posted 07-31-2003 01:11 AM            

by Paul Sperry

Is the "war on terror" declared by the Bush administration just a cynical and immoral subterfuge for securing needed Mideast oil, as leftists and anti-war activists claim?

Or is America's ongoing military response to the horrendous attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, not only justified, but motivated totally by compelling national security concerns with no admixture of any other agenda, as administration cheerleaders claim?

Or, does the truth lie somewhere in between? And if so, exactly where?

"Crude Politics: How Bush's Oil Cronies Hijacked the War on Terrorism" makes the unsettling case that the Bush administration, though engaged in an unavoidable and moral war on terror, also tried simultaneously to secure future energy production in the terrorists' home turf and ended up compromising America's national security interests.

While the United States was still reeling from the horror of Sept. 11, 2001, says "Crude Politics" author and WorldNetDaily Washington bureau chief Paul Sperry, Bush administration diplomats were resuming talks with Pakistani officials over gas and oil pipelines in Afghanistan and Pakistan. Ultimately, the U.S. seized the opportunity of the war-on-terror as a reason to oust the Taliban -- the major obstacle blocking plans for the precious pipelines linking Caspian reserves to hot Asian markets. Indeed, the book documents how the Bush administration tailored the war on terrorism around oil interests in the Caspian region, and to a lesser extent, in Iraq.

With journalistic integrity and painstaking research, Sperry enlightens readers on:

* How commercial gain within the current oil-friendly administration has undermined America's war on terror

* How our safety has been jeopardized because of an overriding effort to charge ahead with a new "Silk Road" through Afghanistan and Pakistan, making the capture of Osama bin Laden a secondary concern

* The nature of war and the politics behind the major decisions being made in the current administration, including those regarding Iraq and other "axis of evil" countries

* Bush's behind-the-scenes operator for regime change in both Afghanistan and Iraq -- former energy consultant Zal Khalilzad.

Paul Sperry is the Washington bureau chief at WorldNetDaily.com, a position he previously held at Investor's Business Daily, where he wrote for 12 years. A Hoover Institution media fellow, his reports on national security issues have been picked up by virtually every major news agency in the world. Sperry's journalistic courage and integrity are backed by years of experience, including extensive reporting and editing on national affairs, economics, manufacturing, real estate, and general business coverage. President Bill Clinton "banned" Sperry from the White House in 1999 after the reporter asked him tough questions about the Chinagate fund-raising scandal.

posted 07-31-2003 02:14 AM            

Wednesday, July 30, 2003 1:55 p.m. EDT
'Hillary's Scheme' Tops Hillary's 'Living History' on Amazon

"Hillary's Scheme," the hot new book exposing Hillary Clinton's presidential plans for 2004 by NewsMax.com's Carl Limbacher, has passed Hillary Clinton's own memoir, "Living History," on Amazon.com's "Top Seller" list.

By midday Wednesday, "Scheme," published under the Crown-Forum imprint, had skyrocketed to No. 21 on the Amazon list, jumping more than a thousand places in the last 24 hours. "Scheme" also reached the No. 2 spot on Amazon's non-fiction list, right behind Ann Coulter's monster hit "Treason."

Meanwhile, Mrs. Clinton's book has slipped to No. 33 on Amazon, after selling more than a million copies for publisher Simon & Schuster.

The buzz on "Hillary's Scheme" heated up yesterday, after Limbacher appeared on Sean Hannity's national radio show, followed by a TV appearance on Fox News Channel's "Hannity & Colmes" and a guest spot on Michael Reagan's radio program.

"This proves the power of the alternative media in getting information out to the American people," Limbacher told NewsMax. "They want to know what Hillary is up to, and 'Hillary's Scheme' spells it all out."

To hear Limbacher discuss the hot new book that has Hillary Clinton's ears burning, tune in today to Al Rantel's KABC radio program in Los Angeles, 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. PT, Judicial Watch Radio on the USA Radio Network, 4:30 p.m. ET, and The Bob Grant Show on WOR in New York, 6 p.m. ET.

posted 07-31-2003 09:32 AM            

Source: Institute for Policy Studies
Posted: July 23, 2003

WASHINGTON - Representatives of The Institute for Policy Studies (IPS) and Government Accountability Project (GAP) today urged Congress to investigate - and repeal - an executive order signed by President George W. Bush that gives sweeping powers to U.S. oil companies operating in Iraq.

The two public interest organizations charged that President Bush far overreached a May 22, 2003, United Nations resolution that was designed to protect Iraqi oil revenues for humanitarian purposes when he signed an executive order that could place U.S. corporations above the law for any activities "related to" Iraqi oil, either in Iraq or domestically. Bush signed Executive Order 13303 the same day that the UN Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 1483, which sets up a development fund, from Iraqi oil revenues, for "humanitarian purposes."

"This order reveals the true motivation for the present occupation: absolute power for U.S. corporate interests over Iraqi oil," said IPS Senior Researcher Jim Vallette. "This is the smoking gun that proves the Bush administration always intended to free corporate investments, not the Iraqi people."

"In terms of legal liability, the Executive Order cancels the concept of corporate accountability and abandons the rule of law," charged Tom Devine, legal director of the Government Accountability Project. "It is a blank check for corporate anarchy, potentially robbing Iraqis of both their rights and their resources."

In order to encourage the flow of oil revenues into the Development Fund, the UN Security Council declared that Iraqi oil and gas would be immune from legal proceedings until Dec. 31, 2007. The intent was to immunize the oil and gas only "until title passes to the initial purchaser" and further does "not apply to any legal proceeding... necessary to satisfy liability to damages assessed in connection with an ecological accident."

However, the president's executive order ignores these important caveats and declares that "any attachment, judgment, decree, lien, execution, garnishment, or other judicial process is prohibited, and shall be deemed null and void," with respect to the Development Fund for Iraq and "all Iraqi petroleum and petroleum products, and interests therein."

In addition to an exemption for ecological accidents, the UN order had restricted immunity to the point of initial sale. Bush grants Iraqi oil a lifetime exemption provided US companies are involved in the oil's production, transport, or distribution. His order applies to Iraqi oil products that are "in the United States, hereafter come within the United States, or that are or hereafter come within the possession or control of United States persons." Under U.S. law, corporations are "persons." Executive Order 13303 means that if oil companies establish separate corporations to handle Iraqi oil, they may be able to escape liability entirely.