Name the Murderous Despots Republicans and Democrats have supported

[LynneSin]

I just read a post from Fuzz about what was being posted over at the Free Republic and one of the freeper statements was:

My point should have been that Presidents, both Republican and DemocRAT have supported murderous despots when it was convenient and disposed of them when they outlived their usefulness.

Ok, so I'm asking for your help in listing murderous despots and the US president who supported them. I'd like to get an idea of who is worse.

Murderous Despots should be people who have been known to kill, torture and/or repress their own citizens or certain groups living within their country.

Example: We know that Ronald Reagan supported Saddam Hussein by aiding him with intelligence, weapons and freeing up access to chem/bio weapons

We know that the Nixon administration helped install Augosto Pinochet in Chile.

So let's make a list and see who has done worse. I know I can be someone partial to democrats but I know there are some out there.

[bicentennial_baby]

1. Suharto?

In Indonesia? I think he was in power for a long time though, so it probably applies to more than one Prez in his case.

[LynneSin]

3. It should be who brought them to power

or who provided them weapons which were used against that dictators own people.

Simply being the president while a murderous dictator was in office does not qualify.

[KG]

2. the chimp?

(ducks and covers....)

[LynneSin]

8. I don't think supporting yourself counts

:shrug:

[KG]

20. the Shah?

[StandWatie]

4. There are things that just don't change

regardless of administration there is usually a direct correlation between US military aid and human right abuses.

[sangh0]

5. Osama Bin Laden

.

[blackcat77]

6. The Shah of Iran nt

[StandWatie]

7. that was Eisenhauer

The British tried to sell Truman on that and he told them to get bent.

[roguevalley]

9. We didn't harm the bastard in Cambodia. Pol Pot? Love ya,

baby.

Let me see ...

Stalin during WWII.

The creap that lead Taiwan all those years, Chang Kai Chek.

Anyone opposing communism from 1945 to ten minutes ago.

The Saudis, the despots in South America who give us coke in
exchange for 'fighting the commies'.

Noriega, until he got tiresome.

Many of the bastard dictators in Africa.

[LynneSin]

10. Folks - need name of Dictator AND President

We know our country in general supported these folks, which presidents were doing the dirty work?!

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

11. here's a pretty complete list..plenty of guilt to go around

Friendly dictators

Abacha, General Sani ----------------------------Nigeria
Amin, Idi ------------------------------------------Uganda
Banzer, Colonel Hugo ---------------------------Bolivia
Batista, Fulgencio --------------------------------Cuba
Bolkiah, Sir Hassanal ----------------------------Brunei
Botha, P.W. ---------------------------------------South Africa
Branco, General Humberto ---------------------Brazil
Cedras, Raoul -------------------------------------Haiti
Cerezo, Vinicio -----------------------------------Guatemala
Chiang Kai-Shek ---------------------------------Taiwan
Cordova, Roberto Suazo ------------------------Honduras
Christiani, Alfredo -------------------------------El Salvador
Diem, Ngo Dihn ---------------------------------Vietnam
Doe, General Samuel ----------------------------Liberia
Duvalier, Francois --------------------------------Haiti
Duvalier, Jean Claude-----------------------------Haiti
Fahd bin'Abdul-'Aziz, King ---------------------Saudi Arabia
Franco, General Francisco -----------------------Spain
Hitler, Adolf ---------------------------------------Germany
Hassan II-------------------------------------------Morocco
Marcos, Ferdinand -------------------------------Philippines
Martinez, General Maximiliano Hernandez ---El Salvador
Mobutu Sese Seko -------------------------------Zaire
Noriega, General Manuel ------------------------Panama
Ozal, Turgut --------------------------------------Turkey
Pahlevi, Shah Mohammed Reza ---------------Iran
Papadopoulos, George --------------------------Greece
Park Chung Hee ---------------------------------South Korea
Pinochet, General Augusto ---------------------Chile
Pol Pot---------------------------------------------Cambodia
Rabuka, General Sitiveni ------------------------Fiji
Montt, General Efrain Rios ---------------------Guatemala
Salassie, Halie ------------------------------------Ethiopia
Salazar, Antonio de Oliveira --------------------Portugal
Somoza, Anastasio Jr. --------------------------Nicaragua
Somoza, Anastasio, Sr. -------------------------Nicaragua
Smith, Ian ----------------------------------------Rhodesia
Stroessner, Alfredo -----------------------------Paraguay
Suharto, General ---------------------------------Indonesia
Trujillo, Rafael Leonidas -----------------------Dominican Republic
Videla, General Jorge Rafael ------------------Argentina
Zia Ul-Haq, Mohammed ----------------------Pakistan

http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/US_ThirdWorld/dictators.html

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

16. And while it IS important..the PResident receives intelligence on these

dictators from the CIA so that must also be factored in....by sheer numbers of years however, anyway you cut it...Repubs have held the WH more often since 1960, therefore Repubs have supported more despots.

