Beltway Happenings
May 24, 2007--Rep. Ron Paul (R-TX) held a press conference to bolster his argument that "50 years of interventionism in the Middle East has compromised the security of America."  In a question during the May 15 "First in the South" GOP debate in South Carolina, a reporter singled out Paul as "the only man on the stage who opposes the war in Iraq."  In a follow-up question, the reporter asked Paul if the 9/11 attacks had affected his views; Paul argued that, "They attack us because we've been over there; we've been bombing Iraq for 10 years."

Former New York City Mayor Rudy Guiliani then earned perhaps the biggest response of the night with his interjection:

"That's really an extraordinary statement.  That's an extraordinary statement, as someone who lived through the attack of September 11, that we invited the attack because we were attacking Iraq.  I don't think I've heard that before, and I've heard some pretty absurd explanations for September 11th."
In this press conference Rep. Paul, accompanied by Dr. Michael Scheuer, former head of the CIA's Bin Laden Unit, suggested Giuliani showed an "alarming" ignorance on foreign policy and presented a reading list (below).

Reading list from the Ron Paul 2008 Presidential Campaign Committee (the campaign also provided "Cliff Notes for Rudy"): 
 


Reading for Rudy

Johnson, Chalmers.  Blowback.  Henry Holt and Company: New York, NY.  2000.

Pape, Robert A.  Dying to Win.  Random House: New York, NY, 2005.

Scheuer, Michael.  Imperial Hubris.  Potomac Books: Washington, DC, 2004.

National Commission on Terrorist Attacks. The 9-11 Commission Report, Final Edition.  Barnes & Noble Publishing: New York, NY, 2006

 

 
Copyright © 2007  Eric M. Appleman/Democracy in Action