July 28, 2016

‘Stop excusing him’: Elijah Cummings derails CNN interview for ‘ridiculous’ Trump double standard

http://www.rawstory.com/2016/07/stop-excusing-him-elijah-cummings-derails-cnn-interview-for-ridiculous-trump-double-standard/

(snip)


CNN’s Cuomo countered that Democrats were “bashing” Trump instead of promoting Clinton’s policies.

“Especially when it comes to this latest wrinkle, this gift that you guys say he gave you about asking Russians to hack Hillary Clinton’s emails to release them,” the CNN host charged. “You guys are calling it treason. He went on TV this morning and said, ‘I was being sarcastic. This is the Democrats trying to frame me as a bad guy.'”

“We have to stop excusing him when he says these nasty things,” Cummings interrupted. “We really do. Because words do matter.”

“But is it treason?” Cuomo pressed.

“I’ll let the FBI and others decide that,” the Maryland Democrat remarked. “My point is — and by the way, no matter what it is, it should not have been said. If I did that, I’d be out of office or in jail.”

(end snip)

July 16, 2016

Two men conducted a 9/11/01 'dry run' in 1999 with tickets from Saudi government

http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/07/declassified-report-saudi-ties-september-11

After being kept out of the public eye for 13 years, Congress on Friday declassified 28 pages of a controversial report outlining a series of potential connections between the terrorist hijackers who attacked the United States on 9/11 and the government of Saudi Arabia. The document details a number of alleged instances wherein individuals linked to the Al Saud family may have assisted or provided financial support to the al Qaeda operatives who committed the terrorist attacks.

(snip)

Two men conducted a “dry run” on a flight to D.C., with tickets paid for by the Saudi government

In 1999, Mohammed al-Qudhaeein and Hamdan al-Shalawi reportedly asked flight attendants a handful of suspicious questions and tried to enter the cockpit of the airplane twice. Al-Qudhaeein and al-Shalawi were flying to Washington, D.C., where they planned to attend a party at the Saudi Embassy. The two claimed the embassy also paid for their tickets aboard the flight.

(end snip)



http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/287947-congress-publishes-redacted-28-pages-from-9-11-report

(snip)

And in one instance that appeared notable in retrospect, two men flying on tickets paid for by the Saudi embassy in 1999 acted suspicious during the flight and twice tried to enter the cockpit. Charges were not filed in that instance even though the plane was forced to make an emergency landing, but the FBI’s field office in Phoenix believed the incident may have been a “dry run” to test airline security.

(end snip)

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/07/read-28-declassified-pages-about-potential-saudi-involvement-911

Another frightening passage described what seemed to be a dry run or information-gathering mission for the eventual hijackings. 1999, Saudi citizens Mohammed al-Qudhaeein and Hamdan al-Shalawi flew from Phoenix to Washington, DC to attend a party at the Saudi embassy. After the plane departed, they asked flight attendants suspicious technical questions about the flight. Qudhaeein twice attempted to enter the cockpit, and the plane made an emergency landing. The two men claimed the flight was paid for by the Saudi Embassy. The FBI investigated the incident and ultimately decided not to pursue a prosecution, but did uncover that both men had "connections to terrorism."

(end snip)

Who could have imagined?