Hillary Clinton calls on Bush to do more to end genocide in Darfur

[Cocoa]

http://clinton.senate.gov/news/statements/details.cfm?id=252800&&


March 16, 2006

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton Calls on President Bush to do More to End the Genocide in Darfur

Washington, DC — Deeply concerned by the continuing genocide in Darfur, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton has sent a letter to President Bush, urging him to take steps to protect civilians and address the crisis in Darfur. Senator Clinton’s letter emphasized her concern regarding continued violence against civilians and aid workers in Darfur, recent accounts of sexual violence against children, and escalating tensions between Sudan and Chad. Her letter reiterated the importance of a durable peace agreement between the conflicting parties, but emphasized that peace talks should not forestall efforts to ensure the safety of the people of Darfur.

Earlier this month, Senator Clinton co-sponsored a resolution that passed the Senate, which called on President Bush to arrange for increased NATO assistance in Darfur. In January, Senator Clinton joined a bipartisan group of Senators in sending a letter to President Bush calling his attention to the crisis in Darfur.

The full text of Senator Clinton's letter to President Bush follows:

more...

[mattclearing]

1. But, but, but...George Bush doesn't care about black people. n/t

[Cessna Invesco Palin]

2. Asking George Bush to get people to stop killing each other...

...is like asking Tony Soprano to... oh, nevermind.

[Drum]

3. Who? nt

[msgadget]

4. Darfur has been a conservative cause ...

not that dems haven't said anything but...all the talk, all the diplomacy, all the missionary work, the hand wringing... Has anyone asked Mr. Happy why it's okay to delegate the gift of 'liberty' for this region? Today he was surprised that anyone would think such a goal ridiculous...

[The Stranger]

5. Darfur is a "Conservative" cause because the Fundies are involved.

"Islamofascists" and "Christofascists".

But God bless the eternal war, murder and torture of Iraqis.

[Yupster]

14. We should have gotten involved long ago, but

we need to realize that if we put ouselves into Sudan, we will be battling Islamic militiamen in an Islamic country and there will be suicide bombers and IED's all over the place.

The fact is that the poor people of the southern Sudan have been massacred and enslaved by a fundamentalist Islamic government and militias which is now about to do the same thing to the defenseless nation of Chad.

Are we willing and able to stand up to it?

It will be another Iraq as far as insurgencies and militias go except the government will be against us instead of in Iraq where the government is supposed to be with us.

[The Stranger]

16. Let's take your statement and change a few words:

The fact is that the poor people of the Iraq have been massacred and tortured by a fundamentalist Christian government and militias which is now about to do the same thing to Afghanistan, Iran, etc.

[Cocoa]

6. also a progressive cause

the Congressional Black Caucus is leading on Darfur.

Good to see centrists like Hillary joining in.

[msgadget]

8. Timing is everything

The CBC has indeed been leading - with little fanfare - on Darfur. It's the timing of the statement and that Darfur attention leans to the right.

[Mutley]

7. Is Darfur called Iraq or Iran?

Then Bush won't care.

[Avon]

9. I call on Senators to do something, not just call on Bush!

I support the measures Hillary Clinton asks President Bush to take - but we all know that he won't take them. Why should that be the end of discussion, leaving Darfur (and now Chad) to suffer unspeakably?

We need Senators who will do more than that. Hillary Clinton is up for re-election this year, and a progressive - Jonathan Tasini - is mounting an all-out challenge for the Democratic nomination. We need someone who will go all-out on an issue, not just speak up and be done with it. Tasini's energetic campaign promises an energetic term of service in the Senate. Those of us who live in New York State can be grateful that our vote can count toward real progress in Darfur.

But in every state, we need to insist that Congress, not just the GOP-mainstream executive branch, make some major leaps forward in how we address the world.

[Cocoa]

10. does Tasini differ with Hillary over Darfur?

I would expect they wouldn't differ very much, but I know nothing about Tasini.

[Avon]

11. Differences differ - talk vs. action

Differences of opinion aren't the only things that set Senators apart. Tasini has not compromised on his positions as much as Clinton has in recent years, but on Darfur I'd assume they see eye to eye.

Yet you can have two Democrats with identical opinions, one being a leader and doer, and the other just voting along the same lines. In fact, we often do have plenty of both. Half the Senate right now seems to be the latter type - never achieving much (though I can't deny that their votes count just as much, whether they're leaders, followers, lazy, crazy, stupid or just guessing).

We have plenty of Senators on both sides of the aisle who are anguishing about Bush, at least sometimes. Some of them even say so in public. But I'm afraid that has no effect on what the nation does. We need someone who feels empowered to not just say but do ... someone less entrenched in the system that Clinton has become. We want to see her 10 very worthwhile points not just noticed, but heeded. She has not yet even admitted that it was a mistake to launch the Iraq war, let alone done anything to end it. I've always admired her opinions, but since 9/11 I've doubted many of her decisions and political positions, and I can't see that she's achieved anything at all in years.

Tasini has been bold about dumping failed paths and charting where we really want to go. I can't imagine him spending six years merely calling on his opponents to do something. Sure, he hasn't had a term in the Senate yet to evaluate, but he has accomplished a lot lately. His website - tasinifornewyork.org - contains the details, but more than that it really conveys the energy.

[Cocoa]

12. you're talking about Hillary Clinton

that's ok, people have strong feelings, positive or negative, about Clinton. But I was talking about Darfur, and Clinton's letter to Bush is about Darfur.

Did you read it?

[Adelante]

13. "our vote can count toward real progress in Darfur"

So what is his position on Darfur? It sounds like you know what it is.

[bush_is_wacko]

15. Give me a break!

I get that there are other issues besides Iraq, warantless wiretapping, torture, blah, blah, blah but it seems to me that every time pretzel boy is on the rocks Hillary Clinton tries to interject yet another issue other than the ones the chimpinator is under the gun for at the moment.

As far as I'm concerned Hillary is a lame duck! I hope I don't have to decide whether or not I'm going to vote for her as president. My reasons are man but that woman would not be my choice to represent my political views. I'm glad NY likes her. Let them KEEP her, forever.

[fujiyama]

17. Huh?

I'm a big critic of Hillary, but I don't understand your point.

There is a campaign of ethnic cleansing going on in Darfur, whether some want to admit it or not. I realize it doesn't appeal much to far leftists if Muslims are doing the slaughtering. After all, fundamentalist Muslims are always the victim...It's funny, but whenever Israel comes up, we see those on the extreme left flipping out. OTOH, why the dead silence on Darfur?

I do agree though that nominating Hillary would be disasterous, but I admire her for speaking out on this.

[bush_is_wacko]

18. We can't fix everything right now.

I realize politics is a messy and far ranging activity but it is time to focus in on what we can do to fix THIS country.

I often wonder if the reason people don't see the Democrats as having a real message is because they have so many messages. Americans have a short attention span and they want to hear something substantial. Then they want to hear it over and over again so they can wrap their brains around it. While I didn't agree with the message the thuglicans sent out they definitely sent a message out and stuck to it. I KNOW Dem's can come up with a better message than cut taxes for the wealthy and those so-called "moral values." In fact the simple message should be let's FIX this government and prosecute those that have circumvented EVERY process in it.

Yes, Dafur is something that needs to be addressed but at this point Americans want to see America addressed FIRST.


When are the Democrats going to get together and pounce on this opportunity to show America that they know what the issues are right here at home and they are dedicated to finding a way to fix them?