[Hoppin_Mad]

30. Cerezo ( Guat ) was elected -eom-

nt

[Snow]

12. Hmmm. Well, in Korea,

I would include both Yee Syngman (Syngman Rhee) and Pak Chunghee under that. Yee was more corrupt than murderous, and Pak was more, ummmm, what? - the man was almost a puritan, absolutely not corrupt, but very stern and intolerant of dissent. Not hesitant to use very strong tactics, but murderous? - dunno. Yee was supported by Truman, then Ike, then Kennedy. Pak was supported by (I think) Kennedy (but maybe not), Johnson, Nixon. Following Pak was one short-term decent guy, then two genuine murderous despots came into power - Chun Doohwan and Roh whatsisname (Daewoo?). They were real bastards, and I think they came into power under Carter. Not sure of the degree to which Carter supported them.

We could make a longer list if we go back further in time. For example, Teddy Roosevelt supported the Japanese takeove of Korea. Who supported the Marcos' takeover of the Filipines?

[noonwitch]

13. I can only think of republicans

Samoza-republicans/Nixon, Carter supported the Sandinistas

Marcos-Reagan-I have personal knowledge of the way Reagan used the justice department to hunt down dissidents, in order to return them to the Phillipines and their deaths. My family and our church took turns hiding out a dissident in our homes.

Pinochet-Nixon/Kissenger.

Hitler-Prescott Bush and Henry Ford.

Bosnian war criminals-the freepers seem to have a soft spot for them, likely because Clinton decided to get rid of them.

Ayatollah Khomeni and the Iranian extremists-Reagan/Bush

Osama bin Laden-Bush

Contra drug dealers-Reagan/Bush

The taliban-Colin Powell gave them $45 million for their efforts in the war on some drugs in May of 2001.

I'm sure that the dems have at some point supported some lunatic somewhere in the world (Mugabe?), but for the most part, it's republicans.

[WoodrowFan]

19. Ford

Ford was, at least for awhile, a Democrat. alas.

[Flying_Pig]

14. I'll add one...

Arial Sharon......

[Wetzelbill]

15. Bashir Gemayel in Lebanon then he got whacked by Syria

List all of Israel's Prime Ministers ever.

Clinton and Bush, Sr eventually tolerated Hafez Assad in Syria. Actually, Reagan allowed him to get away with the Hama massacre.

[sangh0]

17. Papa and Baby Doc Duvalier

.

[sangh0]

18. Pol Pot

.

[MrPrax]

21. Mubuto Sese Seko!!

Duarte and the Family, Rios Mott and a string of other freedom-lovers after Arbenz in Guatemala, Somozoa, Battistas, Sukarno and Suharto, etc etc
Fair too numerous to list really

[leftyandproud]

22. Stalin

didn't we arm some of his troops and fight alongside them in WW2?

[JVS]

23. Chang Kai Shek

[beanball]

24. A man of honor

Sharon is missing from the list,why?

[Q]

25. "These are the moral equivalent of America’s founding fathers."

-Ronald Reagan, 1985 on meeting the Mujahiddin

[AntiCoup2K4]

27. I think he said that about the Contras, not the Mujahadeen.

Not like there's a Hell of a lot of difference, except the Contras haven't flown any airplanes into skyscrapers, to my knowledge.

Both terrorists who run drugs for the CIA/BCE, so not a lot of difference.

[AP]

26. Every leader of the Congo since Patrice Llumumba was assassinated

which, unfortunately, happened while Kennedy was president (but, I'd like to believe, by direction of a state department or cia still under the influence of Eisenhower appointees).

[quaker bill]

28. Noriega

Somoza
Contras
Guatamalan death squads
El Salvadoran death squads

(Ronbo Raygun)

[mitchum]

29. That may be the only true statement ever posted at Free Republic...

both parties got their hands very bloody