as the official U.S. government apparatus. But Flynn's seemingly commonplace communication was framed as if he had violated the Logan Act outright, as this Atlantic article implies.
Ultimately, Flynn was never charged with violating the Logan Act; he was criminally prosecuted for lying to FBI investigators.
But the irony should not be lost that, as TheBlaze reported, it was Biden who suggested in the final days of the Obama administration that investigators should use the Logan Act to go after Flynn.
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