If Gore had been elected instead of Bush!

[galtgulch]

AN obvious leftist on NPR contended that if Gore had been in office when the attack on the World Trade Towers occurred that his response would have been to have attacked in Afganistan with overwhelming numbers of troops more quickly than Bush's delayed reaction. Osama Bin Ladin would have been captured at the start and no invasion of Iraq would have happened.

I do wonder what Ron Paul would have done under those circumstances as well. I don't recall whether Ron Paul was agitating for a quicker military response at the time of the World Trade Center attack. Anyone have any idea?

galt

[Aggrad02]

AN obvious leftist on NPR contended that if Gore had been in office when the attack on the World Trade Towers occurred that his response would have been to have attacked in Afganistan with overwhelming numbers of troops more quickly than Bush's delayed reaction. Osama Bin Ladin would have been captured at the start and no invasion of Iraq would have happened.

I do wonder what Ron Paul would have done under those circumstances as well. I don't recall whether Ron Paul was agitating for a quicker military response at the time of the World Trade Center attack. Anyone have any idea?

galt

Ron Paul authorized the bill for President Bush to pursue the attackers of 9/11. And has said that that was what he would have done. He would not have gotten sidetracked with Iraq or taken any crap from Pakistan. Since Osama Bin Laden is probably there, he thinks we should have pursued him until caught. He also thinks the US should shave issued letters of marque and reprisal's against bin Laden and Al Qaeda, similar to what Jefferson did to the Barbary Pirates.

-Dustan

[Chris Grieb]

Dustan; Give some sources for the statement about Letters of Marque and Reprisal. A book called 6 Frigates says the US Navy was used on the Barbary Pirates. The Navy was successful. I know the Marines were do you think the "shores of Tripoli" are.

Christopher Hitchens praised Jefferson's sucessful war against Islamic Jahadists.

Edited July 6, 2007 by Chris Grieb

[emb021]

Dustan; Give some sources for the statement about Letters of Marque and Reprisal. A book called 6 Frigates says the US Navy was used on the Barbary Pirates. The Navy was successful. I know the Marines were do you think the "shores of Tripoli" are.

Christopher Hitchens praised Jefferson's sucessful war against Islamic Jahadists.

Will a press release from Ron Paul himself in 2001 do: http://www.house.gov/paul/press/press2001/pr101101.htm

[Chris Grieb]

Michael B, My question was about whether Jefferson used them. From what I have read he used the US Navy and these six frigates which he had opposed before he was elected President.

[Aggrad02]

I could have sworn I heard that he had, but I haven't found anything yet and am tired of looking (which means he probably didn't). I am sorry for that erroneous part of the post. But if I do find something in my reading I will update this post.

-Dustan

[emb021]

Michael B, My question was about whether Jefferson used them. From what I have read he used the US Navy and these six frigates which he had opposed before he was elected President.

It wasn't clear to me what sources you were looking for.

I have no idea about Jefferson & Letters of Marque. Ron Paul's statement says nothing about Jefferson, nor does the Wikipedia article on Letters of Marque. So not sure how that idea creapt into all this.

[Aggrad02]

http://www.pccua.edu/keough/Thomas%20Jeffe...y%20Pirates.htm

Congress did authorize the appropriate measures of allowing the navy and the President to capture and make prizes of Tripolitan vessels. The authorization led to a war effort the lasted for four years.

So the congress did issue letters of marque and reprisals against the piirates and Jefferson used this to send the navy.

--Dustan

[Chris Grieb]

Dustan;

I wanted to thank you for your very gracious post and acknowledgement that you may have been wrong.

This is a question I have about the letters. Would they be accepted as a legal defense today? I be curious to know their status.

[Aggrad02]

Dustan;

I wanted to thank you for your very gracious post and acknowledgement that you may have been wrong.

This is a question I have about the letters. Would they be accepted as a legal defense today? I be curious to know their status.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Article_One_o...ers_of_Congress

Article 1, Section 8 of the US Constitution grants Congress the power to issue letters of marque and reprisal.

So they would be legal.

As far as the international community is concerned. The signatories of the Declaration of Paris (1856) bans the use of them, but the United States did not sign this treaty.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Letter_of_marque

--Dustan

[Chris Grieb]

Dustan; Thanks for all the references. I don't think I want to be in an Iranian court with just letters of Marque as my defense.