As part of the Administration's efforts to keep the United States Congress and the American people informed about the activities of the United States military, and consistent with the War Powers Resolution, the President today submitted a report to Congress about deployments of the United States Armed Forces.
This report contains information about our deployments to Afghanistan, Central Africa, and Kosovo. This report also makes clear that the United States military is engaged in a robust range of operations to target al-Qaeda and associated forces, including in Somalia and Yemen. In Somalia, the U.S. military has taken direct action against members of al-Qaeda, and al-Qaeda associated elements of al-Shabaab. In Yemen, the U.S. military has engaged with the Yemeni government in joint efforts to dismantle and defeat al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, an active and dangerous al-Qaeda affiliate. In all cases we are focused on those al-Qaeda members and affiliates who pose a direct threat to the United States and to our national interests. This report contains information about these operations owing to their growing significance in our overall counterterrorism effort.
Going forward, the American people should know that we will do what is necessary to defend our country against those who would threaten us.
By: Brant
Very interesting, considering what is in H.R. 4310, the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013 (NDAA 2013), which is now in the hands of the Senate:
ReplyDeletehttp://tinyurl.com/6rt9xzt
Attached to that bill is a bipartisan-sponsored amendment summarized as follows:
"Amendment No. 114 - Reps. Thornberry (R-TX) and Smith (D-WA): The amendment would amend the United States Information and Educational Exchange Act of 1948 (known as the Smith-Mundt Act) and the Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1986 and 1987 to clarify the authorities of the Department of State and the Broadcasting Board of Governors to prepare, disseminate and use public diplomacy information [propaganda] abroad and to strike the current ban on domestic dissemination of such material. The amendment would clarify that the Smith-Mundt Act's provisions related to public diplomacy information [propaganda] do not apply to other federal departments or agencies (including the DoD)."
http://tinyurl.com/6ndk8lr
The full text of the amendment is assumed to be H.R. 5736, euphemistically labelled the "Smith Mundt Modernization Act of 2013". You can read that here:
http://tinyurl.com/7k98kqs
http://tinyurl.com/7eqx3fl
So, should we believe such a report? Hasn't Oceania always been at war with Eurasia?