Neo-Crazies Already Planning Beyond Iran

Maybe you thought that when President Bush declared war on terror it was just a euphemism.

Wrong!

By that declaration, Bush made himself commander in chief of our armed forces, which he is – under the Constitution – only "in time of war."

Once proclaimed, our commander in chief immediately called to active duty the National Guard and sent them off to Afghanistan and Iraq to fight in a real war.

There are other steps Bush could take to prevail in the War on Terror he has declared, and neo-crazy Frank Gaffney has just published a book suggesting 10 of them.

And a gaggle of fellow neo-crazies at the American Enterprise Institute has just published an obbligato – entitled "Launch Regional Initiatives" – based upon a couple of them.

"There are a host of measures that can and must immediately be undertaken, literally all over the world, that do not require the use of American armed forces. In fact, if we wish to avoid calling on the U.S. military for further missions, these actions will be essential – in the Mideast (and its periphery) and in Africa, Asia, Latin America, Russia, and Europe."

Take Iran, for example.

The AEI neo-crazies think it's surprising that, even after four years of our War on Terror, you soccer moms still don't realize that Iran has been at "war" with us for almost three decades. According to the neo-crazies (truncated bullet points from throughout the text):

• "Prior to the attacks of September 11, 2001, Iran was responsible for the deaths of more than fifteen hundred Americans–more than any other state sponsor of terror or terrorist organization in history."
• "According to press accounts, a report by the Israeli secret service estimates that Iran has 'invested more than $10 million to encourage terrorist activity against Israel.'"
• "Iran is the patron of Hezbollah, its radical Shi'a terrorist proxy that seeks to deny freedom to the people of Lebanon and threatens American and Israeli interests and assets."
• "Despite differences on some religious points, Iran also directly supports the despotic regime in Syria, as well as such Palestinian terrorist groups as Hamas, Islamic Jihad, and Fatah. Iran is dedicated to helping Hamas emerge as the dominant power in the Palestinian areas as an ally with the shared goal of destroying Israel."
• "Iran directly supports most of the Shi'ite-based political movements in Iraq and their militias. Indeed, Iran largely created the revolt in Najaf fomented by the radical Shi'a cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. (Al-Sadr's troops were reportedly trained at camps inside Iran.)"
• "There are many indicators that Iran is actively supporting al-Qaeda's operations inside Iraq, led by the Jordanian terrorist Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. The chief Iranian terrorist operative, Mugniyeh, has reportedly recommended coalescing the operational forces of al-Qaeda with other groups inside Iraq. The regime in Tehran is also providing safe haven to al-Qaeda members and leaders inside Iran."
• "Finally, there is the matter of Iran's acquisition of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles."

So what are we to do?

"The United States must wage total political war against the Islamofascists in Tehran, both inside Iran and from the outside. This war should be designed to keep the Iranian regime off balance (including, where necessary, through the use of covert means), with the ultimate goal of undermining its control. …

"Support resistance movements. An important part of such a proactive strategy must be an immediate commitment of significant financial resources to help prodemocracy groups in Iran. The Iran Freedom Support Act, introduced by U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum in February 2005, would authorize the president to spend $10 million to support the resistance. This is a good start – but something closer to $300 million will be needed. …

"We have for too long allowed Iran's nearly three-decade war against the United States to go unanswered. And, unless we deal with it effectively in the immediate future, we will be faced with a nuclear-armed terrorist regime that has shown no reluctance to attack American citizens and American interests throughout the world."

Of course, there are actions the AEI neo-crazies say we must take against countries other than Iran.

For example, they charge a "fascistic takeover" is under way in Turkey. Instead of being a democratic Muslim bulwark against Islamofascism, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is "systematically" turning his country into a state governed by a radical Islamic ideology hostile to Western values and freedoms.

What to do about Turkey?

Threaten to prevent their joining the European Union.

Otherwise, our commander in chief will have to call on the National Guard for further missions.

They don't call them "neo-crazies" for nuthin'.