UN delegates applaud calling Bush ‘the devil’
September 21, 2006 | By Nathaniel Ward
“The imperialists [Americans] see extremists everywhere,” the left-wing demagogue told the UN General Assembly. “It’s not that we are extremists. It’s that the world is waking up.” These extremists, of course, include al Qaeda terrorists and the mullahs in Iran.
“[Chavez’] remarks drew applause from many of the delegates,” Reuters reports.
His remarks make it very clear where the self-appointed heir to the brutal policies of Fidel Castro stands. And the reaction of world leaders assembled at the United Nations makes it clear where that corrupt organization stands: against the United States and the values it upholds.
At an event Thursday with liberal actor Danny Glover, Chavez reiterated his personal attacks on President Bush, calling him a “sick man.” He also urged the United States to elect a President he could better negotiate with—in other words, a President less willing to stand up for America.
“Mr. Chavez opposes the United States, its prosperity and its definition of representative democracy,” Heritage’s Stephen Johnson wrote in March. “Free markets and human rights have no place in his utopia.” Chavez also hopes to export his country’s socialism and oppression overseas, Heritage expert Peter Brookes wrote last year. “We’d better stop him before he gets started.”
‘Stop the hemorrhaging’ on the border
Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-CO) argues against amnesty and for border security Thursday at The Heritage Foundation.
America must work to “stop the hemorrhaging” on the border and stem the tide of illegal immigration, Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-CO) said today at The Heritage Foundation. “We ought to be able to agree that lax border enforcement poses a national security threat to every single American.”
Whether America implements a guest worker program or not, the country must secure its borders, Tancredo argued. Amnesty does not work, as the 1986 immigration law demonstrates. “If we do that again, we’ll get exactly the same outcome,” he said.
- Watch Rep. Tancredo’s presentation online (Windows Media format)
“We can fix our broken borders, and we should do so,” he concluded.
The Congressman also took issue with President Bush’s characterization of amnesty as “automatic citizenship,” saying his redefinition of the term was clouding the debate. “That is not the definition of amnesty,” Tancredo said. “It’s when you do not apply the penalty to the law that is broken, that is amnesty.”
He also made the case for stronger assimilation of legal immigrants. If this is to happen, immigrants must be willing to assimilate, and the government must be willing to demand they do so. Today, though, “government institutions are not encouraging assimilation. In many cases they are doing just the opposite.” He cited in particular bilingual education measures and proposals to allow non-citizens to vote in local elections.
Tancredo spoke in Heritage’s Lehrman Auditorium during a break from a busy legislative day in the House that included discussion of several new border security measures.
Success for school choice
Heritage’s Dan Lips and Evan Feinberg have been hard at work arguing that parents should be granted a greater say in how their children are educated. Their work is paying off, as they illustrate in a new paper.The highlights:
- Seven states—Arizona, Florida, Maine, Ohio, Vermont, Utah, and Wisconsin—and the District of Columbia have taxpayer-funded scholarships to help students attend private elementary or secondary schools of choice;
- Seven states—Arizona, Florida, Illinois, Iowa, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and Rhode Island— have tax credits or deductions for education expenses, including private school tuition, or incentives for contributions to scholarship programs;
- Forty states and the District of Columbia have charter school laws;
- Public school choice within or between districts is guaranteed in 15 states;
- Dual enrollment programs exist in 38 states, in 18 of which the programs are mandatory, to allow qualifying high school students to attend college classes to receive higher education credits; and
- Home schooling is legal in every state.
In other news
- News reports suggest that President Bush may have reached an agreement with Congress on rules regulating the interrogation of those detained in the war on terrorism.
- If liberals retake Congress this fall, they will raise taxes and thereby hurt the economy, President Bush warned today. Liberals have long opposed the President’s tax cuts, which reduced penalties on work and investment and allowed strong economic growth.
- Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said today that Iran does “not need [an atomic] bomb.” But even if Iran doesn’t need a bomb, that doesn’t mean Iran doesn’t want a bomb or that America shouldn’t stop them from getting one.
- The UN today reported that terrorist groups, militias and government forces in Iraq are violating rules on prisoner abuse. It’s about time the UN recognized these terrorists for the brutal murderers they are.
- A teacher who twice burnt American flags in his classroom will not face any criminal charges, The Louisville Courier-Journal reports. The teacher had set the flags on fire in front of students as part of a “lesson” on free speech.
Coming up at Heritage
To attend these or any other Heritage Foundation events, RSVP at Heritage’s events website. Or you can watch these events live online at Heritage.org. All times are Eastern.
- On Friday, September 22 at noon, Heritage’s James Carafano discusses how GI ingenuity became an enduring feature of the American citizen-soldier during World War II.
- On Wednesday, September 27 at noon, victim of Islamic terrorism and author Brigitte Gabriel will speak on the brutality of fundamentalist Islam and how the threat has been underestimated.
Nathaniel Ward is the Editor of MyHeritage.org—a website for members and supporters of The Heritage Foundation.